Too much debt?

Source: About.com

Here are some of the warning signs that you have a credit/debt problem.

If you answer yes to one or more of the first six questions and no to the rest, you may have caught the problem before it's unmanageable, as long as you act now to change your spending habits. If you answer yes to one or more of questions 7 through 15, your problem is much more serious and will require more drastic steps. Time is of the essence.

Warning Signs of Debt Problems

1. You don't have any savings.
2. You make minimum payments on your credit cards.
3. You use credit cards for things you used to buy with cash, such as groceries.
4. You use increasing amounts of your total income to pay off debts.
5. You have more than two or three major credit cards.
6. After you pay your credit card bill, you increase your balance by the same amount (or more) the following month. 7. You're at or near your credit limit on your credit cards.
8. You count on the float in order to pay your bills, writing a check hoping that you'll be able to cover it by the time it clears your bank.
9. You're unsure of the total amount you owe on all your debts.
10. You take out cash advances on your credit card to pay other bills.
11. You've tried to make a purchase with your credit card and been declined.
12. You've been denied credit.
13. You bounce checks.
14. You get calls from collectors.
15. You lie to your spouse or other family member about your spending or hide credit card statements from family members.

If you realize that you are in over your head, the sooner you act, the easier it will be to get out from under the burden of debt. Beware of companies that promise to fix your credit or debt consolidation companies. There's no easy fix, but it is possible to turn your finances around if you work at it.

When was the last time you heard an Erap Joke?

Nakatakas si Erap, FVR at GMA sa mga terorista at nagtago sa mga sako sa isang farm...

Terorista1: Anong nakita mo dyan?
Terorista2: Mga sako lang.
Terorista1: Tingnan mo ang laman!

Sinipa ng terorista ang unang sako, "Meow", sabi ni FVR!
Terorista2: Pusa!

Sinipa ang pangalawang sako, "Aw aw!" sabi ni GMA!
Terorista2: Aso!

Sinipa ang ikatlong sako... Walang tunog kaya sinipa uli ito ng sinipa ng terorista.

Dahil sa sakit ng sipa, napasigaw na si Erap:

"PATATAS!"

Apple I-Phone

I think these will sell like hotcakes once it reaches Asia in 2008.

Review of the Holidays

Here are some random thoughts about how I spent the Holidays:

Top of my list, of course, was having to spend Christmas and New Year in Manila with the missus and my boy. Seeing my boy getting more Christmas gifts than me and the missus combined showed how much the little fella is loved by his relatives. Too bad we weren't able to dress the entire mini Santa suit on him. It would've been cuuuute with the beard and all. Maybe it'll fit him this year.

Much to the dismay of his titas in Paranaque, he was asleep throughout the 2006-2007 turnover. This was inspite the titas' "indirect paggising sa kanya."

I've attended 3 Company Christmas parties ---which some say is below average of the Filipino employee. It was a joy to have experienced this since there wasn't one when I was in Malaysia. Christmas is just a one-day event there. Our department also had a Kris-Kringle wherein my "daddy" gave me very weird gifts: a toilet-plunger, 2 living white rats in an air-vented iced-tea bottle, and a baby chick (sisiw) spray-painted in red. The gifts caught everone's attention, including my boss, so I spent the next two weeks finding out who the suspect was. I had one particular guess who was considered the weirdest guy in the department. The other year, when the instruction was "something twenty," I heard that he gave his "baby" a balloon filled with, get this, twenty used McDo french fry bags. Creative isn't he? (But it wasn't as creative as the gift given by one of the VPs for "something funny:" a framed pic of Fanny Serrano)

Eventually, the culprit surrendered himself to me during the revelation night and was apologetic when he gave me a checkered short-sleeved polo as my Christmas gift from him. The shirt was definitely worth the wait.

I was able to remember all my inaanaks and bought each of them Christmas gifts ---some of whom I've never seen in years and would've been surprised that one of their Ninongs is back in the aguinaldo loop.

As for the holiday food, it is of no surprise that the missus and I consumed more than our average intake. The morcon, the Excellente ham, the hito, the molo soup, and the assortment of cakes from Conti's and Red Ribbon (and Krispy Kreme donuts) among others, have attributed to the rightward movement of the bathroom scale pointer. Good thing we bought a threadmill which we *hope* to use often to shed the unwanted fat.

