March: Beach & Beer. Work & Bitch.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 26-03-2008

I’d consider March as one of my greatest this year. I used to hate the beach, the sand and the sun but I’ve grown to love them, every single of it! I started March beach hopping, sunbathing and getting drunk in Bantayan Island. I couldn’t believe to have survive the sun for 3 agonizing hours without sunblock protection. We were on the beach front intoxicating ourselves from 7-10am. Beach and Beer is a perfect match. Two weeks later I was, again, in Moalboal getting drunk under the summer sun. Worse, I still haven’t recovered from my sunburn and there I was sunbathing with beer in one hand. So far, I still have a week to go before I complete the list of beach itinerary. Camotes Island, here I come. I’m crossing my fingers coz I still don’t have word of it is a GO. The month wouldn’t be really complete without my friends and colleagues. I’m sure there’ll be more surprises this summer and I couldn’t wait for them. All I could say is “Beach and Beer is a Perfect Match!” haha. 

As for work stuff I’m about to throw-up but I can still manage. So they say “You can never please everybody” and I agree. Working for an Outsourcing Company is tough, Politics and Predators come hand in hand. We should know how to play the cards right or else we get eaten by predators. I’m still a newbie when it comes to playing the cards right but I guess I’m learning quite fast. Lol. Some of my colleagues are grazing off to greener fields but I’m still waiting for more signs if I’ll join the herd. I’m about to falter my momentum at work, I’m almost ready to throw-up but I know this too will pass. I am hanging on. I still believe in the company - but for how long? lol. As of now, what matters most would be the present. Let me reiterate, I am holding on. Let me also share a quite “good to know” article from www.fiveoclockclub.com.

“According to Richard Bayer, Ph.D., chief operating officer of The Five O’Clock Club (www.fiveoclockclub.com), a national career-counseling network based in New York City, you would be smart to leave before you get sacked, or you lose your sanity, or both.

Over the years, Bayer has compiled a list of eight signals that usually mean your job is in jeopardy. “If you’ve noticed three or more of the warning signs, it’s time to update your resume and start job hunting,” he says.

Check this out.

1. You don’t fit in. Your values don’t match the company’s. If your colleagues are “dishonest and focused on getting ahead regardless of legal or moral barriers,” Bayer says, it’s time to quit before an Enron-style scandal sinks the ship.

2. Your boss doesn’t like you and you don’t like him or her. If your boss never asks your opinion, and never wants to chat or have lunch with you, and if you disagree with her agenda and dislike her style, your days are numbered. Adds Bayer: “If you’ve ever done something that undermined your boss, you might as well get out now.”

3. Your peers don’t like you. Feeling isolated, gossiped about, and excluded from the inner workings of the organization is a very bad sign, as is feeling that you’re not part of the team and wouldn’t socialize with your colleagues even if they asked you.

4. You don’t get assignments that demonstrate the full range of your abilities. “Watching all the good assignments go to others, while you’re given the ones that play to your weaknesses or are beneath your professional level, should tell you something,” says Bayer. Likewise, if it seems the boss doesn’t trust your judgment, you’re in trouble.

5. You always get called upon to do the “grunt work.” Everybody has to take on a dull or routine task now and then, but if you are constantly being singled out to do the work no one else wants, alarm bells should ring.

6. You are excluded from meetings your peers are invited to. Sound familiar? If it’s painfully clear that your ideas aren’t valued, why stick around?

7. Everyone on your level has an office. You have a cubicle in the hallway. Bayer notes that, whatever your title, your digs can speak volumes about your real status in the organization. If your peers have offices with windows and you’re asked to move into a broom closet - no matter what the official explanation - start cleaning out your desk.

8. You dread going to work and feel like you’re developing an ulcer. Ah, here’s yet another of your symptoms, and a particularly nasty one at that.

