2011 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,300 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 38 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

REDISCOVER The Ayala Museum

I worked in the Philippines’ financial business district of Makati City for a combined 2 years and 10 months, and I have  been to a couple of attractions there, notably restaurants and hotels in the sprawling and environmentally-friendly Greenbelt district. On my way home, I went through the walkway and passed by The Ayala Museum, an art and history museum privately managed and curated by the Ayala Foundation.

This year started with my visits to well-known museums in Australia. And yet, I have never been to The Ayala Museum. So after my friend and I finished watching a feature screening in the 2011 Spanish Film Festival last October 15, I was able to drag her to the museum. For a (resident) adult price of PHP225.00, we were able to see the museum’s prized collections in under three hours.

The museum was envisioned by Fernando Zobel De Ayala y Montojo (or commonly known as Fernando Zobel, the Spanish-Filipino non-objective modernist painter), and the current building was designed by Leandro Y. Locsin, Jr. The museum was presented as a gift to the Filipino people on the occasion of its 170th anniversary.

The main attraction of the museum is its permanent exhibit of about 60, intricately handcrafted dioramas spanning the events in our history, located at the second level. While some dioramas are equipped with captions, and some events they are depicting are easily remembered, I had mental lapses recalling events featured there, since they were not familiar (or I am forgetting my Philippine History lessons) and they did not have captions with them. Some dioramas are supposed to be equipped with audio, but there was no headset available. But hands down to the skilled Paete diorama artists who put the finest detail even in the tiniest figure or object put together to create such visual, diorama experience.

Diorama of National Hero, Jose Rizal's execution

Also at the second level is the boat gallery showcasing miniatures of some of the watercrafts that contributed to the development of Philippine maritime trade and colonial economy. From pre-Hispanic sailboat, Chinese junk, Arabian Baghla, Lorcha, galleon, and caravel, the showcase breathes like real, as they are handcrafted out of baticulin, laniti, and apitong wood, and adorned with cloth, string, buntal fiber, bamboo, and bronze.

The Boat Gallery

The second level glass lane is the continuing Ninoy and Cory Aquino Exhibitions (in partnership with the Aquino Foundation). Perhaps for lack of space that was why it was there, however, it was sticking out like a sore thumb. A proper exhibition area outside the dioramas and the boat galleries would have been fitting for the Aquinos exhibit though. When we visited, the first level was reserved for a magazine launching if I remember, and I guess that level of the museum is really allotted for such.

We also found it quite puzzling to find the temporary partitions featuring how the Filipinos — from the first known man to roam the archipelago to Cory and Ninoy evolved, height-wise. Does height has something to do if a Filipino will be great or not?

On our way up to the third level was the array of ceramic ware from China and an ongoing DesignTalk by Brian Tenorio. Then we checked the exhibit of National Artist Jose T. Joya, noted as a leading master in Philippine abstraction. Personally, I am not a fan of abstracts thus I had little appreciation of the exhibit. But what caught my attention was that Joya’s works depict action, and were created out of vigorous brushwork. Prominent also was his fancy of the moon as fierce in red. We also saw samples of Damian Domingo’s works. Domingo established a school for artists in Tondo, Manila, and he became known as a painter of portrait miniatures and religious images.

Nuestra Senora Del Santisimo Rosario by Damian Domingo

Also, the works of Fernando Zobel merit its own gallery, the remaining exhibit under the Pioneers of Philippine Art series (I wasn’t able to see Juan Luna and Fernando Amorsolo as those exhibits were done for sometime already). Graduating magna cum laude from the Harvard University, Zobel was influenced by the Boston artists and he is best known for using surgical syringe to achieve the long, fine, and controlled line prominent in his ouevres, particularly the Saeta and Seria Negra series.

Quatro Lineas by Fernando Zobel

Up the fourth level, we were greeted by a huge vault which houses the Gold of Ancestors exhibit of more than one thousand gold objects dating back before the Philippines’ colonization in the 16th century. Our eyes feasted on golden sashes, necklaces, pectorals, diadems, earrings and finger rings, bracelets, and anklets. There were also funerary pieces made of the thinnest gold sheets. Our ancestors aesthetic sense are stamped in how they made those opulent gold pieces, and which designs are all can be seen in today’s jewelry and accessories. We were also even offered by the roving guard to see the audio-visual presentation regarding this exhibit, which lasted for about 15 minutes.

