Too Early For Halloween

A lot of us have heard of ghost stories that happened in office buildings. Maybe it was your experience or sometimes we get it from someone else. Some are fiction and some are true. I've been hearing a lot of scary stuff from my officemates. Some of them have experienced paranormal activities and each of them has their own version.

Our security guard told me that he already saw the white lady. Another colleaugue saw someone entered the restroom and never came out. Our receptionist saw a kid leaped in front of her and vanished.

These were their stories, now here's mine (X-Files music theme playing..intro). In our department, staying overnight in the office is just normal. There was one time when we needed to do something in the servers and it was very very late. I'm with Ben (miss you bro) and James in our room doing our thing when we heard a thumping sound on the other side of the wall. I think it was around 1am or 2am so we're sure that everyone in the office already left. Ben: "Ano yun?". James: . Me: "Oy pare suntukan na lang!!!!". Although I didn't see it, they saw a white figure passed outside the door after I said that phrase. I don't know why I said that. Maybe I was scared but don't want to be scared at the same time.

Believe me, I've seen worse than this and only through the power of Jesus that I was saved on that situatiion. This is the reason I'm blogging these kinds of stories and it's not to scare my readers. Evil spirits are real but its counterpart is also real and more powerful. I don't want to sound religious, but the truth is that we can depend on God always, specially in these situations.

I think that was where I got the courage to ask the ghost for a boxing match. It was a crazy idea I know (hindi kame magkakatamaan...hehehe) but deep in my heart I knew at that time if ever it shows up my God would protect me and save me. I've been left alone in the office a couple of times and so far I haven't experienced it again. I'm not saying that I won't be shocked, surprised or scared if ever I see one but I know that I can rely on God's promises to drive them away. To share some of 'em:

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:6

"The LORD is my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life- of whom shall I be afraid?"
Psalm 27:1

When I am afraid, I will put my trust in Thee. In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me? (Psalms 56:3-4)

Still afraid? Remember that we have a God who is more powerful than anyone and anything. This is the truth and the truth is out there (X-File music theme outro...)

"There Could Only Be One"

The title of this blog is the NBA playoff's campaign for '07-'08 Season. It's Playoffs once again and this year I'm hoping for the Boston Celtcis to win a championship. The C's won their last trophy during the 1985-86 season.

I think they deserved it this time more than any team in the NBA, specially for players like Garnett and Allen, who have been around for a long time yet still find that championship ring so elusive. Also, they have a good chance this year because aside from the "Big Three" (KG, Allen & Pierce), the other players are performing well, not to forget the late addition of Sam Cassell who can give a championship experience when the team gets there.

Kudos for the team because they're 2-0 now against the Hawks (yeah!!!). The sad part is, the best way I can follow the series is through the NBA website. SkyCable removed Basketball TV from their channel listing(with JackTV and CS) after a few weeks of our cable installation (grrr!!!). They replaced it with the Balls channel and I've never seen a single NBA game since they started airing . As for ESPN, I find it it hard to catch a scheduled game because they're giving way for other sports.

Farewell

At first, I was hesistant to write something about this. My lola in Laguna died two weeks ago after being bedridden for a month. I wasn't able to attend her funeral and burial because of a seminar. If I only knew that our recent visit would be the last time to see her, I would have given her many kisses and tighter hugs. As the saying goes, "Nasa huli ang pagsisisi".

When I was a kid, my parents used to bring me in the province during holidays. Before, my mom thinks that I don't eat pork because I got influenced by my Muslim neighbor friend(He's a Christian now). The real reason was because of my lolo's piggery in Laguna wherein he showed me his Inaheng Baboy. Of course, at that time I still don't understand that it was what they do for a living. The hog's smell and dirty feature registered on my mind which I recall every time they tell me that they're serving pork in the dining table. After that incident, I never ate pork again.

Our visits became less frequent when I reached high school. Because of this, the closeness with our grandparents didn't really develop. I wanted to cry when I first heard the news of her death but I just can't. I think the truth already sank in, that I can never miss someone who has been a stranger to me all these years. I thought that I didn't lose her because I never really had her in the first place. The only reason I could be sad on that moment was because my mom loves her and cares for her so much. It's like we also feel the pain of the people we love when they're hurting.

I regret for not being there when she was still strong. It's not her fault that we became busy with work, school and a lot of stuff. If you can read this blog lola, "I'm sorry". Her death made me realized again that life can be taken in an instant. I pray not too soon but it could be me or the person that I really, really loved. Before it's too late, let's show our loved ones how much they really mean to us and how much we really love them.

I forgot to blog about this

I'm enjoying the last day of the long weekend. I have plans to bond with my sisters tonight and watch a movie. I'm not sure which one yet but I think we've agreed yesterday to watch SEMI-PRO. I just finished installing Windows on Shai's Inspiron but I still need to get the drivers. I forgot to download it last night because I stayed up late chatting with my two closest friends back in college (Ynah and Mark).

