The World of Second Chances

Checkpoint Phobia

January 15, 2013

Life & Love

I always get this nervous feeling whenever I see a police or military checkpoint. Call it paranoia from watching too much Tagalog action films in the past wherein the officer-in-charge is actually a hitman-in-disguise. The hottest news about the Atimonan shoot out (or rub out?) is enough to justify my fear of checkpoints.

Passengers should know that opening the trunk of our car should not be made compulsary by the police or military doing the checkpoint. We are also not asked to step out of the car during inspection. Checkpoints should be done in a well-lit area. The name and contact number of the officer heading the checkpoint must also be visible from the signage.

A lot of talks and speculations are going on about the Atimonan shoot out. From the NBI investigation, it appears to be an ambush. Dead man tell no tales but the scene of the crime will speak about what really happened on January 6. It’s too early to tell and conclude the final result of the investigation. Let’s just hope that this is going to be a fair and fast investigation.
All Mine To Give

January 14, 2013

Wedding & Family Life

I watched last Saturday’s episode of “Magpakailanman” and it featured the life story of Lucy Aroma, the woman who committed suicide at the LRT station last August 2012. Combacking actress Sunshine Dizon played the role of Lucy.

I got a little confused with the story line. Assuming that Lucy finished high school at 16 and then their family moved to Manila afterwards, she would have been 18 yrs old when she had her first job. In one scene when she was confined at the hospital after her first suicide attempt, her high school suitor paid her a visit and mentioned something like not seeing her for 20 yrs. So Lucy would have been 36 to 38 yrs old when she saw her first suitor again. Since the timeline is not clear, I assumed that that visit did more harm than good for Lucy because she was reminded of her long lost love; the one she could have ended up with. After that scene, she was seen more depressed and angry about life. In one of her depression attacks, she decided to go the LRT station to end her life.
The writers failed to include the timeline of Lucy’s depression and at what age did she really die. Lucy ended her life at 52 yrs old and Sunshine’s youthful appearance did not reflect Lucy’s age at the time of her death. It’s just the timeline of Lucy’s life that I’m disappointed about in her life story. Deducting it from the equation, Lucy’s story is the story of many Filipinos who sacrifice for his/her family.

When teenagers were worried about their looks, Lucy was worried about her siblings. She provided for them and served them, acting as both mother and father to them even if their parents were still alive. Sacrificing her feelings for the only man who courted and loved her for her siblings welfare was one-sided because the brother and sister that she established did not reciprocate that kindness to their younger siblings. Hence, Lucy was left with supporting not just for their younger siblings but the children of the brother and sister that got married after finishing school.

The role of being the eldest child is synonymous to RESPONSIBILITY and more often than not, even the personal happiness of the eldest child is sacrificed for the family’s welfare. More often than not, the recipient of the blessings do not reciprocate and when it’s time for them to take care of the very person who sacrificed for them, they can only think of themselves so as to avoid that responsibility.
Great Find: Sweet Baby Diaper

January 14, 2013

Career, Finance & Product

My 9-month old baby uses Pampers Overnight for maximum absorbency. In the morning, he uses Pampers Comfort until my husband asked me to try using other brands. Since Robi started teething, we had to change his diaper at least twice an hour due to his frequent bowel movement. Prior to that, we used to change Robi’s diaper every two hours. The pediatrician said it was part of teething and unless Robi seemed sick, there’s nothing to be worried about.

So there, I grabbed two packs (20 diapers each pack) of Sweet Baby Diaper for Robi’s daytime use. Upon arriving home, I checked the adhesives and found them to be just fine. I like its high-cut leg design like Pampers. I expected something like leaking but the cotton could hold Robi’s weewee for up to one hour. Of course, our primary reason why we bought a cheaper diaper was because we didn’t want to spoil and throw away a pricey diaper for Robi’s frequent bowel movement. Now that Robi’s bowel movement is back to normal, I can feel the savings of using a cheaper yet a good quality diaper.

Yesterday, I bought 1 pack (38 diapers per pack) for only PhP 220 pesos in Walter Mart. That is only PhP 5.70 pesos per diaper! If I’m going to buy it elsewhere, it could even be cheaper. By the way, the manufacturer of Sweet Baby Diaper is Quanta Paper Corporation, a Filipino company. That’s one good reason to patronize this product, too.
What Is Your Favorite Topic?

January 12, 2013

Career, Finance & Product

Don’t you agree with me on this? I was reading my old blog when I was in my mid-20’s and my favorite topic was about my love life. Now that I’m in my 30’s, I frequently think and discuss about financial management and financial freedom. I remember a Taiwanese co-worker before who was of my age. While I was busy discussing about my love life, she was busy reading the business section of the newspaper. She was into the stock market and that word was out-of-this-world for me at that time.