During the missus' friends' Christmas party, the host pulled out his poker set. Now as you may know, my card-playing is only limited to 21 and pusoy-dos. But I've been watching a lot of poker on cable-TV and "sort of" understood how it was played. After the host and the other players taught me the rules of the game, we played for what I thought was only for fun.

Believe it or not, I won ---with a full-house to end the final round. Beginner's luck I suppose. Then the 3 who lost pulled out their wallets and started handing me P100.00 each. I declined but then they insisted. What I didn't hear was that during the start of the game the pot was P300.00 for the winner. The missus heard this but maybe since I was overwhelmed with excitement I didn't pay attention. But hey, if they insisted that they give me P300, why not? Hehe. I considered it tas heir aguinaldo for me. Hmmm, I hope they'd still invite me for poker on their next Christmas get-together.

All in all, it was a wonderful Holiday. I'm very grateful to have experienced it from start to end ---which I believe ends today coz of the Feast of the Magi.

In case I didn't greet you, here's a belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from me to you!

Jordan Team Handlez

The Jordan Team Handlez shoe. My next prospect for basketball shoes. Found it on Sale at a sports shop in Libis for P3,777.00. I'm still in a bind whether to buy it or not. It's the last pair in the shop and it's my size.

Pag andun pa yun this weekend, bahala na. ;-)

O Come All Ye Faithful (with a twist)

Katawan

This week has been one Christmas party after another ---a great "welcome back" for me who's missed happenings such as these during the holiday season.

Our company's Christmas party was held at the Hardrock Makati wherein cash prizes where at stake for the department that performed the best in their presentation. Our dept (nope, I didn't take part ---maybe next year) spent countless hours rehearsing their dance which was a mix of 60s, 70s, and 80s tunes. I was sure that they would win.

But then, the Marketing dept showed up with a skit performance of Pinoy performers of old: Pepe Smith, Mike Hanopol, and Sampaguita. Their winning performance, which brought the house down for obvious reasons, was this:

Ulan

Sung by Cueshe, I first heard this song via this flash-MTV.



Nice.

Green Tea

When we were in Malaysia, the missus and I would often go to our favorite Japanese resto, Genki Sushi. Aside from the fresh sushi and temaki, we would order green tea as our drink. What makes the green tea special here is that it's powdered green tea and you'd mix it yourself ---apart from it being cheaper and bottomless.

Consider the health benefits of green tea:

• Boosts your immune system
• Lowers blood sugar
• Helps prevent cavities and tooth decay
• Slows the aging process
• Helps reduce the risk of cancer
• Lowers cholesterol
• Aids in weight loss by burning calories
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Prevents arthritis
• Reduces the risk of heart disease
• Reduces the risk of stroke
• Lowers the risk of blood clot

I've been missing it since I came back so I searched around the 'net and came to O-cha which sells powdered green tea from Japan. It was a long wait (I ordered early-Oct but the package only arrived late Nov), but finally it's here!

Rapsa!

Glazed

The missus has been waiting all week for the opening of Krispy Kreme. Not even the winds of Reming deterred her from going to The Fort to queue up for a dozen. It was going to be this week, or else.

The shop itself wasn't easy to find. I knew that it was on The Fort, but didn't know where it was exactly. It was a good thing that there was a Krispy Kreme sign just right after the Adidas Sports Camp that pointed towards the direction of the Gonuts Donuts shop. We passed Gonuts Donuts but didn't see another sign of KK.

I turned around and followed a hunch that those 3 or 4 cars going to that small street *could be* lining up for KK.

As luck would have it, we found it ---the end of the queue that is. I told the missus and my sis to queue up as I parked the car. We spent around 10-15mins on the line before we managed to set foot on KK's doorstep, the missus filled with delight as we saw the machines process from dough to donut ---glazed, that is.

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My sis had never tasted KK before so she was questioning the hype about it. As one of the crew served us a glazed sample as a simple thank-you for lining up for so long, my sis uttered something like, "I don't know what the fuss is all about..." as she took a bite.

Then, as she munched her first melt-in-your-mouth bite of KK, her world stopped for a moment:

"Awwwhhhmmmmmmmmm!!!!"

She became a convert from then on.

The missus, on the other hand, was in a daze as she couldn't decide what combi should our first KK-dozen be: a dozen glazed? half glazed, half variety? 8 glazed, 4 variety?

