Photoblog - Day 259 Dec 24, 2010

Reunions... reunions...

Yeah, it's that time of the year when we get to see relatives we've hardly seen the past months - and I marvel at the fact that without Facebook, I might have missed them out in a crowd... amazing huh?

But reunions like this allow is to touch base - some, I'm sad to say, even just superficially. After all, if you hardly know anything about yourselves other than the fact that you have similar ancestors, what would you talk about? Well, apparently... our ancestors of course. I mean... what else?

I got to know more about a great-grand mother whom I've never heard of... and just realized that her story is being turned into a movie... just so her life and it's hardships can be told (and hopefully, some lessons learned?).

I also learned a story of my dad during his teen years... so yeah, I was laughing out loud at that.

The food was indisputably great... and I really have to watch my weight during these times. So yeah... I felt that if anything else, some more bridges were built between me and my cousins, uncles and aunts. We're not as close as I would like... but at least we have these occasions - and ones not sorrowful in nature (like funerals).

This picture shows my dad (center) and uncles sharing a light moment. So yeah... here's looking forward to the next one - the eve before the New Year.

Photoblog - Day 258 Dec 23, 2010

Last PM School 2010:

I must say that I normally do not look forward to handling PM school - it usually is too stuffed with topics, and should the participants be less inspired to talk, I (and my partner) would be exhausted for talking the entire day. Last time I handled this, I think I had to do a few days alone... so, to be honest, I was not really looking forward to this.

Lucky for me, Gina would be sharing the facilitating load with me... and we would have a class filled with very active listeners and more than a handful of people willing to share their Accenture experience... and we had people from different groups that somehow complemented each other when it came to asking questions raised to the group.

Bottom line? I really loved this session. Even if Gina and I were tired, due to our respective hectic weekends - and hectic Monday (Christmas party, remember?) even if we were going a bit over the official class time, we were both okay with it... heck we even had to intervene a few times to get the conversations to move along - lest we end up really having overtime on the last day.

But the experience shared - both from in and outside Accenture viewpoints; the tossing around of ideas; the invaluable insights into how certain parts of the company worked - this was all very interesting... and needed by these new (and not so new) PMs.

When 5PM finally came, I was almost sad to see it end... and surprise surprise... neither Gina, nor I was drained by this particular run. We enjoyed it... and more importantly, our participants enjoyed it. Great way to end my year of teaching/facilitating.

If only all PM classes were like this. Thanks a lot folks!

Photoblog - Day 257 Dec 22, 2010

Celebrating friendship:

This was supposed to be a night for the winners of our singing contest, while also being a night to celebrate one last time with some friends - at least, last time for the year, since they would have no more trainings for the rest of December.

That said, of the group that won, only Francis, Jinky and I were able to be there - accompanied with Lovern and Gina... the other two - Jingo and Brian, were occupied elsewhere... but I thought that was okay, since we also used up some of the cash, as part of our post party celebration. My thoughts here being that if it was near impossible to pull together all five, we could do two separate celebrations - so long as majority of the winners were able to enjoy it. It just so happened that both Gina and I were present in the two celebrations.

as I said though, it was also a night to share a drink with some of them - whom I would not be seeing until January... Jinky, Francis and Lovern fell into this category.

Of course, the evening was also loud... since we just happen to be in one small corner - right beside the karaoke speaker. Suffice to say, once we were done with the bucket of beer we ordered, we called it a night.

Photoblog - Day 256 Dec 21, 2010

December Comics:

I did take advantage of my being in Makati yesterday, to pass a comic shop I rarely frequent (simply because it is out of my usual route), because I needed to get a comic I asked them to get for me... and they called me a few days earlier to inform me that they did have the comic re-ordered. So I did need to go there... and my having to go to the Christmas party was the best coincidence to do just that.

Naturally, I took it upon myself to maximize my visit... deciding to get a few more issues from them - ones I hardly find in my regular comic shops.

That was last night. Reading these comics, however, were more scheduled for today (no time to do it last night, after all), since I was still in the middle of conducting a Project Management training with Gina. So I thought to myself... okay, while Gina is lecturing, I would have time to read these comics.

Most of them were catch-up reading with The Green Hornet, and I did get a comic I already had - simply because the cover was by Alex Ross... a tribute to Vampirella issue #1 back when it was first published by Warren magazine. Though it just showed the back of vampi - with Drakulon (the supposed planet she came from) as her background. I can't remember who painted the cover back then though.

