popular passivity postpones permanent proposal

i'm a frequent visitor of the waiter rant blog and he keeps on mentioning jargon from his days as a seminarian & a psychiatry ward guy. one of the more intriguing terms was "passive-aggressive." yesterday, i looked it up at wikipedia and here's what it said:

Passive-aggressive behavior refers to passive, sometimes obstructionist resistance to authoritative instructions in interpersonal or occupational situations. Sometimes a method of dealing with stress or frustration, it results in the person attacking other people in subtle, indirect, and seemingly passive ways. It can manifest itself as resentment, stubbornness, procrastination, sullenness, or intentional failure at doing requested tasks. For example, someone who is passive-aggressive might take so long to get ready for a party they don't wish to attend that the party is nearly over by the time they arrive.

Someone who is passive-aggressive will typically not confront others directly about problems, but instead will attempt to undermine their confidence or their success through comments and actions which, if challenged, can be explained away innocently so as not to place blame on the passive-aggressive person.

Some passive-aggressive behavior may result from society's conditioning of individuals; direct confrontation can lead to harmful consequences. For example, confronting one's manager may lead to the loss of opportunities, such as being passed over for a promotion or even losing one's job.

Often passive-aggressive behavior manifests itself in individuals who view themselves as "peaceful". These individuals feel that expressing their anger through passive-aggressive behavior is morally favorable to direct confrontation.

The lack of repercussions resulting from passive-aggressive behavior can lead to an unchecked continual attack, albeit passive, on one's acquaintances.

i then began to think about the situation here in the land of bagoong, binalot, and balot. have we become a nation of passive-aggressive citizens? apparently so, since we're too tired to go up against a very unpopular regime. instead, we disobey the rules, engage in escapist tendencies, criticize all reformers (regardless of the seeming absence of a personal agenda-an exception, i know), or leave the country. then the cycle continues, we become more passive-aggresdive, and this land becomes a basket case.

just last night, i heard more of my batchmates from college leaving for abroad (if they haven't left already). am i the only stubbornly stupid one staying on? am i that complacent, that sold to the system that i refuse to move? am i here because i still believe i can achieve good (if not great) things here, or am i just afraid to take the plunge? and why do i have to leave this land just for a comfortable and luxurious life anyway??? can't i have that life here???

i wish i had a resolution for this, but i don't.

dollar doleout

several of my cousins & their offspring from my mom's side came home from the US just in time for christmas. as the tradition, mom would give away money as gifts. she gave one of my nieces a P500 bill. she looked at it strangely and said,

"i can't spend this; it's not even real money..." (with the "attitude")
mom: so you want dollars?
niece: yeah
mom: here you go (hands over $5)

(current exchange rate: $1 = P53.27)

laughter from the grownups all around; mom just saved a couple of hundred pesoses... he3x! :D

quezon quirk

i got the shock of my life when i saw that i was linked to mlq3's blog, one of the foremost philippine bloggers!!!

then i realized it was one of those random linkages to the right side of his toolbar, for those who frequent his blog i guess... there goes my 3 minutes of fame... he3x! :D

just jessica

hmm, news has it that jessica simpson didn't sign a prenup before her marriage with now ex-husband nick lachkey-something-or-other. that wasn't very smart, but then again, it's jessica simpson... he3x! :P

monthly memories

Copy and paste the first sentence(s) from your first entry of each month this past year. What better way to sum up your year and make a countdown to '06!

JAN

no blog yet...

FEB

i guess that's the inevitability of becoming more urbane, more cosmopolitan: recognizing one's own roots start here in the metro.

MAR

lee: ano ba naman yan??? (angry tone)

bambi: bakit??? (bewildered)

lee: bakit ka dyan nagpark ng kotse mo??? (getting pissed)

APR

at any rate, we went to legazpi city for business, then last saturday, we went to see the whale sharks (butanding) at sorsogon.

MAY

somebody must have forgotten to tell the sky that it's summer and i was in bora, because it was raining when i woke up in the morning!!!

JUN

In my never-ending pursuit for vanity, I have decided to look for glasses that will serve as an alternative to my contact lenses.

JUL

I’m waiting for my own PC to get its act together and save my excel file.

AUG

on my way to work this morning, i was following this huge green trash compactor.

SEP

let me start off with the usual political rant unique to the republic of bagoong, bananas, & binalot: yup, she'll be politicking more than governing now.

OCT

You Are 50% Boyish and 50% Girlish

NOV

oct 28 - left for US, arrived @ SFO

DEC

i have this cousin who was talking about the home-equity loan concept.

(i kinda cheated, some of these are the next few sentences, since i give long-winded intros...) :P

political pastime

You are a Social Liberal (65% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (38% permissive) You are best described as a: Democrat Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid Free Online Dating Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

i should be working, but isa's latest post led me to this...

meditating maharajah

picture this: an indian sitting in the park meditating in the traditional lotus hand pose (the fingers forming an "ok" symbol while the back of the hands are resting on the lap).

now picture this: the same indian, in a barong tagalog, and the park's salcedo park in the poshier sections of makati, on a wednesday morning before work.

too bad i don't have a picture of him. then again, even if i did have my digicam at the time, he would've had chased me for disturbing his privacy. now i wouldn't want to be a cause to break his meditation, now would i? :P

tact trumps technical

i've been meaning to post this ever since i got back from the states, but i guess work got in the way again... he3x! :P

i have this cousin who was talking about the home-equity loan concept. basically, if you buy your home for $300T, then after a couple of years the market price appreciates to $650T, you can go to the bank and use the $350T difference as a collateral for a loan. some banks would even give the whole $350T if not a percentage of $350T. he can then use the money for something else, like a car, or in his case a downpayment on his vacation house in hawaii.

this statement got me really riled up, not because of my cousin though, he's really a nice guy. but here's what got me mad:

• he's a pharmacist; he didn't need to be in finance to know these stuff
• he has an option to profit on the appreciation on the market price on his house; we can't even get a house here without being super rich or settling on a run-down house

it takes a certain degree of education to take advantage of these perks in the US system, or on any other system except here in our republic. out there, you go on your own merits, and you succeed. here, we only climb because of our closeness with the higher ups.

of course, the soft skills are important, it's what keeps the wheels of society moving smoothly. but the problem is that's all we have here in this republic. we don't nurture or encourage the skill of building the wheels in the first place. outside, between a guy who's technically competent and a guy who's technically competent and good with people, it's the latter guy. here, you don't even need to be technically competent!

the PhDs of china & taiwan came back because they knew their skills would be put to good use. here, if you retire, you just put your money in; no one would care about the skills you learned. the entrenched elite would rather use up the money than listen and learn about new skills to build the nation.

this sucks.

designer's desperate driving

the world is coming to an end, bambi is learning how to drive!!!