As it was nearing 7 p.m., we rushed to see Embroidered Multiples exhibit, featuring selections from the Leiden National Museum of Ethnology’s collection of Philippine garments like rare, embroidered silk trousers or sayasaya worn by Philippine elite men and nipis blouses for women. We only made a quick look at the vast Chinese and Southeast Asian ceramics, about 500 of them. They could merit their own museum and for me, they all look alike (even those I have seen in Australia) that the collection was of little interest to me. The guard even politely asked us if we were already done touring the rest of the museum, and we said yes, as it was past 7 p.m. already.

Good thing that the Museum Shop was still open and I bought a bundle of 10 Bookmark Series and two magnetic bookmarks featuring Juan Luna’s Woman with Manton De Manila — all for PHP100.00 since they have a sale going-on. I love collecting bookmarks. My goal 1 bookmark : 1 book.

All 10 for PHP50.00 (formerly valued at PHP315.00)

If not under time pressure, I could have enjoyed the visit to The Ayala Museum more leisurely. After many years, I finally got to see this art and history jewel in the busy city of Makati. I am now even considering to become a member. We did not have dinner though at M Cafe (and it’s not connected with the museum), but it could have completed the artistic, historical — and gustatory experience for that day. And I look forward for more engaging exhibits soon.

All photos used here are from The Ayala Museum. Located at  Makati Avenue corner De La Rosa St., the museum is opened from Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

REDISCOVER Apple and Steve Jobs

OH WOW. OH WOW. OH WOW.

Sounds very strange yet ecstatic to be the last words of a dying man, but apparently, those were the last words of Steve Jobs, the man who was thought mad and genius at the same time, the very man responsible for the modern Apple, which revolutionary products we’re enjoying during our leisure time or driving us to perform excellently.

In the eulogy of Mona Simpson (Steve’s sister) published yesterday in The New York Times, she painted a picture of Steve as truly human — as a brother, a husband, and a father. Such was the facets of Steve mostly unknown to the world, as the world best knows him as the co-founder of an innovative computer turned high-technology company, which products — from the hits and misses and from the original Macintosh to the iPhone 4S (which was unveiled a day before Steve died of respiratory arrest on October 5, 2011, after years of fighting pancreatic cancer), the world live in Steve Jobs’ idea. Including my world.

Personally, my first Apple product was the first generation iPod shuffle (yes, the white, with a USB connector and a lanyard, which thickness made it look like a stack of chewing gum). I won it in a raffle from a press conference I attended to in early 2005. I was with a colleague who was quick to spread the news the following day in our office. My iPod Shuffle also graced the cover of the first issue of Computerworld Philippines campus edition.

My iPod Shuffle

I was the “It” girl then, having the latest gadget around. But toward the end of 2005, Apple released the iPod Nano to replace the unsuccessful iPod Mini. Coolness gone, tech-fashion wise. But my iPod shuffle is keeping me company for six years now.

I have my iPod Shuffle with me while beating my deadlines. I keep myself plugged when I find myself alone, even with a company. I use this when I jog. It put me to sleep when I am alone and in a foreign place. The original ear phones gave up on me (with the right ear plug not working anymore) and was replaced by a Sennheiser  head phones, a Valentine’s gift to me in 2008. Two years after, it just started to wither, with the wires already showing, and last year, I replaced it with a Philips ear plugs.  My iPod Shuffle, filled with my most eclectic collection of songs (at 512MB) kept me sane and company when I needed them most and I am proudest to have it as my first ever Apple product.

Then, upon bullying, eh, convincing from my youngest brother, I was swayed to buy the iPad 2 (32G, WiFi) in May 2011. Originally, it was for my brother. But the shop he ordered this from was not able to release this on time. So after work and on his way home, he dropped by the Mac store in Greenbelt and got himself a 32G WiFi and 3G. Amazed by how iPad 2 looks like and how easy it is to use, I agreed to buy his original purchase and paid it on an installment basis (which payment I completed September 30).

My iPad 2 (with orange Smart Cover and orange Speck back cover)

While at first I thought it set me back by PHP26,990 (it is sold at PHP28,990, my brother got it with a discount and a free screen protector), my brother was right in saying that I should get myself something nice and expensive (before this, I think my most expensive purchase is PHP3,000 plus worth of clothing). I used to bring this to the office to listen to my songs, but stopped bringing it with me as this is one of the audio-visual devices not allowed in our operations area per workplace security guidelines. Thus, my iPod Shuffle remains very handy these days.

While I think this contributes to my constant neck and shoulder blades pain (always head down using it, that’s why), my iPad 2 keeps me company to a whole new level. I Skype, I FaceTime, use Yahoo! Messenger with it and connect with my friends, especially overseas. I uploaded my favorite series like  Family Guy, Doctor Who, and Castle and watch them either on travel or before going to sleep. I Twit, I Facebook, I email with it. I browse the Internet for the latest news and I Google for matters of interest. I use Weather HD to check the real time weather in my favorite cities here and in Australia.

