The Day Stars Fall

I was very surprise to hear on the news yesterday that Farrah Fawcett has lost her battle with cancer. Even though it was an expected outcome in her journey, anyone would still be to shock and surprise when a star like her dies. Her's was a very public battle and struggle, and everyone was really sad about it.
I was at work when I was still thinking about Farrah and her role in Charlie's Angels; when I read on the online news that Michael Jackson was rushed to the UCLA hospital. I didn't think that it was really bad, since hearing about him being rushed to a hospital was really getting common now. A couple of hours later, I viewed the news again, and I was really shocked and nearly in tears to see that Michael Jackson has already died.
I started to get hooked on the news. I watched and read videos and articles from CNN. It was a very sureal news. I probably felt the same shock when I saw the news of the 9/11 attacks. Who would think that a legend like Michael Jackson would die so suddenly? Even his own critics were probably dumbfounded by this sad sad news.
A few people were already mourning the death of Farrah that day, and all of a sudden the king of pop is gone too. It's just a day that a couple of big stars fell.

In the Middle of a Recession

The world has fallen into a recession, and I never thought that we could be affected by it in a big way. I've always thought that it would be alright soon. The recession has hit hard in the US, and proof it was the recent news that we've gotten about some of our colleagues.
With the news, we are just a bit relieved and worried at the same time. We are relieved that we are safe from the effects of this recession in the US. We are also worried because we wouldn't be expecting any changes in our situation. We probably won't get any increases and bonuses this year. This is not actually very good for me since I've been struggling lately with my finances. All I can say is that we're just surviving. Hopefully, a gleam of light is in the horizon for us.

Movies to Watch Out For

It's been a while since I've watched a blockbuster in the movies. I admit that I wish I could just watch them myself, but I always have to consider my family when watching movies. The last 2 movies that I've seen were a chick flick with my wife, and an animated film with the kids. I appreciated the movies, but I guess I am more of a science fiction or block buster movie goer. There have been several movies lately that I have missed.
I was not able to see the Watchmen. I also missed watching Underworld 3. Recently, I wanted to watch X-Men origins: Wolverine, and the new and hipper version of Star Trek. I even missed seeing Dragon Ball Evolution. The reviews might have been bad, but it's still a big adaptation of my favorite anime series.
At this rate I could miss the next big movies: Angels and Demons, GI Joe, Transformers 2, and even Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Oops, maybe the last two not so much. I might be able to watch those with the kids.

Party for my Baby

It was my baby's birthday last Friday, and I had to pull all the stops to give her a party. We had invited a few friends over for dinner the next day. We couldn't do on a Friday night of course. I brought out my inner chef to cook a feast for a few Filipino friends, and few other friends here. My menu was simple, but I guess it was all right.
On my menu, I had Filipino style spaghetti, Filipino style Chicken Macaroni salad, special Fried Chicken, and Kaldereta (a Filipino Beef Stew). I was quite pleased with what I prepared, and considering the fact that I spent the whole of Saturday morning preparing it. A few of the guests also brought a few things on the table, and they were a hit too. I had the best compliment ever about my cooking that night. Our Russian friend told me that the Kalderata I prepared tasted exactly like her grandmothers stew. What were the odds of that?
Off course, at the end of the day, I did all that for my Baby. It was her time to celebrate, and I saw that she really enjoyed her day. She was with both friends and family.

For more photos click here...

The Start of the Year

Happy New Year everyone!!! It's finally 2009, and we all look forward to a whole new set of challenges for this year. For me, it's back to work as usual; and again spending less time with the family. I least, I had a good 2 week break spent on doing a lot of things with my wife and kids.
We weren't able to plan for a vacation away from home this year, so we just went around Melbourne and checked out the places that they haven't been to. The kids are still on school holidays, so it's a bit chaotic for my Baby. But I know she'll manage.
Anyways, this is just a short update to usher in the New Year. I hope I can spend more time blogging; but work has really been keeping me away from it. Hopefully, this 2009 I can do a lot more posts than I did in 2008.

What Happened the Year I Was Born?

Another Tag to enjoy...This one from Babette. Hope you enjoy!!! Thanks!!!

In 1978 (the year you were born)

Jimmy Carter is president of the US US Senate votes to turn over the Panama Canal to Panama on December 31, 1999 Israel and Egypt reach a peace settlement at the Camp David Accords The US and mainland China announce that they will restore full diplomatic relations Members of Jim Jones' People's Temple commit mass suicide in Guyana Pope John Paul II becomes the first non-Italian pope in centuries Ted Bundy is captured in Florida The first computer bulletin board system is created Garfield debuts in newspapers Ashton Kutcher, Kobe Bryant, Usher, Clay Aiken, and Nelly Furtado are born New York Yankees win the World Series Dallas Cowboys win Superbowl XII Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup Saturday Night Fever and Grease are the top grossing films "Night Fever" by the Bee Gees spends the most time at the top of the US charts Diff'rent Strokes and Mork & Mindy premiere

What Happened the Year You Were Born?