These won't be the last comics I'll be getting this year... at least, I'd like to think so.

Photoblog - Day 255 Dec 20, 2010

Christmas Party:

The occasion is the Phoenix One Christmas party... the location is the rooftop of Asian Mansions in Makati... a private enough place for such a party with about 50 people (approximately speaking); and quite naturally, a place in general that I would want to avoid, since Makati is one of a handful of places in the middle of Christmas shopping madness, and therefore, horrendous traffic jams.

But... it is a Christmas party after all, and it has been a while since I've been part of one - the last one I remember being in was the Orange and Bronze party last year... I think, and I was just a spectator there - an invited guest. Not so here, as the picture shows.

Highlight of the night? Welcome to the Sing-along relay contest where a group of 5 people will be given a random song to sing, and they will have to try their best to interpret it. The thing is, it's virtually anything goes, and you had better hope that you get the luck of the draw with a song you know.

Lucky for us (us being Brian, Francis, Jinky and myself), we have Jingo on our team - but this being a relay, Jingo could only carry oh... 20% of the songs (roughly speaking). First round pick was a familiar enough tune - made famous by Billy Joel... then later, by Westlife (I think) - 'Uptown Girl'; and we squeezed in the top 3 with a 93 despite thinking we were goners.

Well next round was apparently more difficult - 'Staying Alive' by the Bee Gees... I mean, c'mon... really? Bee Gees? If if was 'Charade' - a song pre-falcetto Bee Gees days, I would have a fighting chance. As it was, I had to bring it several rungs lower just to turn in my tune, and the rest gladly followed. But we did not bother thinking we'd win - and I guess that helped. No pressure.

Our score? 99 - from there on, it was just a matter of time. The team that followed us must have been slightly intimidated... and Jingo even commented on the same thing to me. Anything less than 100 would not be good enough for them - and at the best, they could tie with another 99... and they would have, since their song was (at least to my mind) easier for a majority ladies team (Gloria Gaynor's I will Survive).

Photoblog - Day 254 Dec 19, 2010

Believe:

My kids are at this age where they don't believe in Santa Claus anymore... just paying lip service to the idea (and the person playing the role in this picture). Too bad... I feel that one of the things that keeps the magic of Christmas alive was their belief - and our helping instill said belief, in Santa.

Guess it was bound to happen, huh? And with loss of belief comes a certain added cynicism - though I don't think my kids are too cynical. I can't remember when I realized that there was no Santa... but this did not make me stop hoping or believing in the concept. I guess that sort of explains why I enjoy watching films of Santa, deep inside, I hope and pray that I do see Santa - and not just believe in a marketing idea. It's my inner child refusing to be totally swept away.

Photoblog - Day 253 Dec 18, 2010

Cheese plate:

This evening, Barbie and I hosted our second wine and cheese night for Fred and Carlos. If things go according to conversations from this night's gathering, we might just make this a semi-regular thing. This night, Fred brought his girl friend Clorian, hopefully in succeeding such nights, we'll have Gerry joining us as well (assuming he gets to pull himself from whatever keeps him very busy these days).

The cheese cutter was something I got from the St. James bazaar - something I specifically looked for, as I was getting frustrated with having to scrape the cheese from any knife. Aside from this, one could possibly glimpse some red and white colored plates and matching cloth napkins - all for better presentation... and items that we (that is, Barbie and I) bought from the Crossings Depaartment Store in Shangri La Plaza.

The table looked great, and we had a great time. Though this time, we consumed less wine as Carlos and I were more focussed on savoring a 15-year old Scotch (brouhgt by Carlos). We also had three cakes (two courtesy of Fred). Yup... looking forward to the next one - most probably by next year.

Photoblog - Day 251 Dec 16, 2010

New Star(bucks)!

This new building happens to be a two story Starbucks coffee place located in the Fort. Barbie had visited it and she wanted us to experience this as well. Naturally, I was curious about the new place, and lugged my camera to take a few pcitures.

The place was almost full - despite it's size, and seemingly out of the way location from the High Street and other more densely populated locales within Bonifacio. Still, we did find some seats (barely), and enjoyed our coffee.