she has been going to driving school the past few days, and she's going around the southern metro from parañakyu to the fringes of cavite! and using manual transmission at that! pretty soon she'll be probably bringing the family car to work :D

i sat in the passenger seat yesterday tutoring her on driving and i got to review the following things i know take as instinct when driving:

• the gas & clutch pedals usually act in opposite manner (step on the gas, release the clutch to speed up; step on the clutch, release the gas to slow down/keep the engine running)
• a handbrake is good for keeping you from moving forward/backward from a full stop position
• driving in a cul-de-sac is not a good idea
• expect your left leg to ache after driving a manual
• wear an antiperspirant when learning how to drive....
• it's never a good idea to distract a driver w/ a fondness for babies & little kids while driving....

good luck bambi! and for everyone else, watch out!!! :D

unneccessary unfairness against untv

i just have to put this in before the weekend break.

of course we all know about the carnapping shootout thing & the coverage of UNTV of the shooting (i'm too much in a hurry to put in the link, just use your favorite search engine for a backgrounder). according to scuttlebutt, the casualties were really of the bad sort, but there was overkill on the part of Traffic Management Group (TMG) (don't think it was anything of the kuratong baleleng type though, just additional bullets used even when the guys expired).

after being suspended then reinstated, members of the TMG (don't know either if they were the ones in the shootout or not) were seen going around the UNTV premises doing what's called in military parlance as casing or for more western audiences, a sort of stakeout. thing is, they want to be seen by their targets, for the main purpose of harassing their target (in this case UNTV). TMG stopped when UNTV was able to call for help from the Eastern Police District (a location-based PNP unit, as opposed to a special unit like the TMG)

this thing is usually done to scare suspected criminals or other malcontents of society to force them to clean up their act. but in this case, UNTV's sin was to air something it has seen. the act could've been defended amply by the police; instead it had to resort to harassment. (i'm surprised no online version of this news came up, i saw it in the morning news of magandang umaga pilipinas)

my beef is this: why did the TMG have to go to that point of harassing a relatively unknown UHF station? because they were too lazy to go through the usual process? or because they felt emboldened that this increasingly unpopular government will not stop them? at the very least it won't chastise the TMG; but most probably it will champion the TMG's cause.

damn. the empress' paranoia has come to this.

do's & don't's @ dubya's domain

i'm back in the office, recovering from jetlag... here's an introduction of my future US entries (hopefully, i'll get around into posting it here... zzz...) :P

1. do not go to an asian immigration official at your port of entry; they know all the crazy things asians (esp. pinoys) will do just to gain the greencard/citizenship; they'll assume the worse.
2. do activate the roaming feature of your phone, but do not use it too much (i have yet to see my bill, i fear it...)
3. do make sure that you wear socks for your plane trip, other airlines might not be as extravagant as PAL to give out free socks.
4. do make sure you wear loose fitting or easy to wear shoes, for easier inspection in airports
5. do make sure your pants don't fall off when you take off your belt for metal inspection... hehehe!
6. do make sure you're dressed for the climate (i.e. it's almost always colder in the US than in the RP, so bring a sweatshirt, a jacket, or an extra layering shirt)
7. do make sure that your luggage has a distinctive mark or ribbon (make it a unique ribbon, since everyone else seems to be going for the red ribbon mark)
8. do not scatter your belongings out of your luggage, especially on a short trip; you might forget something on the way home
9. do rent a car online that will allow you to drive w/o the int'l license (hard to do...)
10. do make sure each day has an activity so you won't regret wasting your time
11. do not go to a restaurant where you can eat here in the RP!

well, keep tuned in for more stories!

random reminder

hmm, i dunno if i'll have some time later to blog fully, i'll put an initial outline to remind me of what happened on what day:

oct 28 - left for US, arrived @ SFO
oct 29 - arrived @ atlanta & indianapolis, went to dept store & hospital
oct 30 - went to mall & hospital
oct 31 - rode on '32 ford, went to LAX, arrived @ west covina
nov 1 - bambi san diego day one!
nov 2 - bambi san diego day two! went back to west covina
nov 3 - malling, went to walnut
nov 4 - will go to cedars later

will update my 2-3 readers later!!! :D

trivia @ the toy stores

whenever bambi & i would go to greenbelt 3 or rockwell, one of our required haunts would be landes/hobbes. in addition to being dorks in a toy store, we would always look for at the trivia games, where they would always show the CSI or SATC games. of course, we would always look for the FRIENDS game, but it would always be out of stock....

at the mall this afternoon here at indy, i came upon this store that sold this item:

now, how to hide this from bambs? nuninuninu... :-"

initial indy input...

it's 2:57pm here in indianapolis. yep, that's right, my 2-3 readers! i'm on the other side of the world for my mission to escort my lola and pay a visit to bambs! :P

will update you guys later, gotta go out to the downtown mall! :P

pasigraver's presence

to my 2-3 readers, please spread the word! pasigraver's back online!!! he3x! :D

acrimonious acronyms

(yes, joey, this isn't the best way to use "acrimonious" either, but i was running out of alliterative words... :P)

in addition to having a weak support base, the insurgents of the land of bagoong, binalot, and balut also have a problem with their names.

take the New People's Army for example. they're the communist armed wing here, so it's understandable that "people" should be in their name. and i guess china took the good name when they called themselves the People's Liberation Army. but it's been 30++ years since the NPA started out! they could hardly qualify as being "new" when the NPA is on it's 2nd or 3rd generation. they probably assumed they can takeover in 5 years, maybe 10 at most. but no... and i guess a name-change would be the last of their concerns...

and don't even get me started with the splinter group of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)... :P

gma's governmental gridlock & gym gripes

with all the discussions on the stalemate, CPR, coup plots, and general breakdown, i should be saying something to add to the melee in the blogosphere? but what do i need to add? i don't like the president and all the accomodations she's been doing just to perpetuate herself in power, but please oh please, give us a viable alternative! not just another bunch of people who may have idealists in the frontline but will be easily overtaken by the cynical politicians who may be even worse than the short one.