For productivity, I read MS Word files through DocstoGo and I use Moleskine app to blog a bit. For quite a time, I also got hooked with Bakery Story, City Story, Fashion Story, and Restaurant Story. Those games. I also played Angry Birds, Angry Birds Rio, and Angry Birds Seasons. I also play once in a while Doodle Find, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and of course, Solitaire.

I get my daily dose of news from ABC News, BBC  News, CNN app, SBS World News, Triple J, Time app (where I first purchased my e-magazine, their October 17, 2011 edition with Steve Jobs on the cover). When I upgraded to iOS 5 (which was sort of a nightmare, as I wasn’t able to back-up my files and apps and I had to reinstall them again after the upgrade), I find the iMessage, Notification Center, Reminders very useful while I fill my Newsstand apps with my selection of readings, and I downloaded the classics from iBooks for free. This iPad 2 purchase makes me so proud — this served as an end goal of my disciplined spending, at the same time, makes this my most expensive purchase to date. Not to mention that I think this is the last of the Apple products that truly has the Steve Jobs’ mark all over it — the shiny, metallic black of perfection, the fully-loaded thinness, the elegant simplicity of how it works. And I am a proud owner of it.

I want to know how Steve Jobs worked. How he made his grand ideas into the realities of today. That’s why I immediately reserved the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson and claimed the hard-bound edition last Saturday from Powerbooks SM Megamall:

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson (PHP1295.00 from Powerbooks)

This copy is actually my brother’s copy (looks like I have to get my own). He’s the one who really likes Steve Jobs — I would often wake up to his full-blast watching of Steve Jobs’ product launchings, his commencement speech at Stanford University in 2005, and reads anything and everything about this American Icon.  When the biography came out last October 24, he was quick to purchase the e-book from Amazon. He also bought the audio book. And had he have the chance, I am sure he would like to work for Steve Jobs.

Apple and Steve Jobs’ influence on us and my brother might be irrelevant compared to those who revered the company, the products, and Steve Jobs’ genius from the start. It is indeed a “WOW” experience to have a part of the man through his creations, through his innovations. Even if he is gone, and even if his biography penned by Isaacson might reveal more about the man (good or bad), Apple and Steve Jobs already secured their place in history.

Apple and Steve Jobs personalized the technological experience for us, and that is something we truly appreciate about him. Unwittingly, we learned from the man how to let go of the things we are used to and quick to embrace the innovations for our own convenience. And that indeed is  “oh, wow, oh, wow, oh wow.”

REDISCOVER 9/11

"Falling Man," by Richard Drew of Associated Press (from National Geographic)

A decade after.  But the world is called to Never Forget.

I distinctly remember the image of the “Falling Man,” the indelible photo of the tragedy taken by Associated Press photographer Richard Drew and became the representative image of the the four, coordinated series of suicide attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C. on that morning of September 11, 2001, with nearly 3,000 died.

The attacks were orchestrated by 19 suspects linked to the Islamist militant group, al-Qaeda, who hijacked four passenger jets: The American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 were intentionally crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City; both towers collapsed within two hours.

The “Falling Man” photo was a heated subject of discussions worldwide — as the photo was regarded from disturbing to being the most powerful image of despair in the 21st century. For among us, members of the student publication, The Varsitarian, we also had our contrasting views. A fellow editor of mine remarked, to paraphrase, the photo was beautiful and encapsulates best the tragedy that was 9/11, for which I distinctly retorted: Ano ang maganda sa larawan ng trahedya? (What is so beautiful about that image of tragedy?)

The journalist in me would also definitely chose the photo to use as a banner image for my story on 9/11. The individual in me — who at that time, was graduating from the university, was expected to help the family, was aiming to do well in my chosen field — the image was disturbing, the whole tragedy was terrifying, and it made me wonder if I would still have a future to prepare for.

It made the world fear the most. The horror that was 9/11 made America fear for its stature as a superpower. The edifice that was the Twin Towers, a symbol of both power and progress, collapsed in what was a holy war of Obama bin Laden (who was killed May 1, 2011) against the U.S. — allegedly for its presence in Saudi Arabia, the U.S. support to Israel, and the sanctions against Iraq.

The hunt for “weapons of mass destruction” (which phrase attributed to George W. Bush), the sending of troops to alleged Islamic countries that were believed to be hideouts for more terrorist ploys, the endless blaming to Islam for such  assault to mankind continued for a decade.