Will I ever come back here to relax and enjoy the experience? Maybe... after all, I have no real reason to go back - considering that there are other, more convenient Starbucks locations - with the one if Fully Booked specifically coming ot mind. Technically, this is the building's rear... though it looks a bit more interesting that it's front.

Photoblog - Day 252 Dec 17, 2010

Blue:

As I said im a previous post (two days back), I was planning on taking a shot of me in the blue light. Where exactly did this blue light come from? Simple... I found a room filled with PCs and their monitors on standby Windows screen mode. This was where I took the picture of the clock as prep for my picture. Consdier this my official photo for the month.

It was a bit of a challenge too, considering I had no tripod with me during this shot, and I still had to consider how the camera somehow tried overcompensating to adjust it's shot looking too blue. How did I do this? Putting my ISO setting to 100, to capture light as quick as possible, not use a flash, and make sure my white balance was placed in a bright light mode, so the camera would compensate by making the shot slightly darker. But it didn't end there either... I had to add to the contrast of the pciture - remove the visible monitors and just leave the ligth relfection to do it's magic to me adn my features.

The results hoepfully speak for themselves.

Photoblog - Day 250 Dec 15, 2010

Tempus Fugit:

Time flies... so the saying goes - but at times, time seems to stand still as well... so which is it? The Greeks give us a clue - two actually. That is right, the Greek have two meanings to time that captures this duality. Chronos and Kairos.

Chronos, or linear time, is time that does not wait... the one that flies. It's what people are rushing to catch when they chase deadlines. Kairos, on the other hand, is quality time... the kind we'd like to stretch - to stand still, to freeze and rememebr forever with pcitures or videos.

But enough of this... let's talkabotu the picture. I took this clock in a room lit in blue - funny how just that fact makes an otherwise mundane picture seem to be seen in a differnt light (and yes, I intended the pun - sue me if you find it corny). I wnated to capture the clock in the blue hue... and yes, this was in preperation of another shot I was hoping to take... this time, with me in the frame. Unfortunately, my camera took this time to run out of juice. Ah well... will do this at another date... and post the results here too.

Photoblog - Day 249 Dec 14, 2010

New Laptop:

Okay... maybeit's nto so new, but it's a laptop and it's mine. Consider this a Christmas gift I'm giving myself - and Lord knows I needed one after my old reliable became less reliable. So now I'm going to be luggin around this Toshiba Satellite whenever I need to access my files.

I'd go through the specs - but I think it would not be so interesting to some folks, so suffice to say this laptop is larger, more powerful and heavier than my old one. It's an improvement in almost all aspects - and I'm lucky it fits into my laptop backpack.

I'll admit to still adjusting to the use of this laptop, and I still have to consolidate my files - but with my TB portable HD, that shouldn't be much of a problem.

Photoblog - Day 248 Dec 13, 2010

New Batch:

Yeah, yeah... regular followers of this blog (there must be at least one of you, right?) will probably think 'ho hum, another entry about his comics' - and in that regard, you may be right; but consider the fact that this is a photoblog of how I spent my tear - and if it isn't obvious yet, let me point out that I collect and buy comics almost on a weekly basis. So don't be surprised with these entries (and this certainly won't be the last for the year... or this project).

That said, let me say something about this new batch...

Vampirella! A new number one issue at that. I've been a fan of the character since... well since her Vampirella black and white magazine days. Let's face it, her early adventures were rather okay... but the art, and how her character was written - hoo boy, was she a fantasy piece for every '70s comic geek. I've heard the B&W stories will be reprinted by Dynamite... that's cool too. I wouldn't mind recollecting Vampi.

Aside from that, there's the Chaos War... hmmm... I'm still on the fence on this, but getting it anyway. The Green Hornet is another Dynamite product... and I'm starting to respect this publisher a whole lot more. After all, this incarnation of Green Hornet is being penned by Kevin Smith. The runaway surprise that I enjoyed, though is the Chaos War's Dead Avengers - and though I don't know where this is going yet, it seems well crafted, and I do miss a few of the characters here.

Lastly... Children's Crusade. A good story and a nice twist - great characterization and art... but where is this going, I wonder? Regardless, I'm just glad that Wanda - the real Wanda it seems, is back.