=================================

because of these political developments, i'm reduced to doing a pierre bernard sequence from conan's show...

i cut short my gym session today, that same guy said that i wasn't doing the lat exercises properly! please oh please, would you stop with that segue? i know it's going to inevitably go into the sales talk. if someone can show me how to recuperate that P7000 for 10 sessions (P700 per 1 hour session!) to justify the cost, please let me know!

i'm doing a soft cost-benefit analysis on whether i should stay on in RCBC or just work out in robinson's:

RCBC:

Pros:

• free towels
• clean showers
• free stuff (i only use the cotton buds)
• newer looking atmosphere
• more ab machines
• tidier steam room
• brighter locker rooms
• cleaner sinks with free paper towels for the sink

Cons:

• pestering gym instructors
• smaller free weights area
• less treadmills
• no iced tea

Robinson's:

Pros:

• free iced tea
• bigger free weights area

Cons:

• no free towels
• perennially wet sinks with no towels
• no free toiletries
• dingy showers
• dingy atmosphere

i'm still sticking to rcbc because the gym instructors haven't bugged me that much, but it's been 2 days now that this guy's been bugging me. the towel & shower issues in rcbc, i can overlook that if i reach my gym instructor irritation tipping point, and i do hope it won't be soon.

gym grrrs & eager expedition

don't you just hate it when you go to your local oddessey branch, then the saleslady goes up to you and pester you for stuff to buy? if i need their help, i'll ask for it. not that i don't value what they do or understand that they have to make a sale, but it pisses you off at times.

this is what goes on at the gym. the trainers have to meet a quota, so they come to you and tell you how to do your curls properly!!! this has happened 3x already, and they always think i'm new at the gym! hellow! i've been around since this year started!!! 8- i have my earphones on, with the volume on full! i don't want to be bugged! i don't want to spend P7000 on 10 sessions, when i'm trying hard to balance my finances! and for an incremental body benefit??? and i don't even go out! please leave me be and i'll eventually get my body type when i want to! grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!

========================

on a hectic note, i'll be strapping on my flight wings! i'll be going back to mayonlandia for a couple of days again for some work, then immediately afterwards, i'll be off to the land of conan, costco, and chevys!!! i'll be spending a little over a week there, thus enjoying the long todos los santos vacation away, in a land i haven't been to in 5 years! finally, i can get my passport marked again! :P

yun nga lang, the main reason i have to go is to accompany my lola to visit my tita who's undergoing a procedure (i know i'm not much of a catholic, but she needs all our prayers!). then i'm off to the west coast to visit my mom's relatives and bambi!!! :D:D:D

watch out for lee & bambi bloopers in the land of conan, costco, and chevys!!! :D:D:D

characteristically clancy

Mr. Krabs - Congratulations, you are Mr. Krabs! You
love counting your money, but NOT spending it.
"It's true! I'm cheap!"


Which Spongebob character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Brother Justin Crowe

Image copyright HBO.


HBO's Carnivale- Which Personality Do You Posess?
brought to you by Quizilla

blendered blog blows

it has been quite a while since i posted anything, even quite a longer time since i posted anything of a personal nature (not blog quizzes or surveys). work just gets in the way, plus cable, dvd-watching, etc. (although i must say i'm not as languid as pasigraver, who i think hasn't updated his blog in 5 months, but that's probably due to his job... peace pasigraver!) to my 2-3 readers, here's my update.

due to the changing nature of work, i've been assigned to the "mayon" province. i won't bore you with the details of the work; suffice to say that i'm experiencing my worst asthma indications in years due to the weather (molds in the billeting area would do that). heck, even a quasi-workout at the gym (which i missed for the last couple of days) didn't even make me cough & sneeze up a storm. sadly (for some), i'm a cosmopolitan (not the zine); totally used to the trappings of city life. don't get me wrong, i can stay on longer if it needs to, but that's the clincher: if it needs to.

political updates, hmm, what else is new? the empress is really going out of her way to maintain her survival. whether it be EO 464, bro. eddie's cases, or what not, she's firm in bending heaven and eggs, este heaven and earth to forward her political agenda. sadly, it's the same thing i said months ago, but secretly hoping that my inner (and outer) cynic would be proven wrong, for this republic of bagoong, binalot, and basketbol's sake. unfortunately, i'm still wrong. so what else is new?

hmm, i recently discovered this pldt promo for P5 per minute for IDD calls (plug2x!), it has been a cost-saver whenever i'd call bambi. just can't wait to see her again....

we saw danilo barrios in glorietta 4 last night, he was wearing these large pair of what bambi would call "bubuyog (bee)" shades at 7pm. i guess he was using that to hide his trademark eyebrows. i mean, his eyebrows make peter gallagher's eyebrows look like pencil marks! (the pintasero augustinian in me strikes again!)

oh well, this post should be enough. wake me up when i need to make a post that would wake me from my stupor...

guy or girl?

You Are 50% Boyish and 50% Girlish

You are pretty evenly split down the middle - a total eunuch. Okay, kidding about the eunuch part. But you do get along with both sexes. You reject traditional gender roles. However, you don't actively fight them. You're just you. You don't try to be what people expect you to be.

How Boyish or Girlish Are You?

so i'm not that gay, but i'm not exactly macho either... a ross or a chandler? definitely no joey... he3x! :P

survey says...

Got this from java junkie's post, you guys are "it!" enjoy! :P
1. Nervous Habits:walk around, tap fingers, bang on table
2. Are you double jointed:nope
3. Can you roll your tongue:yep! :P
4. Can you raise one eyebrow:i try, but it only goes up by 1mm /:)
5. Can you blow spit bubbles:no, but making spit bubbles...
6. Can you cross your eyes:yep! :D
7. somebody deleted this...wonder why???enh?
8. Do you make your bed daily:yeah, an OC habit
hey, #9 is missing!!
-- CLOTHES --
10. Which shoe goes on first:right shoe in
11. Speaking of shoes, have you ever thrown one at anyone?nope, i have big & heavy shoes, so they might cause a concussion :(
12. On the average, how much money do you carry::-$
13. What jewelry do you wear 24/7:watch & college ring during the daytime
14. Favorite piece of clothing:a good shirt w/ a good tie :>
-- FOOD --
15. Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it?i cut it and scoop it up
16. Have you ever eaten Spam:of course! :D
17. Favorite ice cream flavor:mint choco, and the occasional wasabe ;)
18. How many cereals in your cabinet:none, a rarity here in the republic of bagoong, bananas, and binalot
19. What's your favorite beverage:STARBUCKS COFFEE, iced tea
20. What's your favorite restaurant:Cibo, itallianis, starbucks, mongolian grills, arias, hey jude!, chef d' angelo, sushiya, yellow cab, rumpa, gerry's, dencio's, outback
21. do you cook:does toasting bread count? :P
-- GROOMING --
22. How often do you brush your teeth:2-3 times (too much info...)
23. Hair drying method:wipe with towel, lather on with gel
24. Have you ever colored/highlighted your hair:nope, but i had an unfortunate incident with a fix hair washer... :-s
--MANNERS--
25. Do you swear:the hell, of course not! >:P
26.Do you ever spit:yep, but i try to limit it at the bathroom :-"
-- FAVORITE --
27. Animalnot really particular, but i like my pet dogs :P
28. Food:pizza!!! :D
29. Month:december, when the cash comes in (and unfortunately out too) :P
30. Day:weekends :P
31. Cartoon:the simpsons, spongebob, ranma (does that still count?)
32. Shoe Brand:i'm particular to nike, but any brand would do :P
33. Subject in school:investments (since i got a 1.0 even if i got locked out of the room)econ (i got a 1.0 even if my BA118 that same sem was a 4.0, so i wasn't a total idiot)comm1 (fr. nudas)
34. Color:dark corporate IBM blue :-B
35. Sport:a bit of golf + the gym
36. TV show:friends, west wing, carnivale
37. Thing to do in the spring:avoid allergic rhinitis :(
38. Thing to do in the summer:vacation!!!
39. Thing to do in the fall?avoid the leaves :P
39. Thing to do in the winter?:wear a sweater
-- IN AND AROUND --
41. In the CD player:old eraserheads hits
42. Person you talk most on the phone with:bambs! :P
hey where'd #43 go?
44. Do you regularly check yourself out in store windows with mirrors? honestly?of course! i'm very vain :P
45. What color is your bedroom:beigish
46. Window seat or aisle:window to see the clouds & the takeoff & landing
-- LA LA LAND --
48. What's your sleeping position:flat on my back
49. Even in hot weather do you use a blanket:yes, since i use the aircon
50's missing
51. Do you sleepwalk:nope
52. Do you talk in your sleep:yeah, dreams carryover... :P
53. Do you sleep with stuffed animals:nope
54. How about with the light on:it's hard, but it happens when i'm too tired
55. Do you fall asleep with the TV or radio on:no radio, maybe TV when i'm tired, it's on sleep mode. but i usually turn off the TV because if i leave it in sleep mode, i might end up sleeping with my glasses on :P
56. Last interesting person you met:enh? :P