Support for my Baby!!!

Getting a webhosting for free now a days is a already a big deal, especially if it's from a very credible provider. If you'd like to win web hosting or cash like my Baby, then you could get your chance. Just see check out the post at kokeytechnology.com for more details on the contest mechanics.
I am proudly supporting my Baby in this contest, which is meant to be a generous Christmas gift by her good friend Jessie. I hope my baby wins!!!

Shot on the Spot

It's been a while since I've got a tag, and this one is from my baby. Here are the instructions of the tag:
1) Take a picture of yourself right NOW!.
2) DON’T change your clothes, DON’T fix your hair… Just take a picture.
3) Post that picture with NO editing.
4) Post these instruction with your picture.
I hope my baby likes this photo. Am wearing a new shirt that we bought last weekend, and just sitting in front of my office notebook.

My New Wallpaper

Every now and then I'd also do some scrapping with pictures that I've taken. Of course they would be of my kids and my wife. And most often than now, the final product ends up to be my new wall paper on my work computer.
It's bad enough that I don't have a permanent desk to put a photo frame on; so it is very handy indeed to be able to have their photos on hand or on my deskstop. Here is the new wallpaper on my deskstop. It's some of the recent photos I took of the family. They're featured on my Flickr account.

Little Big Thing

With the recent announcement of NAMCO to go for the multi Next Gen Console market with Tekken; I have tried to turn my attention to other factors that would make me go either way. Of course the choices are a PS3 or an Xbox 360. Can't really afford both, so I need to choose wisely.
I've heard and read about the pros and cons on both sides; and frankly, Tekken 6 was the only driving factor for me back then. I wouldn't really care about the other games, since my kids are content with the Wii; I needed to have something for my own. As a serious gamer, I find a lack of serious titles to go on with the Wii. It's probably just the difference in game play, since the Wii is more of a family or group oriented console. I've recently tried the new NBA Live 2009 on the Wii, and I got really bored with it. I may come back to it next time, but the odd thing is that I enjoy the Monkey Ball Banana Blitz game over it.
Anyways, I've recently caught a glimpse of something that would potentially tip me back to the PS3. Aside from the recent article that I read about ease of memory upgrade for the PS3, I also got curious about the new exclusive title Little Big Planet. It's a unique and new game where you can immerse yourself in your own world. You define the rules, and you define the gameplay. This I find interesting in that it could so much fun. Aside from a very high rating from IGN, this game looks like a brand new classic in the making. I'm now convinced that I would definitely be getting a PS3 soon.

Tekken 360???

I've been thinking of late to grab my very own PS3 because of 2 major factors. One factor was to have a nice Blu-ray player. As PS3 is a next generation game console, I had wanted to hop into the craze. It's been a while since I've thought of getting one for myself.
You see, I already have a Wii; but it's not really what you would call a next-gen console. Besides the kids are the ones enjoying it more than me. The games that we have are really for family fun. I tried to satisfy my thirst for fighting games with the Bleach game, but it wasn't that good for me. I am a more serious Tekken fan, and it's one of those things that make me decide to go for a console. I actually bought my second PS2 last time for Tekken 5, but eventually given it up to my siblings.
Anyways, when the news about a Tekken 6 version for the Xbox 360 came out, I was deeply saddened. The fact that Tekken has stayed exclusive with Sony's Playstations (except for Tekken GBA) has made me stick to the side of the PS3 on any argument about next-gen consoles. When they first announced that Tekken was one of the titles exclusive to the PS3, I was already bent on getting one for myself. But of course, when Namco had delays with releasing the much awaited game; I just put my plans on hold for a while.
I was already thinking of getting a PS3 a few weeks back, for the simple reason that the new Soul Caliber game came out. Of course, it came out for both the 360 and PS3; but it was a choice between Darth Vader on the PS3 and Yoda on the 360. I would pick the cool bad guy anytime.
Anyways, I guess with Tekken it's not going to be a simple choice. I'm gonna have to find more reasons to keep my choice. I'll just have to wait and see some more.

A New Tech-Toy for Me?