Photoblog - Day 247 Dec 12, 2010

Meet Bruce:

No, he isn't our dog. Bruce is based in my in-laws place in Cavite, and we just happened to pay them a visit today. Bruce was bought by my brothers and sisters-in-law in Tiendesitas sometime November this year. He's just a puppy (pedigreed), though I doubt he'll grow dramatically larger than his current frame. After all, Bruce's breed (a Pug if I'm not mistaken) does not lend itself to growing much larger than his current size.

Bruce's breed's claim to fame came form the movie 'Men in Black', wherein one alien disguises himself as the dog of a newspaper owner - and I remember this becasue I remember a lot of trivial items related to movies... specially comic adaptations (as Men in Black was).

Back to Bruce... he greeted us enthusiastically and as some other pcitures would attest, he is likewise ready to play at a moment's notice. Wonder if his demeanor - and outlook towards strangers will change as he gets older? In this picture, we see Barbie controling Bruce's movements, so he could have his picture taken.

As for the picture itself, since I wanted to use all natural light, I declined using a flash to allow the dominance of orange to come through.

Photoblog - Day 246 Dec 11, 2010

Christmas Bacardi Get Together:

Yes, it's that most wonderful time of the week - a weekend with a Bacardi Night, and not just any Bacardi night; mind you... but one that's got the larger group together for our 2nd Annual Christmas gathering / white elephant - exchange gift game. It's also a great time for us to play catch up with old friends whom we've not seen in a while - or whom we've had little time to sit down and talk shop with - due to the hectic demands of work.

As you can see by the picture, we were able to have a sizable group - counting just four absentees from this gathering. Oh well, next time we'll hopefully have a more complete attendance... and talking about next bacardi nights, before this night ended, we more or less, pegged the schedules and locations for the next two Bacardi Nights for 2011.

For thsi pic, I set the camera on timer mode, and lucky for us all, Nai had a tripod handy. So cheers folks... and see you all again after all these holiday traffic.

Photoblog - Day 243 Dec 08, 2010

Partaaaay!

Okay, it's not as wild as the title connotes, and the picture isn't indicative of how wild I might have been that entire evening. I wasn't drunk... far from it... I was just pulled into joining the Limbo Rock game/activity by the Red Cross Makati volunteers - the people who were the primary reason for this party. Come to think of it, this party was already their second - you might say, an extension to their afternoon party... though I missed that one, since I had training.

Yup... Red Cross Makati. I'm starting to slowly integrate myself into the organization as a volunteer, mentor cum 'partner'. I've actually been asked by John Tiong - the Makati group's current chair; and long time college buddy of mine, to join them... for, oh... about a year now. I did not commit then because I was unsure of how regular work would be coming, and I did not want to give a half-meant commitment. Now... I can better work with them... though integrating myself slowly into the group.

Meanwhile, from what I hear, this kind of thing happens monthly... how about that?

Was I worried as I was doing the limbo rock? Not really... after all, I was surrounded by people who were experts in First Aid... with a group that had the most complete equipment, and best trained pool of volunteers. Nope... no worries at all.

Photoblog - Day 245 Dec 10, 2010

My Test Design Class:

This particular training started last Wednesday, and ended today - in the course of the conduct these seven individuals became quite inquisitive and communicative - not just with the lessons taught, but with each other's lives. Because of this, what was possibly one boring technical class turned into a lively -and at times, even riotous (though not too riotous, of course) 3-day session.

I was not the only facilitator here - as I was sharing the lecture load with Tess... and we were both amused with how the trainees conversations went - consider a typical workshop assignment or video-based discussion: whereas others would concentrate on their respective monitors, doing the tasks by themselves, these people would keep talking to each other... then later, across the room - to the others in another table regarding non-training related stuff... all while trying to do the lessons' activities.

Rather than stop this freewheeling discussions, I allowed it to keep going; all the while observing the group of individuals getting seemingly closer with each other. By day 3 some of them were joking around as if they knew each other for quite some time now. Imagine that. Tess and I even jokingly referred to some discussions in the same vein as a 'my grandpa is better than your grandpa' discussion amongst kids in a playground - these are all adults talking; mind you.

I have to admit that this has got to be one of the better group dynamics I've seen happen. Mind you, they were not probably the best combination of smarts - but they were most likely an ideal combination for forming a team... had circumstances put them into one project, that is.