notoriously neutral

How evil are you?

i'm not exactly surprised, since i am relatively bland... but in the evil scale, i'm more evil than java junkie? really now? he3x! :D

musical memories

From Kitty Litter’s post!: Here’s the thing: go to this site Look for the search box on the left. Fill it in with the year that you graduated high school. Click open the first search result – it will have a 100 songs. Now cut and paste that and comment on the songs from your wasted youth, and react to them one by one!

Man, I’m this old??? :(

1. Gangsta's Paradise, Coolio – from dangerous minds! Michelle pfieffer was in this video!
2. Waterfalls, TLC – they’re on the MTV classic cd now :(
3. Creep, TLC – I don’t think this is the Creep alternative song
4. Kiss From A Rose, Seal – one of the few good things that came out of the Batman Forever movie: a good soundtrack. I remember a classmate commenting on the medieval strumming at the beginning of the song could be a reference to the Dark Knight (hi ria!) :D
5. On Bended Knee, Boyz II Men – one of the better BIIM songs
6. Another Night, Real McCoy – eh?
7. Fantasy, Mariah Carey – forgot this one
8. Take A Bow, Madonna – eto ba yung “say goodbye” sa With Honors?
9. Don't Take It Personal (Just One Of Dem Days), Monica – probably R&B, was more into metal/rock back in the day
10. This Is How We Do It, Montell Jordan – yep, just know the title & the beginning lyrics
11. I Know, Dionne Farris - nada
12. Water Runs Dry, Boyz II Men - nope
13. Freak Like Me, Adina Howard – hmm, there’s a song now with those lyrics in it
14. Run-Around, Blues Traveler – I vaguely remember the band
15. I Can Love You Like That, All-4-One – eh?
16. Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?, Bryan Adams – don juan de marco!
17. Always, Bon Jovi – the day when bon jovi had long hair, not yet an actor, and not yet a Democrat
18. Boombastic / In The Summertime, Shaggy – Levi’s commercial!
19. Total Eclipse Of The Heart, Nicki French – turn around (na paulit-ulit)
20. You Gotta Be, Des'ree - nope
21. You Are Not Alone, Michael Jackson – the dying embers of the Michael Jackson express
22. Hold My Hand, Hootie and The Blowfish – man, I thought they were gonna be big, but only eked out 2 hits
23. One More Chance-Stay With Me, Notorious B.I.G. – eh?
24. Here Comes The Hotstepper, Ini Kamoze – wha?
25. Candy Rain, Soul For Real - nope
26. Let Her, w Hootie and The Blowfish – see 22
27. I Believe, Blessid Union Of Souls – is this the song with the black dude falls in love with the white girl?
28. Red Light Special, TLC - nope
29. Runaway, Janet Jackson – forgot this one
30. Strong Enough, Sheryl Crow – Sheryl crow was already singing then?
31. Colors Of The Wind, Vanessa Williams – Pocahontas!
32. Someone To Love, Jon B. - nope
33. Only Wanna Be With You, Hootie and The Blowfish – oops, 3 hits pala… he3x! :D
34. If You Love Me, Brownstone – brownstone? Sounds like ….
35. In The House Of Stone And Light, Martin Page - nope
36. I Got 5 On It, Luniz - nada
37. Baby, Brandy – 15 pa lang si brandy non?
38. Run Away, Real McCoy – um?
39. As I Lay Me Down, Sophie B. Hawkins – the follow-up to Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover!
40. He's Mine, Mokenstef – hmm?
41. December, Collective Soul – not September by Earth Wind & Fire?
42. I'll Be There For You-You're All I Need To Get By, Method Man-Mary J. Blige - nope
43. Shy Guy, Diana King – “have mercy mercy mercy!”
44. I'm The Only One, Melissa Etheridge - enh
45. Every Little Thing I Do, Soul For Real - nope
46. Before I Let You Go, BLACKstreet - nada
47. Big Poppa / Warning, Notorious B.I.G. - zilch
48. Sukiyaki, 4 P.M. – ah, the mutated Japanese song!!!
49. I Wanna Be Down, Brandy – eng?
50. I'll Make Love To You, Boyz II Men – like you want me to…
51. Dear Mama / Old School, 2Pac - nope
52. Hold On, Jamie Walters – hold on what?
53. Keep Their Heads Ringin', Dr. Dre – pre-slim shady
54. The Rhythm Of The Night, Corona - nope
55. Roll To Me, Del Amitri - nada
56. Scream / Childhood, Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson – ooh, a Jackson duet!
57. Freek'n You, Jodeci - forgot
58. I Wish, Skee-lo - ern
59. Believe, Elton John – sir Elton was still making songs?
60. Carnival, Natalie Merchant - nope
61. You Don't Know How It Feels, Tom Petty – I thought he was in the 80s
62. Back For Good, Take That – light song63. Tootsee Roll, 69 Boyz - hmm
64. You Want This-70's Love Groove, Janet Jackson - nope
65. Tell Me, Groove Theory – still no66. Can't You See, Total - nope
67. All I Wanna Do, Sheryl Crow - none
68. This Lil' Game We Play, Subway – nyet
69. Come And Get Your Love, Real McCoy – band sound familiar
70. This Ain't A Love Song, Bon Jovi – then what is it? :P
71. Secret, Madonna – forgot!
72. Player's Anthem, Junior M.A.F.I.A. – wha?
73. Feel Me Flow, Naughty By Nature – sounds similiar
74. Every Day Of The Week, Jade - nope
75. The Sweetest Days, Vanessa Williams - nada
76. Short Dick Man, 20 Fingers Featuring Gillette – ooh… he3x! :P
77. Brokenhearted, Brandy - nope
78. No More "I Love You's", Annie Lennox – still a bit gothic
79. You Used To Love Me, Faith Evans - hmm
80. Constantly, Immature - nope
81. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me, U2 – batman forever song!
82. 100% Pure Love, Crystal Waters – I remember this beat, the lyrics would go too fast
83. Ask Of You, Raphael Saadiq - nope
84. Sugar Hill, Az - none
85. Good, Better Than Ezra - forgot
86. Brown Sugar, D'angelo - nope
87. Turn The Beat Around, Gloria Estefan – a remake?
88. 'Til You Do Me Right, After 7 - hmm
89. 1st Of Tha Month, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - none
90. Like The Way I Do If I Wanted To, Melissa Etheridge – eh?
91. I Live My Life For You, Firehouse – isn’t this from miss Saigon?
92. Dream About You-Funky Melody, Stevie B - nope
93. Cotton Eye Joe, Rednex – somewhat familiar
94. Thank You, Boyz II Men – your welcome!
95. I'll Stand By You, Pretenders - hmm96. I Miss You, N II U – eh?
97. Give It 2 You, Da Brat - nah
98. Best Friend, Brandy - nope
99. Misery, Soul Asylum – I remember runaway train
100. Can't Stop Lovin' You, Van Halen – he still made songs then?