Well, it's really a tech-toy, but not for me. My wife had to started a hobby of taking pictures of the kids. You see, we have a park near by and it's a very nice place to be taking pictures. So we've finally decided to get a better camera. Not that our previous camera was not a good one. In fact it hasn't been 2 years since we got it; and it's a decent 8 megapixel waterproof Optio.
But I guess it's time for a DLSR, and so I've decided to get us the new Canon EOS 1000D. It's not a top of the range DLSR, but off course we need something to begin with. For starters, it is a newer entry-level DLSR; and I've read good reviews about it. At first, I was thinking about getting the 450D. But my wife would have to use it more often while at home, so we got the lighter 1000D.
Here is a run down of some of the specifications that this new baby boast: 10.1 Mega pixels CMOS sensor, 3888 x 2592 image size, Auto ISO adjust, Auto lighting optimizer, and with Live view. Of course, there are more technical things that can be discussed about it; but their really just the boring bits.

All I can add is that this baby packs a hell lot more image quality than our old Pentax. And off course it is a DLSR, so the challenge is be creative with your shots. It's something that I've wanted to try for quite a long time. But for now, I leave the playing around with this new tech-toy to my baby.

Here are the first pictures that we've taken with our new tech-toy:

The Kid's New Tech Toy

I've finally purchased a computer for my kids. I was originally thinking about a getting them an iMac, but I guess it was just too expensive and I probably won't get have much power. And the other reason was that I wasn't really a big Mac fan.
Anyways, I got the PC from a friend, who runs a small technology business. I think he game me a pretty good deal for it. I pretty much asked for the features of this PC, and I can say that it's much more powerful than even my new Dell Latitude D630 (this is my work machine off course).
Here are some of the specs that I had included in their PC:
Processor: Intel Core 2 DUO E7300.
Motherboard: P35 NEO-F LGA775 ATX.
RAM: 2GB 667MHZ DDR2 (KIngston).
Hard Drive: 500 GB SATA.
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GF8500GT PCI-E 512MB.
Monitor: BENQ E900W 19".
And some added features: 802.11G 54MBS Wireless PCI Card, and Logitech Cordless Deskstop (Keyboard and Mouse).
Now the kids are actually enjoying their new Tech Toy, and even getting connected on the Internet.

Talent Runs in the Family

I am really very proud of my kids, eventhough most often they cause me headaches. You see, it's a bit stressful to be a father of 3 very active young boys. Yes, I have three sons: a 7-year old, a 5-year old, and a 2-year old. Believe me when I say that they are more than a handful.
Anyways, going back to my story. I am a proud father of these 3 kids, and not because they're behave or anything; but they're really talented. All three of them can sing well, especially my 5-year old son Jarred, and Jover (7-year old) has been praised by his music teacher at school. The most surprising of all, is MJ (2 years old). At his very young age, he can already follow songs that he hears playing on his mother's notebook. Take note, MJ doesn't speak well yet. We're just waiting for the day for him to start speaking properly; and maybe he can sing well too. He loves to follow singing Eternal Flame, and the Power of Love.
My kids have managed to showcase their talents in a recent school performance. Here are some videos that a proud dad has captured. Hope you like them.
Jarred's Performance:


Jover's Performance:


Hopefully next time I can also capture some performances by MJ.

A Spin into the Olympics 2008

I often have a very Nationalistic view into sports. Well, in Philippine sports that is. Aside from the usual craving for the National Basketball Association, and maybe some Aussie rules footy (Go Cats!!!); I've got a very dear appreciation for my country's sports.
I fancy the Philippine Team (in any sport: especially Basketball, boxing, and more) that represents the Nation's pride in International competition. I was there when the PBA powered basketball team tried to get a slot in the recent Beijing Olympics. I am always there when Manny and the other International boxers compete in Vegas.
But recently, I've been very disappointed with the Philippine team representing in the Beijing Olympics. I'm saddened by the fact that we could only manage less than 2 handfuls of athletes to compete this year. We use to be able to field a handful of boxers, and now we could only manage 1. We used to be able to field a few jins in Taekwando, but now there are fewer. And don't let me get started about swimming, and track; we use to have decent fieldings there as well. I am very much worried about the prospect that the Philippines cannot even get a single medal this time around. Each day, our hope of getting gold if not getting a single medal is just dwindling.
So am just now looking forward to the next Olympics. Maybe then, we can get our Basketball team in; and maybe more boxers.

My Kids Love the Spin

I've just realized that my kids are always looking for fun, and they really enjoy varied forms of entertainment. Here are some photos of the kids having fun just about anywhere...