“If the idea of going to the office makes you anxious or physically sick, and you’re counting the hours from the time you arrive until the second you can leave, it’s time to move on,” says Bayer. Do it before you do serious damage to your health, or get so demoralized that you can’t be upbeat in job interviews, or both. Once things have deteriorated to this point, being perceived as a job hopper should be the least of your worries. Get out while you still can.”

So much for that….I’m enjoying Summer.

Photos :  

beejing

Moalboal

Sunset @ Moalboal

Bantayan Island

More : my photo album.

Meh, Busy. Busy.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 20-03-2008

Im soooooo busy lately. I couldn’t even update this blog. *sigh* . I’m even working this Lenten Season when the rest of the Roman Catholic world pays respect to Jesus. Irony of Life.

Anyway… me likey this video. :lol: . Britney Spears: Break The Ice.

LSS: Bubbly.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 10-03-2008

 

 

*sigh*

Today’s Monday and I have to work, again.

*sigh*

I wish I could just stay home and listen to some soothing music.

*sigh*

 I need a time off, please.

Sunday.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 10-03-2008

Sunday was supposed to be a rest day but it turned out otherwise. I got a very stressful Sunday. I woke up thinking it was still Saturday night. I slept 12-hours straight. I immediately checked my mobile phone and whoa I’ve got 48 text messages received. I took time to read through each message while I was making my way out of the bedroom. I wondered, why the house is so desolate…. it turned out to be 230am! omg. I supposed to be with friends on a Saturday night. And yeah I was more than 4 hours overdue. Clumsy me. Still I was carefully digesting the fact that I wasn’t able to wake up as planned. I called up my friends and it seems that I can’t talk to them clearly because background noise is deafening. I tried sending them text messages but to no avail. Its either they’re mad at me or they’re just drunk to even bother. And so I turned on the computer and wasted my time blog hopping and browsing. I went back to sleep 530am. Couple of hours later, I woke to my landlady’s call for the garbage collection. Argh! And it was still 8am. Argh again. Anyway, now that my body has fully awakened I took the time cleaning up the room and sorting my ever growing pile of laundry. I admit My Laundry is really giving me a headache and I’m serious. lol. It was 930am when I was finally done with the first few pieces and I am already exhausted. I had my breakfast, prepared by my house mates. It was a good meal. The weather is giving me a headache too. I was supposed to complete all my laundry and it seems the weather is not cooperating. The lazy I am, I folded my clothes back to the laundry basket and stayed in front of the PC until 12noon, which is just in time for lunch. We had our lunch accompanied by Ice Cream. Yum. It was already 2pm when my most of my friends sent an invite for another round of beer drinking session. I carefully plotted my Sunday night itinerary, only to find out that a long lost friend sent me text message asking me to have a cup of coffee at Starbucks 8pm. Amazing, after 8 years of not having to see each other we’ve managed to connect the gap. Amazing. Again. Lol. It was 12midnight that finally we called it a night. As for me… the night is still young. I went out with a couple of my colleague-friends for a round of beer session. It all ended up 4am.

Omg. I need to sleep now. I need to. And seriously speaking I need to detoxify myself from all the bad habits. Seriously.

I need to quit smoking. I need to slow down beer in-take. I need to get at least a 6-8 hours of sleep everyday. And this starts now. bleh.

get a life. 

Bantayan Island Invasion.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 08-03-2008

Indeed, last weekend was so much fun.

 

After weeks of preparation and careful planning finally our team’s Bantayan Island Invasion has come true.

 

Friday, February 29, 2008 - This is the last night of February. Last night to make up and pass the month’s metrics. Everybody was anxious. Everybody wants to end the shift and run off to the beach. I thought it was just an ordinary night at work but as my log-out time draw nearer my mood changed - I was on a hype.