Where’s my metallica? My guns & roses??? i was such a dork then (even more so than now, if that's friggin' possible) that i couldnt even associate a good memory from these songs... hay... :(

desperate depressing diaspora

(I hate to spoil everyone’s Monday, but here goes…)

Everyone’s leaving. This Filipino diaspora has been going on for years now, but it gets worse & worse. Personally, it hit my family when cousins & aunts & uncles began going to the US for as long as I can remember. Heck, my mother’s siblings & parents were already there before I reached the age of reason. Then, it was my father’s relatives. Then, it became weirder, since my classmates & friends were leaving. Correction: my classmates & friends are leaving. It has become too noticeable that on every get-together, a substantial number would be absent because this number was in the great califor-ni-a (or the big apple or the british isles or the land of oz or what not).

I remembered what my fellow blogger said as a reason for leaving: he wanted to leave before he learned how to steal. Then it hit me: the reason why I was so reluctant to leave in the first place. I have become part of the system we so despise. Heck, I even make excuses for it now, saying that’s how life is. But it shouldn’t be.

The ones who are leaving would’ve had a decent chance to succeed here if it weren’t for the constricting socio-economic-political conditions that resonate in this republic of bananas, bagoong, & binalot. Namely, if you don’t know anyone, you can’t make it good. Of course, everywhere else, knowing someone gives you an advantage; but here, you have to know someone to survive. Abroad, you can work hard (or not-so-hard, if you’re used to audit), and still get all the material furnishings that would take a lifetime to achieve here (plus knowing people).

In addition, living abroad is a sure-fire way to test your independence capabilities; somewhat like dumping an infant into the pool, forcing him to swim. Here, you’d still have to contend with your parents and your relatives. It takes a very strong will not to ask them for anything, and an even stronger will to refuse their offers for help. With the distance, it forces you to live on your own wits.

I’ve been putting off doing stuff, like taking my masters, living alone, and what not for the longest time. I don’t know why, then suddenly, everyone has left me behind, and I’m inching towards the 30s. I don’t know if thinking about the US is one of my impulses to do something now to my life. Of course, I realize that going abroad must be a holistic decision, not only because your significant other’s there. (If the goals meet convergent paths in the US of A, it would help though.)

What’s my point? I’m just depressed that everyone’s off for their better futures while I’m still twiddling my thumbs. I should do something, something that would make me achieve my goals. What goal, I only have a faint idea of getting rich; otherwise, I dunno. Fact is, I’m content, but i know my condition would change. I really have to prepare for what I want to achieve, but I have to know what exactly what I want first, or at least have a more specific idea of what I should become.

driving decisions

Pare, di na mag-start yan
Buti pa kakain na lang tayo
Ah, gusto mo ng, ah, tahong?
Gusto mo ng labong?
Spaghetti?
Patitocini?
Bananaque?
Nilagang suso?
Tahong Chips Ahoy?
Gusto mo ng tapoy?
Burokoli?
Peanut britul, na may pecan?
Gusto mo ng, ah, kapeng barako?
Blue marlin?
Panga? Durian?
Shalinga?
Peanut kisses?
Ah..champuy?
Lomi?
Shawarma?
Buko pie?
Humus?
Hot sauce?
Ox brain? (kelangan mo nun)
Leche flan?
Kalderetang kambing?
Pinatuyong itlog ng kabayo?
Silicon implant?
Ginataang manok?
Ginataang gata?
Ginataang niyog?
Sarap no?
(Di mo nasabi yung susi)
Ginataang susi

suddenly showbiz

i was watching the news reports this morning on p/supt michael ray aquino's capture in the US. he was accused in the killing of pr guy bubby dacer & his driver. at any rate, they were showing file footages of aquino in the US, one shot walking with his wife, the other walking with a reporter.

this reporter was the husky lar santiago, or kuya lar santiago, showbiz reporter.

what the heck??? is that how muddled the lines are between politics and showbiz??? he3x! :P

goodbye good grass

haydee yorac, 67
raymundo punongbayan, 67
raul roco, 63

juan ponce enrile, 81
ernesto maceda, 70
imelda marcos, 76

why are the good ones taken away from us so early, without having fully realized their plans to improve the country, while the not-so-good ones still linger on, extending their tentacles of decay on the republic of bagoong, binalot, & balot? :(

(the title refers to the filipino saying "Ang masamang damo, matagal mamatay." / "Bad grass does not die easily.")

gift glitches

i remember this old season 4 episode from Friends, where chandler is in love with kathy, joey's girlfriend. it was kathy's birthday and chandler wanted to give her this:

instead, joey wanted to give her this....

what a great episode... hehehe! :D

legislative lambasts and literacy labels

let me start off with the usual political rant unique to the republic of bagoong, bananas, & binalot: yup, she'll be politicking more than governing now. it's useless to look for economic targets, since she'll be using her powers to pay her debts to those who had supported her and will continue to support her until 2010. dang.