It was a difficult choice, as if the store was only open for the day and will cease operation the next day.

She came to a decision: 8 glazed, 4 variety.

Within the next 24 hours, I, the missus, dadofbree, and the bugoys were able to consume the sumptuous dozen.

I guess we need to replenish again this weekend. ;-)

Homesick-Attack

I was able to download Google-Earth, a wonderful tool for all those who have nothing to do in the office. Hehe.

The missus frequently mentions na inaatake sya minsan pag namimiss nya ang Malaysia. I've stayed there for 3.5 years and frankly, I never had that "homesick-attack" since I left last July....

...until I saw Sunway again via Google-Earth (click on the pic to get the full view).


*SIGH*

Nakakamiss nga.

Jamming again

The band reunited last Monday evening in a studio in Makati after months in hiatus. The 2-hour session was mostly trying to recall old riffs. We ended up jamming around 2 or 3 songs that we *think* we got it right. To sum up, the jam session was very rusty so we hope to do better next time.

But it was great to hold my bass guitar again after a long while.

Patunay na mas mabilis ang kamay ni Manny kesa ke Eric

CS

I remember playing CounterStrike every Saturday morning when I was working in Singapore last 2001-2002. I'd walk to Plaza Singapura, the mall next to my friend's pad where I stayed in, and for 5 (or was it 10?) Sing-dollars an hour I'd shoot 'em up with those kids in the computer shop ---which I would lose most of the time.

Forbidden Questions

The missus and I often listened to Chico&Delamar's morning show when we were in Malaysia. I would download the recorded files from the 'net, burn it to an audio CD, and then we listen to it at home or in the car ---everyday.

But nowadays, their show seemed to be going downhill, especially with all those radio-idol contestants trying hard to sound like DJs in between the :30 and :00 minutes since those two slots are reserved for ChicoDel's morning top10.

Still, my interests to listen to it during my morning drive to work started to wane.

I've been hearing a lot of DJ Mo a couple of weeks back when, as the missus was watching The Buzz, the hosts of the said show seemed to be irritated by DJ Mo.

This interested me. For what could DJ Mo be doing that the likes of Boy, Kris, Cristy, and Lolit will get irritated for they are the ones irritating me every week? I need to know what's going on.

As you may know, local showbiz-talkshows are not as exciting as before when CharlieArceo ruled the Sunday afternoon TV slot when he sits in the hosting-controls and reports the latest movies to be seen ("ffffavb shtars!") or not to be seen ("whhaaahn shtar! Nya mahay nyah nyang ngayoh!"). Now THAT was entertainment.

TheBuzz and S-Files stories are too predictable and more importantly, for all terms and purposes, too stupid to digest even for the masa who I think are not that naive anymore. These 2 shows are just scratching the surface. Why are they not telling the stories that I only hear from the missus care of her inside sources?

I, for one, have been left wanting to see (or hear) something different.

Last Wednesday morning I was driving to work again. And again, those radio-idol-idiots are on my stereo. As the EDSA southbound-traffic started its perpetual crawl, I recalled that DJ Mo's show is every Wednesday morning. The show's 8-9am but it was already 8.45am but "what the hell!" I thought. It's either I listen to these radio-idiots up to Galleria or I switch channels.

I pressed "2" on my car stereo which speed-dials to 89.9.

It was Aubrey and Jacq, a team on the ongoing AR-Asia, who were the week's guests.

For those who missed it, especially the latter questions (and dares), you've missed a lot. It was definitely entertaining. I was laughing and shouting "GOOOOO!" inside my car that I hoped the car next to me didn't think I was going insane. Definitely entertaining indeed.

No wonder Boy, Kris and company got irritated. Actually, they weren't irritated. I felt that they were intimidated by the success "Forbidden Questions" is currently getting. DJ Mo's questions had definitely gone beyond the tip of the iceberg, making showbiz's secrets (and dirt) become transparent for all the world to see (btw, Lolit was also a previous guest. You can read here for snippets of that episode).

To Boy, Kris, and company, I leave you with the words of Charlie Arceo:

"Nya mahay nyah nyang ngayoh!"

Pinoy ang tumapos!

Pacman was obviously the stronger and faster boxer in this fight. Even Morales "El Terrible" himself, continuously described Manny as "mucho rapido" during the post-fight interview.