Anyways, I forgot to blog about this last week. It happened last Thursday when my Boss asked me to attend a seminar from Microsoft. He was the one invited but was very busy so he sent me as proxy. I didn't have any difficulty finding the venue. I forgot the name but it was held near SM Mall of Asia.

When I arrived there, I asked the receptionist about the Microsoft seminar. I noticed she was a little bit surprised with my inquiry but gave me an I.D. anyway. So I went inside and was surprised to see female dancers performing on stage with their skimpy outfit. Not only that, but I was also surrounded with new high-tech slot machines just like the ones in Ocean's Thirteen's Casino setting. I quickly called my boss to to ask the number of the contact person and to confirm if I was on the right place.

After checking, he told me this exact phrase "Dan, sa April 10 pa pala..." and laughed out loud. For me, that was my queue to leave the building. I was laughing the whole time while driving back to the office. I guess I have another seminar to attend this coming Thursday.

Good people, Good service

Yesterday, my car overheated when I was on my way to the office. It was a very hot morning and the radiator fan stopped working. I parked on the sidewalk somewhere in Boni along Edsa highway. I was a bit paranoid that MMDA's or towing trucks would show up and take advantage of my situation. Thanks to "manong" guard who gave me a big bottle of "Wilkins" filled with water. It was enough to cool down the car for me to reach the nearest gas station.

When I reached the Caltex station, the gasoline girl/boy (tomboy ata e) was nice enough to put water again in the radiator. I was lucky enough that their on-call car mechanic is available and she called him to give me assistance. His name is Elias. Elias told me the price I had to pay after checking the engine. Although the price was reasonalbe, I still bargained but didnt get any success (I'm not good at it).

Also, good job to BPI Bank for putting at least two ATM machines in the area (other one was offline) because I was short of cash. To make the story short, Elias did a good job of replacing the radiator fan though he made me wait more than an hour to get the part. As usual, I came in the office late and completed half day.

Later in the evening, I went out with my co-workers to eat dinner at greenbelt 3. Every good service that I experienced all day was the exact opposite. My friend Shai promised to blog about it so I won't. And besides, it doesn't go with the title (hehe). You can check her posts at http://her-bubbliness-shai.blogspot.com.

REMINISCING

Last night, I received a text from "someone", telling me that she found out that I already have a new girlfriend. Of course, I told her that it's not true because I'm not even courting anyone. She didn't tell me where she got the news but I think I already know the culprit (hmmmm...peeeeejjjjjaaayyy!!! hehehe).

I left the office at around 12:30 in the morning. I feel bad because I wasted my time doing the "not-so-important" things. It's my habit to turn on the car stereo while driving late at night to keep me awake. I tuned in to wave 89.1 and the song they were playing was "Wishing On The Same Star". This is not the type of song that I would download on Limewire and listen on my Ipod but it reminded me of an old friend who gave me a letter dedicating its' cheesy lyrics.

Let's just call her "Inday" to hide her real identity (hehehe). Inday was my neighbor during my teenage years. Back then, we would communicate by sending letters to each other, since only the super rich people can only afford to buy mobile phones at that time. I remembered asking my bestfriend "Obet"to teach me how to do different paper folds because the letters she gave were always folded in different styles (t-shirt, heart, etc).

What we had wasn't serious. It was more of like a "High-School-Musical" love team, the way I would describe it now. Although everything ended when she admitted that she already had a boyfriend and was moving to another place (you @$%#! just kidding), she left me with a lot of good memories worth reminiscing.

I'll finish this blog with a beautiful quote from Ida Taylor Scott.

"Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering."

JUST KILLING TIME

Earlier this afternoon, James (one of the I.T. boys) and I went to the Fort to attend a training for router configuration. My boss prefer "knowledge transfer" over the term "training" because it was just for a couple of hours.

This coming Thursday, I will be attending a whole day seminar from Microsoft at the Mall of Asia. I'm just surprised and happy at the same time. I didn't expect that I would experience trainings and going to seminars ever since I was hired here. My job isn't easy. Believe me, even if I extend my working hours here, I will still find myself surrounded with a lot of pending tasks.I think my office-mates will agree on this as well.

The good thing is I love what I'm doing and I think that's what keeps me going. I do believe that you won't get tired of what you do as long as you enjoy it. It's like playing your favorite video game. You can just play all day without eating or doing anything, as long as your character levels up, unlock new stuff and finish the game.

By the way, as you can see, I changed my multiply layout (hehe). It was difficult to find a theme which is nice and would suit my personality. I chose this one not only because it looks like a theme for "gamers" but because I also got tired of clicking "next" on a list whom no one knows when will end. Obviously, there are lot of themes now compared before. I'm glad I did this using a fast internet connection. If I did this at home, it would take a long time to load each page, which reminds me of my sister. I hope she already called PLDT for our broadband application. I had my Smartbro subscription terminated because I wasn't satisfied with the speed I was getting. I've never tried MyDSL before so I hope we'll really get the 1Mbps they're bragging on their website.