 

Saturday, March 1. 2008 - 6AM- I logged out and went home to pick up my stuff for the weekend getaway. 9AM- The team convened in Skyrise and though we still didn’t have sleep we drank 6 bottles of beer. 10AM- We were on our way to Hagnaya Wharf. By 12:30PM we were at Hagnaya Wharf. Most of us were so hungry that we settled for a quick-grilled pork and chicken for lunch. 1:30PM- It was about time for the ferry to leave. Bantayan Island is about an hour and a half by ferry. It was almost 3PM when finally the ferry docked at the port of Sta. Fe, Bantayan Island. Our resort’s tenant were already at the port ready to pick us up. He didn’t have a hard time looking for us coz we were the first one’s to embark from the ferry. And yeah… we looked like tourists. Finally, 3:30PM we were at the beach. Our reservation was at Sugar Beach, in the municipality of Sta. Fe. Settling down our stuff inside our 2-bedroom apartment style cottage. Yay! most of my friends were running off to the beach was already camwhoring. Some of us were too exhausted to even move our butts away from the cottage and yet we manage to start drinking the first 3 cases of beer. By the time it was almost 5pm we decided to take a swim on crystal blue waters of Bantayan. We waited for the Sunset too. By the time it was dark, we headed off to the cottage and yeah… dinner. It was 730pm, when everybody finished off their hearty dinner made of grilled pork and we started to drink another round of beer and gin all at the same time. It was 10pm, when some of our colleagues got undressed and went swimming with only their undies on. lol. By 11PM, we called it a night. Sleep. Exhausted. Drunk.

 

Sunday, March 2, 2008 - 630AM - Breakfast. 7AM - we went off to the beach and took a swim. 30 minutes after we opened our first case of beer for the day. And yes! we drank while the sun was heavily rising up the horizon. Talking about basking in the sun. By 930AM we drank the last drop of our 2nd case of beer. The sun was too hot to handle so we decided to take a swim again. The drunkards that we are, we decided to bring 2 beer bottles and a glass in the middle of the water and took turns drinking the beer. lol. It was almost 1030am when 4 other friends and colleagues arrived to escape the city too. We changed clothes and headed off to Bantayan in preparation another round of big hearty lunch. On our way back, we drank 2 bottles of beer again. 1AM Lunch. Lunch. Lunch. It was 2PM when we started boating on the shallow waters while the others were busy playing cards in the shorelines with beer again. By 4PM we played “patentero” - it was fun really, though we’re already adults. lol. Nightfall, we we’re in the waters playing a so-called Team Building game - The Highest Pyramid. Unfortunately, we lost. lol. Dinner at 7PM. Beer, beer and more beer until 12midnight. Sleep.

 

Monday, March 3, 2008 - Just like Sunday, we had our breakfast right before 7AM. By 930AM, we were on our way to what they call the Virgin Island for a snorkeling adventure. It took us 20 minutes to get there. But the boat ride was, again, accompanied with beer. lol. We took the time to explore the wonders of the underwater. It was already 11AM when we headed back to the resort, packed up our stuffs, ate the remaining breakfast food and prepare ourselves to leave the island and back to reality.

 

I know it’s too early to get tanned but in the end, we all had so much FUN. Next stop? Boracay? hehe…

 

Group Photo:

Bantayan Island Invasion

 photo albums here: 

 Bantayan Island Invasion: First Rate, First Moments.

Oslec’s version: Bantayan! with PS peeps

Murz’ version: Bantayan Invasion…

Marielle’s version: Stolen Pics (Bantayan Escapade)

Minnie’s version: Bantayan Fever

 

 

Numero Doce : WAR of the WORLDS

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 24-02-2008

Numero Doce : WAR of the WORLDS.

If you’re in Cebu and you’re ready to party like you’ve never been, the place to go is Numero Doce. Yes, Numero Doce especially the one at Mango Square. This place famous for its Blue Kamikaze. This is also a place notorious for gathering cebu’s all kinds of sexes. Yeah, you heard it right, all sexes; men, women, fags, lesbians, the not-so men, the not-so women, the maya’s, the so-called double blades, you name it - Numero Doce gathered ‘em all. Weekends, even weekdays, it’s a party like hell. Personally, I’ve only been to Numero Doce twice and my experience was not at all amazing. Imagine, you get to see two good-looking guys swapping tongues on a table next to yours. :lol: . You can even see guys dirty dancing on to each other. It’s really, as what my friends call it, A WAR OF THE WORLDS.