The New Yorkers, led by Rudy Giuliani, stood up and slowly recovered; the American government assured the world that they would hunt down those responsible, and to be better prepared for more threats of terrorism.

The world banded together, became more vigilant, passed legislations like Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Attack of 2001, Terrorism Suppression Act 2002, Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005, Aviation and Transportation Security Act, among similar measures.

Indeed, 9/11 changed America and the world dramatically. But did it make us fear more for our safety? I say, yes.

I captured some bits from Thomas Friedman’s book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded (which I’m trying to finish now), that America literally built fortresses to protect its bases and embassies worldwide. America became too cautious dealing with the rest of the world, especially to those of Islamic origins.

The tragedy that was 9/11 did not stop there. The horror continues even after the capture and death of bin Laden. The image of Falling Man lives on.

We will continue to fall for our fear, for not knowing who our enemies are, for blaming Islam or non-Christian groups for the pockets of uprisings and attacks going on. Most governments of stronger countries will continue to spend ridiculous amounts of money to protect their interests and fortify their defenses.

The next decade will be a challenge. This article best captures what America — and the world should look forward to: stop obsessing about another attack such as 9/11. If we hold on to our fear, the force of terrorism like 9/11 would indeed have won. And no one wants a future like that.

For more on 9:11, a decade after, check:

Associated Press

CNN

National Geographic

Reuters

Time magazine

Yahoo! News

REDISCOVER Twitter

Twitting is fun, so far that’s what I say.

I’ve been in Twitter since early 2008 — or late 2007, but only recently that I’m getting fond of it.

Why? Here are my Top 6 reasons:

1. Most people I know tweet, ergo, the lure to tweet.

2. Twitter digests the latest in almost about everything — and for me who have almost no access to newspaper (as in the paper and how ironic I worked in a newspaper before) and seldom watches news (prime time or late night), it is in Twitter that I get to know about the goings on in the world, in my country, and yes, I follow a couple of personalities, institutions, media organizations, to name them.

3. It instills brevity — you want to say everything in only 140 characters, so you tweet your best.

4. It’s real time, as in real time — in split second, you’ll see a couple of tweets filling up the timeline.

5. It sustains your interest. Just scroll to see what interests you. Especially in my case, if it is from a media organization I follow, and the tweet really catches my attention, I open the link and there, I get my dose of the news for the day.

6. I love the retweet function. Of course, I choose what to retweet or I’d be accused of spamming. Mostly I retweet tweets on global news, finance, personal finance, and what I think are nice to share and something to learn from.

Even if it is fun, being a responsible Tweeter is a must, as information — and misinformation travels, really, really, really fast, and sure we don’t want to be the bearer of bad or wrong information.

So, are you in Twitter?

REDISCOVER “Hello”

It’s always nice to say “hello,” especially if it means a start of something new — a start of a friendship or a relationship, or to welcome someone into your life.

In this case, I’m saying hello to my blog. I’ve neglected this for months due to things that have somehow, shaping my life — and I know those things mean changing me for the better.

And for this blog of mine, I’m taking nervous baby steps to make Rediscover a truly relevant site.

More to come, and this project is going full blast in the next six months.

Keep rediscovering ourselves, as I Rediscover-ed a new endeavor to accomplish.

REDISCOVER Panda Cleaners

This is a customer service incident I emailed to the owners:

 

Hi,

 

If this is an email of the owners themselves, Mr. and Mrs. Christian and Zarah Juan, then you should know how your franchisee at Zabarte Rd., Camarin, Caloocan City, messed up with their service:

 

I sent my laundry there Sat., April 17 (one bill for 79 pcs. of assorted clothes; another for 46 pcs. and paid them in full, as I always do). I was able to claim them (in 3 bags) Sunday, Apr. 17. As always, when I got home, I made a scan of my items and thought OK - as it always was since I have been sending my clothes there for cleaning for 5 years now (even when it was still a Lavandera Mo franchise).

 

However, when I started looking for my Forever 21 blouse (which I only wore once!) to wear on Fri., Apr. 22, I realized it wasn’t in the bags – I even searched in the third bag (which contained my brother’s clothes and not there). I searched over and over and did not find it – and only to find out I’m missing another blouse!!! The Perks blouse that was a gift from the Perks owners themselves (coursed through our regular clothing stylist back in MoneySense when I was Managing Editor) is also missing!