Now, some people at the office who are in their late 40’s are talking about retirement. Instead of thinking and talking about financial freedom, I would listen to them and scrutinize their retirement ideas to learn from them. Somehow, talking about financial freedom and retirement are related with each other. Building your retirement fund is synonymous to having financial freedom later on.
Yes To Frugality!

January 11, 2013

Career, Finance & Product

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to practice frugality for 2013. Well, I’ve always been frugal when it comes to myself but the moment my family and friends come into the picture, I turn into the opposite. Mr. Fitz Villafuerte, Mr. Jaime Colayco and Mr. Eduardo Roberto Jr. have a common denominator aside from being good in financial matters. They all claim to practice FRUGALITY.

I agree with Mr. Fitz that there’s only a thin line between being cheap and being frugal but my rule of thumb is, if I don’t hurt anyone by my spending or saving habit, then I’m just being frugal. Being cheap to me is like shortchanging other people and I can’t afford to do that to others. (Remember the golden rule? Do not do to others what you don’t like others do unto you.)

For 2013, I’d like to put my finances in its proper places. These are the things that I’ll avoid doing. Who knows, it may apply to you, too.

1. Delay gratification- I would be very happy if my daughter brings home a certificate for her quarterly recognition but I will hold myself from rewarding her expensive items. I would be very happy if my toddler can recite the alphabet but that doesn’t mean that we’ll have a trip to the mall to scout for a toy. My youngest child, a baby, needs to complete his vaccination and splurging on some non-essentials might hurt the family budget. A less expensive reward will do this time. A facial and spa treat for my teenager will do while a less expensive toy for the toddler will surely make him happy just the same. But hey, the husband needs some re-orientation, too! This would mean scheduled travels if he wants to visit his relatives at the South.

2. Assess debtors- Who wouldn’t want to help someone in need? But as the saying goes, a person is only good when borrowing money but fails to remember his creditor when he’s due to return the money. I have bad debts. Those money could have been used to pay my utilities. I have a soft heart for debtors because I know how is it to have no money but it breaks my heart to see some of them flaunting their latest gadget instead of paying me!I will only lend to trustworthy people.

3. Packed Lunch- Packed lunch used to be “baduy” for me but when I started bringin my own lunch (1 viand, no rice) since last Monday, I’m surprised at the savings! We always have excess food at the house everyday and instead of throwing it away, I save it for my packed lunch the next day. Adobo, pork chop, fried chicken, barbecue and even pinaksiw na isda taste better when kept longer in the fridge. For more frugal practice, I am using recycled plastic bag with Zipper
Gunless Society

January 7, 2013

Life & Love

The clamor for a gunless society was hyped up after the death of Stephanie Nicole Ella, the 7-year old stray bullet victim from Caloocan City. Surely, we don’t want another Stephanie Ella for 2014 but will a gunless society solve the problem?

First and foremost, the problem is we have unrecorded or unlicensed firearms or the so called loose firearms. It is no guarantee that licensed gun owners won’t do a similar act of indiscriminate firing like their unlicensed counterpart but the risk is greater for the unlicensed gun owners to do a crime simply because authorities would find it harder to track them. We have laws and penalties about illegal possession of firearms but it’s hard to know if a household possesses illegal firearms unless the authorities search for it.

The gunless society program won’t have a hard time tracking down licensed gun owners to confiscate their guns but what about the unlicensed gun owners? How can we be assured that everybody is playing fair in this game? Unlicensed gun owners are composed of maybe your next-door neighbour who wants to keep a gun in his house for security reasons, leftist and/or terrorist groups, robbers, hold-uppers, snatchers etc. What a great challenge to track down these people and tell them to surrender their weapons!

Do I want a gunless society? Absolutely! But I can only support the system if the main players will play it fair. Go after the owners of the loose firearms first before taking the next step of totally banning the use of gun in this country.
A Breathe of Fresh Air

January 2, 2013

Life & Love

Scene 1:

Adi (my 3-year old boy) saw our neighbours carrying a live pig (lilitsunin).

Adi: Wow! A pig!

Me: Yes, it’s a pig. Get inside. Sleep ka na.

I see to it that Adi gets his afternoon nap. He asked for his padede and lied down on the sofa. We were watching TV when an image of a lechong-baboy was flashed.

Adi: Look, Mama! It’s the pig!

Me: How did you know it’s the pig?

Adi: Patay na. (It’s dead)

I have no idea how my three-year old boy got the idea that the pig that my neighbours brought home would be slaughtered and roasted into a tasty lechon just like what was flashed on TV (Mila’s Lechon).

Scene 2:

I was busy doing the laundry when Adi interrupted me.

Adi: Bye, Mama. Go to school. (while carrying a red sling bag)

Me: There’s no school today.

Adi: Bye Mama, go to work.

Scene 3:

Orange is to orange as apple is to red. My toddler seems to be confused with the color orange and the fruit orange.

Me: What color is this? (points to orange)

Adi: Orange.

Me: What about this? (points to red)

Adi: Apple!