Honestly, the place is great. Not to mention the drinks. and hey, this is my opinion.

Numero Doce

I got served.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 18-02-2008

served

I got served.

Saturday, February 16, 2008. I was busy listening to some QA evaluations, I was called by my direct supervisor. I got served. Yes. I got served. You heard it right. I got served.

Actually, I got served with my Annual Performance Appraisal. I couldn’t believe that it has been more than a year that I’ve joined the company. I sat beside my sup’s station and was ready for any blow towards my performance. Well, being an employee of a Performance based company, I should’ve been expecting this. :lol: lol. Anyway, going back… she showed me the file containing my stats for the past year. My head was in a blur due to numerous reds and blues on my stats. She explained how the appraisal works, the formula(s) and then some stuff concerning the appraisal. She continued explaining the basics where I got the red marks, meaning “failures” and the blue marks. Generally, I got a lot of blue marks on my performance. (you know what that means!) :lol: lol. She showed me my competencies and most of them, if not, all were Outstanding. haha :-D . She also showed me her comments - all of them were good. It was really heart warming to hear such good words from someone. :-)

Now that I’m more than a year with the company. I’m up for the challenge. I’ll be cunning. haha. I have to strategize. -end-

Tags: My South Park Character.

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 17-02-2008

Here’s how the game goes.

  1. You receive a tag. (of course!!! LOL)
  2. You go this site  http://www.sp-studio.de/
  3. Create your own South Park Character.
  4. Create an entry with your generated character.
  5. Tag your friends.
  6. Enjoy!!!

 Here’s mine. LOL.

Beejing Southpark

 beejing

Now, let me tag these peeps…

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Happy Valentines Day

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 14-02-2008

Happy Valentines Day Everyone!

Excerpt: Mark your calendar for 2008’s sky shows

Filed Under (old posts) by Neel on 10-02-2008

 Total Lunar Eclipse
Marco Ugarte / AP file

The moon is seen taking different orange tones during a lunar eclipse over Mexico City on Aug. 28, 2007.

By : Joe Rao,  skywatching columnist

Mark Wednesday, Feb. 20, on your calendar as “Lunar Eclipse Night,” for if the weather is fair you should have no difficulty observing a total eclipse of the moon.

The eclipse will be visible wherever the moon is above the horizon during the time frame that the eclipse is taking place. As it turns out, North and South America will be turned toward the moon and will be in excellent position for this sky show.

Europe, Africa and a part of western Asia will also be able to see the eclipse, although for these regions the event will take place in the hours just before sunrise on the morning of Feb. 21.

All told, given clear skies, about three billion potential eclipse viewers will be able to partake in the spectacle of the full moon becoming completely immersed in the Earth’s shadow.

This will be the third total lunar eclipse within the past year. The previous two favored different parts of North America, but this one will be readily visible from start-to-finish across much of the continent, weather permitting.

The total phase will last 51 minutes and begins at 10:01 p.m. ET.

Because some of the sunlight striking the Earth is diffused and scattered by our atmosphere, the Earth’s shadow is not completely dark. Typically there are coppery red and orange hues cast over the moon at and near totality from sunlight refracted from our atmosphere around the edge of the Earth, giving the moon the appearance of an eerie glowing ball. 

********
This year’s astronomical calendar features not just one, but two pairings of the sky’s brightest planets - plus a total solar eclipse visible from exotic locations, and a total lunar eclipse that most Americans will be able to see from their backyards.
There’s also a good selection of star cluster occultations, and a promising opportunity to catch August’s annual Perseid meteor shower.

Here are some of the more noteworthy sky events of the year. Space.com’s Night Sky column will provide more extensive coverage of each event as it draws closer.

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