Cool iMac

After the dust has settled with the release of the new iPhone 3G, I've suddenly had a heated desire to purchase a new PC. Well, it's not going to be my personal one; but something for my kids. I've been struggling to decide between a PC (either from Dell or HP); or another Apply product the iMac.
When I saw the specs that the iMac boast, I was instantly captured, but that was only inner beauty. It also boast a design that is unmatched. It's a pretty cool design for a desktop computer, and I'm already being swung towards that direction. Now, this is after I've nearly killed my hunger for the iPhone. And I'm swinging again towards another Apple Product. Even my friend, who is an Apple fan; says that an iMac is pretty cool and will surely be worth it.
Either way, it's not for me; but for my kids. So am still in limbo trying to find a reason to invest in an iMac beauty.

Cool Cash

Blogging is an intellectual exercise that allows you to express what you want to express. It's fun sometimes because you get to read interesting things from other people. You also get an interest in a lot things if you start blogging, but did you know that it can also be rewarding?
Yes, your blog can bring in cool cash for you. In other words, you can Make Money with your blog. It's not really a gold mine or anything; but if you work hard at it, it might become short of a gold mine. Bloggerwave.com is a site to visit if you to convert your blog into an instant cash flow.

Cellphone Worries

With the wide use of the cellphone nowadays, it's always interesting to note the hazards that may come with using it. I've picked up a few bits from news recently, but everything is really up for debate.

Here is my listing of cellphone worries:

Brain Cancer - I've been hearing this quite often and it's actually being researched. I think they've already proven that it could increase the risks of having brain cancer.

Exploding batteries - This is the same as batteries catching fire. Nokia was recently one of the mobile phone companies to have done a recall of batteries because of possibility of exploding or catching fire. There was one case though in the Philippines where one user's N73 nearly burned her house down.

Driving while texting - This is the same as driving while talking on the mobile. They say it's been linked to so many accidents. Don't know about this. I don't actual drive anyways. But I do text while watching TV, or talk on the phone while riding on the train.

Holdup / Robberies / Murders - It seems that the cellphone doesn't only attract the attention of onlookers when you're talking on the handsfree. It also attracts the attention of thieves. Many crimes in the Philippines (particularly, holdups and robberies) have been because of cellphone flaashing owners.

Well, there you have it. These are just some of the cellphone worries that I know. But some people might add to this list a dozen more like dropping the phone, getting smudged, getting wet, or getting scratched. Some people just threat their mobile phones like jewelry nowadays. But, hey who wouldn't if you pay top dollar for it.

Anyways, that's all for now. Be safe with those things, and be responsible cellphone users.

Is there any improvement...

Well, if we're talking about the train system here in Melbourne; then the answer is no. In fact, it's actually gotten worse this week. The transport minister has recently bragged about implementing changes in certain lines that have issues, and said that it would increase the capacity of the system. It's been said that an additional 105 new services have been added to existing timetables to boost weekday travel to and from the CBD.

Well, if you're one of us, who get on the train from Glen Huntly to the city in the mornings (between 7:45 - 9:00); this has actually gotten worse. For the first day of the week, the regular train that I take was late for more than 10 minutes. And as before it was quite full. And today, well, it was even bitter, the train was on time but much more full train usual. The experience was as pathetic as before, but even more because of the fact that people are such inconsiderate brats (especially the one with his bike in the front carriage). Now I thought, the front carriage was meant for people with special needs, so what's going on?

Putting that aside. I pity those, who normally take the next couple of trains after the 8:21 because they've been cancelled today. For some reason, I must have known that would happen cause I rushed to the station to catch the 8:21. Sometimes if I get held up at home, I would catch the 8:36 and I would still be alright to get to work before 9:30 am. Well, I guess you'll just have some more rants on MX today. But if you feel like it, you can leave your rants on this blog as well. I would appreciate a sharing of ideas on how to solve this commuters' crisis.

I would like to ask the transport minister, where is the improvement? And how did Connex project any improvements with these changes? Considering that the Frankston line was specified as one of the lines that will be boosted, I think it's been just a load of crap. They shouldn't really sensationalize any changes in the train system, if it won't affect the commuters in a positive way. I mean, it's just one failed campaign after another. First was the early bird thingy, which everyone knows would not work since the mornings would really be too cold for most people to rush to work. And this promised boosts that has become just so lame.

So what's next in their circus of public transport juggles? A Clown day on the train? Well, I suggest they think of better ways to improve the situation. With the increased popullation of Melbourne, the train system should be revamped to hold the capacity. I mean, maybe adding more running trains or using trains with larger capacities. And keep the changes hush or at least not promise any improvements that cannot be achieve. And I don't want to hear another lame excuse about this latest change: it's too early to feel the improvements. Yes, it is too early to feel improvements, but why are we feeling worst?