After an overdose of Dyan Castillejo sticking to Manny like glue weeks (months?) before the fight, encapsulated by her anorexic-muscular look during fight-night, after all the unnecessary TV delays and commercials, and even JDC's text to me that Pacman won it (I guess he watched it in SM), I was still delighted to watch the fight on free-TV. Erik had no chance against Manny's deadly left punch (kinaliwa eh!).

This goes to show that the one who had the better training and mental preparation for the fight won. Erik's weight problem obviously affected his stamina. He seemed to be tiring as early as the end of round 1. He was wobbly on round 2. And, obviously, he was sitting at the canvass looking dazed by round 3. That pose had definitely put a "period" into his illustrious fighting career since he said that he may decide to "stay at home" from hereon.

I think Manny is at the peak of his form and should continue to earn from it (USD3,000,000 + payperview shares ---not bad for a night's work). Since it might be a while before he fights again, I suggest he contacts Mrs. Madrid, my 2nd-year college English professor. Come on, you have to admit it. His English is not as good as his boxing.

Or an alternative would be to hire an interpreter.

May I suggest Jimmy Santos.

"Holy Cow!"

End of the line for Gonuts Donuts

"Crispy na, creamy pa!" ---Andrew E

The missus asked me this morning as to how did one TV show had so many Krispy Kreme donuts catered for the hosts.

"San kaya nila nakuha yun?"

The missus always included "Krispy Kreme" whenever she mentions her trips to the US. I myself have tasted it once (or was it twice coz I had 2 helpings?) whenever Mom of Bree brings back a dozen from Cali.

Then I recalled what my sis told me last weekend over crepe: Krispy Kreme is opening here soon ---at the Fort.

This is definitely good news for all those craving for the said succulent dessert ---the missus included. This used to be available only to families of OFWs coming from the US whenever they bring pasalubong.

But not anymore.

As I told this to the missus, she gasped and her eyes opened wide like a kid on Christmas morning:

"Oh no! We have to go!!!!"

I thought that it was already open but I wanted to be sure. I browsed the 'net and came to the Krispy-Kreme Philippines website. I called up their office number and verified if the news were true.

"I'm sorry sir but the opening is moved to Nov.30."

Well, the missus and I have to wait for 14 more days before we grab a bite of those freshly-baked, creamy, yummy donuts (sprinkled with calories).

You better not pout...you better not cry

It was a typical Monday evening drive from work. With EDSA moderately moving, I was able to reach Valley Road in 10 minutes. As I made the left turn to the garage, I saw at the corner of my eye who I thought was the missus, waiting to greet me. The garage was not lighted up so I couldn't really see who it was.

Then, in a couple of milliseconds, my thoughts changed from curiosity to fear....

....put#$%#$%^^$&*()!@+!@!!!!!

Then I realized, it was him. That same guy in the red suit that A-L-W-A-Y-S gets me every year.

Galeng mo!

It's undoubtedly one of the Philippines' finest moments in world pool. Alcano "The Volcano" beat Ralf "The Kaiser" Soquet in a lopsided 17-11 final of the World Pool Championships here in Manila.

After a long wait, a Filipino (again) has won the prestigious title (Alex Pagulayan won the title a couple of years back but he was playing for Canada back then). Officially, Reyes was the last Filipino champ in 1999.

My heart goes out to Ralf, who broke down in the post-game interview amidst the cheers of the Filipino crowd chanting "Soquet! Soquet!" to boost his moral. I congratulate the unbiased crowd during the final, showing great respect and applause to Ralf whenever the German made a good shot or won a rack. Ralf last won the title in 1996, then became runnerup on 2002, and then runner up again this year. "I feel very frustrated right now," Ralf said.

I feel you Ralf. But sorry, you just have to try again next year. Alcano deserves it.

Yup, after being bottom in the last 64 he zoomed past 3 WPC champs: Reyes, Wu, and Soquet to claim the WPC title.

With a USD100,000 cash prize, not bad for 1 week's work of pool.

Galeng mo idol!!!

Barbados Football

A soccer team advanced in a cup match by deliberately scoring against itself. Read here.

Btw, I managed to play football earlier. I realized that I'm not as quick as I was 10-12yrs ago. I guess I need to starting working-out again to get back in shape.