=============

we keep on whining about how the 3B republic has gone to the dogs, but i'm not so sure. one indication of this is our literacy rate. it has always been trumpeted in the old days that we have the highest literacy rate, second to japan of course (it's always the 2nd best to japan in the old days). now, most of the illustrados think that the masa is a bunch of unread, money-hungry ingrates waiting for the next hakot fee.

then i take a look at our road signs.

since our leaders are desperate for attention and name-recognition, they always mark their projects with billboards containing their name and sometimes hideous visages. even for construction work, there would be a long label. consider this example (although not the real poster, it's an apporximation; makati workers passing through edsa ayala would recognize this):

Starting January 15, 2005, Makati Avenue from Ayala Avenue will be closed to traffic due to the construction of the underpass, effective from 10am to 6pm. Please take alternative routes.

now this may seem like a short sentence, but consider that this sign takes up 5-6 lines in the billboard so it can be seen by passing motorists. in other countries, a "no entry" sign or the red circle with the white dash would suffice. "No entry, construction ongoing" would be loquacious.

some may say, this is in english, no one would understand this. but consider also the signs of the MMDA:

bawal tumawid, nakamamatay

(or something to that effect).

yes, one may see it as the government expecting too much from people to read the signs. but apparently, reading the signs give a stronger message than just the symbol.

just thinking aloud :P

tie talk

this was another comment i posted on vivaglam's blog last year:

call me too western-oriented & old-fashioned, but ties = professionalism. that's why i always make the effort of wearing a tie, even in the office where it's not necessarily a requirement. heck, i've wanted to wear a tie ever since i was 7 years old, i was that much of a dork :-B

of course, it's not only wearing a tie, but also how one wears the tie (or the shirt in general). a guy would look sloppy & won't belong if the shirt's too untucked and the tie's too long or too short. it has to be just right. the proper wearing of the shirt & tie can mean the difference between a security guard being mean to you or being all polite.

what's the point of all these ramblings? a tie serves as the halfway point between a plain long-sleeved shirt and a suit/snazzy barong. it's not as high up the ladder, but you're getting there.

(i think this is also related to swipe's post about business attire, but i had only read about them a few weeks ago...)

idiotic idiomatic idiosyncracies

i was reading bambi's dispatch from the land of milk & honey when i remembered a similar incident happening on my side of the family:

we were going around the swap meet @ LA when there was a pinoy seller of goods (whom we had previously met) who approached us:

seller: uy! kayo yung mga torres diba?
us: ah, hindi...
seller: oo, kayo nga yung mga torres! pinakilala na kayo sa amin!
us: hindi po, iba po pangalan namin
seller: oo! kayo nga yung mga torres! babalik kayong pilipinas pagkatapos ng bakasyon nyo dito!

ah, tourists!!!

pen prose

this was originally posted as a comment in Vivaglam's blog:

I also have this affinity for nice pens, but not at the Mont Blanc level. I remembered the first good pen I treasured was the Macky parker pen. Oh sure, everyone in the pilot class had one, but it was better than those P5 Uni-Mitsubishi-CSA pens they sold at the bookstore. That is, until I found out that each Parker refill would cost around P60, at that time a hefty sum that would strain a P50-P70 daily HS allowance. I checked with Office Warehouse this week and it's now up to P120.

Still, I yearned for the day I could get a personalized Parker pen (vanity the primary consideration). I tried to have the Macky Parker pen engraved, only to be turned down by the National people (you have to buy the pen from them first). Due to plain stubborness, I kept on asking them intermittently for about two years. Finally, I saved enough for my own all-silver Parker pen, complete with inscription! Unfortunately, all-silver Parker pens are less sturdier than their mestizo counterparts, so this pen conked out in less than six months (the clicking mechanism got jammed).

So now, although I still have around two or three engraved good pens (given as gifts over time), I prefer a Panda pen, since one Panda has always lasted me for months, if not years (unless it gets lost). I would prefer the clicking Panda, since I seem to have acquired from Macky that annoying pen clicking habit.

torturous trap

picture this: you're a respected member of the business community, having a wealth of experience behind you. you can keep on serving your company or retire peacefully.

then the president knocks on your door to ask you to work for her.

you say, i'm happy here, i know what the government's like, please don't drag me in this mess.

she implores, please, for your country's stability, and the ultimate clincher, for the good of the country.

you think about it. what have you done for your country? put some scholarships? paid taxes properly? organized corporate social responsibility efforts? batted for corporate governance & accountability? nothing compared to putting up bridges that lead to nowhere, like what local legislators have done.

but you say, what the heck, i'll do it. but i have to have complete control of my scope to do my job properly.

she goes, of course, of course.

you are confident that she will support you, and the support of the president will definitely give you headway for your change management.

you also forget that being the president, she is a political animal first and a doctor in economics a far far second. she will do what it takes to survive. even to take a credible business leader like you to prop her failing state.

your priority is to change the government. her priority is to survive, in the hopes that she can change the people. but in her quest for survival, the tactics she takes undermine any impetus for future growth.

she assigns people as a sign of political debt payment. the people she assigns is not even comparable to you, to even complement you. they're just there so that the people she owes her political life to can milk your office dry.

you protest behind the closed doors. but she is the president. she can do what she wants.

you leave in disgust.

now, see the people around you. the professionals are leaving and the people with connections stay. it's because the professionals know that this scenario will play over and over and over and over again.

as a consuelo de bobo, the people with connections left here hail you as heroes, send home your dollars, your dinars! we'll waste it even more!

and it has become so pervasive that no one is left here to improve our society. it doesn't even have to be a concerted effort; just decent acts of following the law will bring us further ahead. but no, we don't even have that!

she is here to make sure she survives her political onslaught. once she's removed, it'll still be the same power-grabbing game. of course, politics the world over involve power play, but here it has reached a disgusting point. the politicians have become too greedy, both in money & in opportunities. the illustrados have no outlet to express themselves; a structured professional development is overtaken by the appointment of a mediocre superior. even in the world of entrepreneurship, the gutsy illustrados are being eased out by the child-of-politicians who have unlimited funds to enlarge their businesses.

and the politicians ask why we're in this rut? grrr.....

margaret's memory

it was 1995, the second official day of my college life, and it was 7am. the block was still cursing our luck for getting such an early class. and then, an old man enters the room, asks if this was the COMM 1 class TFQ (i think), then proceeds writing this poem on the board:

Spring and Fall: To a Young Child
by Gerard Manley Hopkins

Márgarét, are you gríeving
Over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leáves, líke the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! ás the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you wíll weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sórrow's spríngs áre the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It ís the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.

he then says, "memorize this entire poem, complete with the punctuation marks. you will have a quiz on this on friday."

thus we were introduced to fr. alfeo g. nudas, s.j.

almost every week we were introduced to a new poem to memorize, mainly shakespearean sonnets; plus "elementary" rules on grammar. 7am of every meeting, on the dot, we would have our quizzes on half a sheet of yellow pad (he didn't believe in using the blue book).

