It’s all over the news – the Internet, the television, the newspapers, the radio. Even the self-confessed pundits in your neighborhood barber shop are probably talking about it. Yes, dengue is on the rise, and are you doing anything to safeguard yourself and your family from this potentially fatal disease? What is dengue? Dengue is […]
Emergency Fund: How Much Is Enough?
In this time and age where change is the only thing that’s constant, even the most methodical and systematic of human beings can be jolted to the core by an emergency. And the last place you probably want to see yourself in is in a corner, hapless and helpless, shaking your head in defeat or […]
What Is Delayed Gratification?
Indeed, what is delayed gratification that we so often hear about it nowadays? According to the Merriam-Webster Online, gratification is synonymous to contentment, pleasure, satisfaction. Simply put, then, delaying or deferring gratification is passing up short-term fulfillment for long-term benefits. Example #1: To illustrate, let’s take for example a child named Alexei who is told […]
Manic Payday Monday
Once upon a starry night, we were informed at work that instead of a Saturday – as we had been used to for years already – our pay would be credited to our payroll accounts the following Monday. The disappointment that ensued was palpable. Some people wanted to complain, but they couldn’t because technically speaking, […]
The Little Blind Man and His Song
You can blame it on the economy, on the government, on climate change or just about anything you think doesn’t fit in the overall scheme of things, but mendicancy, quite sadly, has become a way of life for a growing number of people. These people come in different sizes and shapes – a young mother […]
I Look Out the Window and Have to Sigh
Even then in college, traveling by bus from the province to Manila is one of those experiences I don’t necessarily enjoy but try to make the most of. The relative quiet allows me to dwell in my innermost thoughts and explore the musings of my restless soul. I get to admire the vast green fields […]
To Potter or Not to Potter?
The day I and my eleven-year old daughter went out on a movie date together after the last one in Christmas of ’09 was the day the final installment of the Harry Potter franchise hit the big screen. I wasn’t even supposed to go then. I was on delayed gratification mode. I was strictly following […]
The Money Equation Discourse
One co-worker and good friend of mine inspired me to change the way I think about the money equation. You see, just like everyone else I know who’s gainfully employed, I used to practically live from paycheck to paycheck. And being a person with a family to support, that’s probably one of the scariest situations […]
My Child Rearing Journal
I don’t claim to be an expert on parenting or on child psychology. As a matter of fact, I’m just a regular mom who loves my children that I’m willing to eat live slugs if the situation calls for it – although I honest to goodness hope to God that doesn’t have to happen at […]
Blogging vs. Novel Writing
A lot of my friends don’t know I was a novelist once upon a lifetime. And if you’re somebody I personally know, that probably came as a shock. Hey, I don’t blame you. But don’t get mad, not that I don’t trust you with this alter ego of mine or anything. I just DIDN’T want […]