 

So yesterday morning, Apr. 23, I went there at your branch in Villa Angelita, Zabarte Rd., and reported the incident to the 2 new staff there. They were completely clueless what to do with my complaint. They insisted, and which I know that’s the practice, that they don’t mix up the clothes there – they only load the clothes of a client at once, per machine, and I trust, fold them right after and pack. If such, why am I missing 2 items?  1 item missing maybe forgiveable, but 2 items? And I told them I am a regular client and I am so upset that this happened.

 

The 2 new staff (I noticed you change your staff regularly? These 2 new ladies said they’re being rotated from branch to branch, I thought it was high attrition going on there, anyway) said they’ll look for my blouses and give me feedback Monday or Tuesday? What? I said no, I don’t want to drag this too long so I said I want a feedback TODAY, Apr. 24. I even showed them the photo of the Forever 21 blouse that’s missing. They even didn’t want to search the unclaimed items there to see if they inadvertently mixed them up there, as I suggested. They even said that their manager is not available this day to take my complaint. Rather than consume my already short fuse, I just wrote in the very tiny piece of paper they gave me the description of the missing items. I was hoping they would give me feedback within the day, but nothing.

 

So I’ll go there later this morning, with photos of the missing items:

 

1. 1 Perks brand, high/Mandarin collared, 5-buttoned pale yellow blouse with garterized sleeves

and waist band

How much? – PHP1000 plus (from what I remember since it was with me since 2008)

 

2. 1 Forever 21, small-sized, woven top, short sleeved in Taupe (pale brown)

How much? – PHP1178.50 (and I only wore this once)

 

If your 2 new staff there won’t be able to give me a valid reason why I am missing 2 items there, I don’t know … I want my items back – it is not about 2 missing blouses, it is about the trust I have in your service that’s broken and that makes me really upset. I so hate it when my trust is being broken.

 

You pride yourself as an environmentally-friendly laundry service (I remember we even featured you in Enterprise magazine where I was a staff writer [later, my former associate editor there featured you in the spin off Generation G Magazine]), I guess before thinking about the “environment,” better think about how to improve your customer service? Especially, making your franchisees more accountable? This is not just a rant, this is a valid complaint from a client of yours for years.

 

I do hope your staff and franchisee will respond rightfully. If not, I do hope, you as owners/franchisers, respond to this.          

 

Thank you.

 

Rediscover BLOGGING (Part 2)

I signed up for postaweek2011 to motivate myself to keep this blog alive.

But my last entry was two weeks and three days ago.

I must continue. I promised myself I will do this. So I will.

Rediscover The BLACK NAZARENE

It was a sea of barefooted people – men, women, elderly, and children – who paraded the centuries-old image of the dark-skinned Christ, the Black Nazarene, in Sunday’s procession that drew from 1 to 7 million devotees (the figures are varied though).

The procession, which started early morning of January 9,  was not finished until near midnight – and the crowd was still at their thickest.

These people offer that one day in a year to thank the image for prayers granted, to ask for miracles, to answer their fervent wishes.

Never mind the sweltering heat, the bodily odor emanating from that sea of faithfuls, the incidents of petty thieves or medical responses to dizziness or exhaustion or other incidents that required immediate, medical attention.  Never mind if they get crushed as long as they could just throw their white hankies or towels to the patron, as rubbing or kissing or touching the image is said to be miraculous. Never mind those just for the show of faith.

Faith or fanaticism?

This time, I agree with Archibishop Oscar Cruz – the crowd in Sunday’s religious feast is a proof that a growing number of Filipinos are seeking divine intervention to end their miseries. To put an end to their poverty. To seek panacea.

Yes, we are a Christian nation. But non-religious, progressive thinkers blame our religious faith or fanatical devotion to this country’s worsening state of poverty.

No one will ever understand why our fellow Filipinos are hugely devoted to the Black Nazarene. They maybe are devout Catholics. They maybe are fanatical followers. What I will never understand though is why there are people who always say, “the Lord will provide” or “may God have mercy on us” when in fact, we can do better – even in our simplest, littlest way – to uplift ourselves from the sorry state we’re into.

As the rule of Saint Benedict says, ora et labora – pray and work. You pray and you work your smartest and hardest and the Lord will provide. Don’t leave it all to Him. Better, don’t just be a religious person in a day and ask the Lord to grant your lifetime’s worth of prayers.

Ora et labora – pray and work. And the Black Nazarene might give you the miracle you’re praying.

Rediscover (More) BLOGGING

Now WordPress motivates us, bloggers, to sustain what we have started in the cyberspace – to blog more frequently.

This is aligned with my 2011 Must Do’s – to blog more so I am signing up for postaweek2011.

With my blog host urging me to fully maximize being one of their bloggers, so count me in.