yet, despite our initial fear that he would be a punisher prof, he in fact won us over with his unexpected remarks ("all the boys sitting on one side must be gays, while all the girls sitting on the other side must be lesbians; there is only one normal pair in here [ton & ging]"), self-deprecating humor (clutching his chest when someone pointed to him as "old"), and his low yet melodic voice ("good morning class, good morning")...

he was already an old man that time, probably around 70 plus. as i've mentioned before, he might have died in these past 10 years without me knowing it.

what's the point of this post? i just want to honor his memory as much as i can.

population proposition, preposition, and postulation

i haven't made comments previously about the current "graying population" issue, but i've been wanting to say this for a long time:

a general trend in industrialized nations is that social security is becoming too burdensome for the younger generation to support their elders, because there are more elders living longer while there are less younger people to support them (either through direct care or through indirect cash payments). as a result, not-so-industrialized countries (e.g. bambi's republic of bagoong) are sending young 'uns by the droves to care for the graying population.

what disgusts me is what the church says about this phenomenon; that God is punishing these nations because of the birth control policies they practiced in the past decades. and that now the old people are also paying for it by not having enough young people to care for them in their old age.

(this caring-for-the-old viewpoint is especially true in the province, where couples give birth by the dozens in the hopes that one of their offspring would care for them when they grow old; an insurance concept. the problem is this view necessarily limits the potential of the offspring, thus subjecting them to the limitations of what their parents have dictated for them to do. but i digress.)

this shift towards increasing social security for the old is a transitional shift. essentially, the industrial nations have experienced a baby boom from the 40s to the mid 60s, then afterwards they practiced responsible parenthood, where less babies were produced. in addition to better medicine, the now-old parents outnumber the succeeding generation, thus burdening the younger ones.

in a score or two, this will balance out, with the rates of population increase leveling out, so that the reduced social security would be enough to support the future older generation.

how about the republic of bagoong? i guess the nurses would be welcome back here, albeit on a lesser salary.

(as for the title, i just liked using the big "p" words after "population," since it was hard to find an alliteration for "population paradigm shift")

a crack in the calendar

it's a friday night and i'm still at the office.

normally, i'd be going to bambi's and making tambay there until 10pm (watching encantadia & sugo). now, i can't. she's abroad for 3 weeks and i suddenly have nothing to do.

my sister also went abroad for a week; it's just perfect timing that they're both gone now.

i try to rack my brain on what i used to do on weekend nights like this one, before bambi came along. let me see...

1. do nothing but watch TV at home
2. go to batangas on friday night, to return on sunday afternoon
3. go watch a movie with my sister
4. if really desperate, attend the rusty gym at the utility company, where no one else use it except for my gym-obsessed friend and some other gym dudes

i guess it's like what i heard about Flowers for Algernon, where the mouse (sorry bambi) was subjected to a stimulant (i think) and the mouse (named Algernon) became more intelligent; then the scientists took the janitor played by matthew modine and made him drink the drug to make him a genius. unfortunately, Algernon died because of the drugs, and this might make matthew modine die as well. i think he refused to stop the drug, because of this:

he has tasted greatness already; he can't go back to being what he used to be.

tick tock, time tremors, & tantrums

(warning: severe self-pity post ahead)

i'm going to celebrate my 10th anniversary of my 18th birthday next week. trust me, it's better than thinking about it as my 15th anniversary of my 13th birthday, or worse, my 28th birthday.

i really feel indifferent towards my birthday. it just reminds me again how little i've done so far. sure, i get to treat my family, officemates, my various kabarkadas, bambi (of course), etc. i don't really mind treating them out, but lately it's getting to be more expensive. but that's not my main beef.

i'm looking at my parents' marriage contract, they were both married at 26. and my dad was already in the forefront of his career by 28; heck he already had an asthmatic toddler by then (me). and here i am, still living at my parents' house rent-free (although paying for some minor utilities expenses), and will live in a house that my parents will primarily pay for. i guess that's the curse of being the son of a great man; it's quite a struggle to even peep out of his shadow. i guess that's partly the reason i didn't want to follow in his career path; i didn't want any more additional comparisons that i already subject myself to.

(it doesn't help that he started in the service at 21, which was quite young even for his batch; whereas i had grade 7, a 5 year course, and a board review that made me start work at 24, which is old for my batch.)

then i look at my contemporaries to see if i could see a pattern. i do; it's not the good one. since most of my contemporaries went to audit, they were able to go around the country and even the world, and because of the training, they even landed succeeding jobs that made them travel even more. and they have supervisory & managerial positions.

i look at my non-accounting contemporaries, and they have supervisory & managerial positions and travel around the world too.

of course, by the very nature of my job as a number-cruncher, my ass is planted on the chair to crunch numbers. in addition, i still maintain my aversion towards auditing.

still, it doesn't remove the fact that i'm still dependent on my family, i still am not even starting my masters, a number of my friends are married & have kids, and my work responsibility is only slightly better than when i first entered the work force.

on top of that, i'm 28.

28.

2 x 14.

most advice columns would say, don't keep up with the joneses, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, love what you have, live with what life has dealt you. but i've always felt that that's a defeatist approach to my situation.

i guess if one's stuck to the same process day in and day out, one loses track of time so much that you miss certain deadlines, certain opportunities.

i don't want to be satisfied. i want to do something.

what's the point of this post. i don't know. now i do know is that i have to take a bathroom break.

this sucks.

(as an aside: amando doronila, my favorite inquirer columnist, has been grilled at the commision of appointments for his appointment as ambassador to benelux. this also sucks.)

random ruminations

i thought about reacting to jamby's reaction to the repealing of the Oil Deregulation Act, but she's expected to do rather ditzy things, so i didn't find it in my heart to diss her today.

another idea was to comment on the gloriagate crisis. nothing in the past couple of days made me change her mind about what happened before and up to the point she almost lost the palace: she cheated, but the opposition's a worse option. anything now is just noise.

bambi's leaving soon, so that kinda brings me down. 3 weeks. well, i'd save up on the usual boyfriend expenses, but i'd still be making long-distance calls, so i'd still have some cash outlays. oh well, i'll miss her, and i'll really be happy when she comes back. of course, it'd be better if i had pasalubong!!! (hon, size 9.5, black shoes!) :P

business news? work news? just passing me by. i'll post something again tomorrow, with perhaps a more readable bent. :P

directory of deliverance

maybe i was too charitable when i took this test...