Interesting experience. Too bad it ended. Their banters made everyone's training less regimented... less dragging, less boring. No one fell asleep - in fact, no one seemed to need coffee. They were all sustained by each one learning more about their new friends - and the training's lessons along the way.

This was one time I did not feel too drained from facilitating. I was too busy enjoying... listening to the side-conversations as well.

Photoblog - Day 244 Dec 09, 2010

My New Trades!

When comics are printed on a monthly basis, they usually have story arcs that span a few issues... maybe four; at times, six. I mean, it's easy to say these are stories subdivided into smaller parts and one gets to read them in roughly 20+ pages of stories - released monthly (or in some cases, weekly).

As a comic collector, I've been used to this buy, read and 'wait another month for the continuation' routine, and because I was a collector - past trades were not that interesting to me, since they represented stories of issues I already had (or, in cases where I missed getting an issue... mostly had). The price was therefore not that attractive to me... and let's face it, some stories were not worth the binding they were placed on - even if the bindings were better than your average stapled comic book.

So why am I seemingly slowly getting to be a trade paperback convert? Simple... there have been back issues that I missed out on - in some instances, whole stories... specially from DC's titles belonging to the pre-Crisis era. I know, some of you may be wondering exactly what I'm alluding to... suffice it to say, that was one big event in DC and it was a perfect steeping stone for me to slowly integrate myself to said universe.

One such title was the Legion of Superheroes... and one such story arch was the Darkness Saga. So you can imagine how glad I was to get this yesterday evening. I also heard a lot about Fables, and am likewise trying the title out. Advantages of trades therefore are two-fold in this instance... it gave me a second chance to get into opportunities (story arcs) missed, and the second? I need not wait a long time, nor need I worry about a broken arc with a missing issue.

Photoblog - Day 242 Dec 07, 2010

Quiet Reading Corner:

When I can find time for reading... and I do find time in between lectures, I catch up on a variety of subject matters - for example, Time has an article regarding Wikileaks, that I was just curious about , so I got the issue - and should I grow tired of reading Time's articles, I switch to a book - in this case, I am now reading Seth Godin's Tribes. My first Godin book, actually. I was curious about him before - and I do subscribe to his articles in the website... but it is just now that I considered getting a Godin book.

I know he's got a lot of ideas - often times, radical paradigm shift ideas... but hey, it helps put the status quo in a different light. This one is more leadership oriented... or at least, it tries to be. It's also easy reading, but I have to say, I guess I've grown accustomed to Seth's style on the web... short write-ups, and I'm still on the bench wondering if I prefer his style here (longer but more complete with explanation), or simply short and profound (due to a seeming lack of explanation).

Ah well... guess it's time I renewed some of my passions for leadership, and likewise renew my tribal influences. They haven't disappeared - though I'd say they have somehow hibernated.

Oh yeah... and reading goes so well with either some coffee or tea; both of which I can get in Starbucks.

Photoblog - Day 241 Dec 06, 2010

Comics - Week 1, December:

Yeah, I know it's been a while since I featured some comics in my blog... it's not that I wasn't getting any, it was more likely that I was featuring other things - after all, my life isn't just all about comics. I was simply making sure that there was no monotony regarding the topics of coverage that I was placing in this 365 project.

Having said that, I show a collection of comics that I got just this weekend, and will start reading them soon as I find the time - which would normally mean before sleeping - or if I can, I'd bring them with me to work and do tackle an issue or two (or three) in my free time.

Of this batch, I continue enjoying Fantastic Four, and am likewise curious as to where the new direction of Batman is going.

Photoblog - Day 240 Dec 05, 2010

A Night of Symphony!

One of the nice things about shopping at malls this time of year happens to be the special, and free shows that these establishments have set up for their shopping public. It can be a great opportunity to see how certain institutions stand the test of time; and in this case, we have the Manila Symphony Orchestra jamming Christmas tunes to the shopping crowd.

I happen to be one of such crowd - and as Barbie and Bernice were looking for gifts to give Bernice's faculty and Barbie's officemates, I listened to the Manila Symphony do some classic tunes from the Nut Cracker Suite. Later they even started playing more traditional and romantic Christmas tunes.

Some friends even asked me in Facebook where and when the Manila Symphony would play next... back then I had no answer - but now I do. They'll be playing on the 18th, at the Fort's Bonifacio High Street.