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

canteen comedy

(warning: some segments of this discussion may be exagerrated)

scene: citibank tower canteen

bambi: (in full PMS mode) haynakunakakainistalagayangnasaopisinanamin!
lee: bakit na naman?
bambi: ekasilaginilapinapatugtogmga100xadayyungisangkantalang!
lee: which song?
bambi: hay.... yung kanta ni kitchie nadal, yung wag na wag mong sasabihin. i swear if i hear that song one more time, i'm gonna strangle that guy who sings it...
lee: (belts it out, concert-style) WHOA-WOH-WHOAAH-WOH, WAG NA WAG MONG SASABIHIN....
bambi: AAAARGH!!!! (flips out, jumps up the chair and strangles my neck)
lee: *urk!* na *urk!* hindi *urk!* mo *urk!* nadama *urk!* ito *urk!*... (mental note: call up aubrey & nancy later)

=========================

after bambi lets go of my neck

lee: uy, it's past one na, i have to go (makes the shrug-shake head action)
bambi: ayaw ko pa! want to stay with tihort! (stomps feet while sitting down)
lee: madami pa akong work, i have to go (makes the shrug-shake head action again)
bambi: ayaw! ayaw! ayaw! (pulls down hat so that it covers her face)
lee: hmm... (stands up and hides behind bambi)
bambi: basta! (raises hat up, expecting lee to still be in front of her) tihort? tihort? TIHORT LEFT ME NA! WAAAAH!!!
lee: (snickers, then pokes bambi's nape)
bambi: anakngpatingpuchasinoyon!
lee: mwehehehehehehe! akala mo nawala ako no? mwehehehehehehe!
bambi: (mental note: bribe brad pitt's maid to meet brad)

pogi points

atty. argee guevarra writes for business world & is a very high-profile lawyer for his age (he's affiliated with sanlakas, a left-leaning group, and he has represented the oakwood leaders). of course, he stands out for me as the writer of "pogi points", a specific point system that determines how "pogi" a guy is. the last time i read about this was in my freshmen year at diliman. of course, some items are outdated (it's been 10 years!), but it's still a great laugh!

here are argee's pogi points [with my comments in italicized braces]:

=================================

For a more contemporary understanding of how to score pogi points, I devised a system of prescribing pogi points to male accessories and any other attribute which might significantly contribute to a guy's gross human worth, exempting any facial distortions.

THE TRANSPO - Driving a car to school which is automatic 10 pogi points.
Chaffeur-driven 20 pogi points.
Subtract 5 if the rinky dinky type that regularly breaks down when going out on dates at Jollibee. [a Kia, a non-souped up box-typ Lancer, my orange-then black-now orange Celica would qualify for this; i don't know if there are still Geminis rolling around though.]
Add 10 pogi points if brand new.
Add 20 if it is a Japanese car and 50 if it is either a Benz or BMW. [so no points if it's an Opel or a US car? how about Ford gas guzzlers?]
A Porsche is disqualified from earning points because anyone who owns one automatically becomes a Richard Gomez clone.
No pogi points for those who carpool or who ride the jeep. [how about the FX?]
Plus 30 pogi points if you ride a mountain bike to class because green is "in".
If its a BMX or pedicab, minus 50 pogi points.

THE PEDIGREE - If the family name is associated with politics, add 10 pogi points.
If its a Marcos or a crony sounding name, subtract 50 pogi points (ill-gotten rep). [does erap count?]
If the lineage could be traced to a Spanish friar, add another 10 pogi points (tisoy muy bien!)
If its a taipan sounding name as in Sy or Gokongwei, add 20 pogi points.
No pogi points for ethnic sounding family names. [ouch! He3x!]

THE ADDRESS - A Makati address gets an automatic 5 pogi points while an Alabang address an automatic 10 pogi points.
If in Makati, Dasma, Magallanes, and Forbes, plus 20 [pre-The Fort condos],
San Lorenzo Village and San Antonio Village plus 10,
Bel Air plus 5.
10 pogi points for New Manila, Greenhills and Valle Verde.
No pogi points for those who live in Corinthian Garden because it's the popular address of corrupt Marcos generals.
In Q.C., 10 pogi points for residents or even dormers of Xavierville, La Vista, and Ayala Heights. [a true-blue bias? :>]
"Gilage(as in gilid ng La Vista) people", minus 5 pogi points.
No pogi points for Looban, Gagalangin, Calumpang, San Andres Bukid, Fairview and Novaliches residents.

THE HIGH SCHOOL - A high school diploma in the States or U.K., 20 pogi points (lamang sila sa Inglesan).
Any school abroad, plus 15 pogi points.
If an alumnus of any all-boys Catholic school, 10 pogi points.
Basta nakatapos ng high school, plus 5 pogi points.

THE SPORT - If the guy's into soccer, plus 10 pogi points.
Any racket sport (except ping-pong and pelota), plus 15 pogi points.
If engaging in not-so-popular but preppie sports like rowing, fencing, and archery as well as sepak takraw, arnis, eskrima, sikaran (indigenous sports are "in" dahil eksotik) plus 20 pogi points.
For the golf fanatic, plus 50 pogi points.
Polo, 100 pogi points.
Billiards, minus 5 pogi points.

THE LUNCH SPOT (kung saan dalas mag-lunch) - Beach House and Rodic's plus 5 pogi points. [Beach House!!!]
College cafeteria and CASAA minus 5 pogi points.
Trellis, Paseo, Rasa Singapura, SM North Food Center and any resto (except fastfood-type) along Katipunan, plus 10 pogi points.
No pogi points for those lugging a thermos lunchbox and a Coleman. [this would disqualify most of the baon-lugging work crowd now... come to think of it, why were we free to bring only cash for food, but now we have to subsist on baon? it's probably because we're now spending for our own stuff, not relying on allowances...]

THE ORG - AIESEC and its local hybrids that have chapters in DLSU, Ateneo, Miriam, Assumption and CRC [old UA&P], 20 pogi points.
Frats (the Big 7), 15 pogi points.
Basketball, Football Varsity Team and UP Mountaineers, 10 pogi points (mala machete kasi ang dating nila).
LFS, SAMASA, People's Service Corps and Center for Nationalist Studies, plus 5 pogi points because they have a conscience which is now rare among UP students.
Collegian, 25 pogi points (sipsip).

THE SYOTA - If the current squeeze or the former flame is a beauty titlist, an Absolut girl or one of Manila's Loveliest, automatic 50 pogi points. [what's an Absolut girl???]
A campus celebrity or a showbiz denizen, 40 pogi points.
If the typical pretty colegiala, 30 pogi points.
Any girl, plus 10 pogi points.
A mainstay of That's Entertainment, minus 100 pogi points. [ooh, that's nasty]

THE POGI INDEX
Mukhacne (pimple na tinubuan ng mukha) - negative pogi points
Presentable - 0-30 pogi points
Mr. Pogi (Eat Bulaga caliber) - 31-50 pogi points
Gwaping - 51-100 pogi points
Istading (Stud, kung baga) - 101-150 pogi points
Whataguy - 151-200 pogi points
Grand Debonair - 201 and above

[where does Mr. Suave fit in? he3x!]