That's one big bonus!

If you are on the board of the Metroplitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), you get Php 50,000 monthly, some Php20k to 30k for Representation and Transportation Allowance (RATA), an additional Php 14,000 for every board meeting attended (it's an incentive I guess to generate attendance), plus an annual grocery allowance of Php 80k and also Php1 Million when your term ends.

I read that from this article as well as from President Aquino's State of the Nation Address. If you want to read it word per word, then go here.

Looking at the figures above, it just makes me want to kick myself in the nads.
What do they meet about that merits Php14,000 per meeting? I wish I get even a fraction of that for every meeting I attend. Maybe someone opens their board meeting like this:

"Ah, Mester Cherman, I tink we should foot a blockage in the sewage sistem of makati, farticularly in da area of pasong tamo so dat we have samting to pix, you know."

But seriously, I think our water system can be better. And maybe these allowances can be diverted into something else (like actually fixing Pasong Tamo! 10 minutes of hard rain equals knee-level water and congested traffic hell!).

But in a country where you have to pass the Civil Service Commission Subprofessional exam to clean latrines of government offices or chauffeur government vehicles but you don't need to pass the same exam to become President, Senator, Congressman, Governor, Mayor, or a blogger- well, what the f**k do you expect?

Returning the Favor

I just found out that Joh Diaz, my good friend from the land of chicken inasal and my batchmate from AIM and definitely among the smartest in our cohort, advertised my blog on his page .

Make sure you check his blog out - and take his advice: "Life is a long reflection paper...we better start writing".

Keep doodling your words and I'll keep reading them, Dude!

Job Hunter

It's nice to be on the other side. For years, I have been a recruiter trying to tap talent pools of universities and colleges for the companies that I worked for. Now, I'm in a job where I have to hunt for opportunities for a premier management school's graduates . And it's nice to have ample support from the faculty, staff, and the students themselves.

I am extremely glad that the job market is picking up post-recession. As an alumni of the same school I now work for, I can say that my batch was hit really hard but previous batches had a tougher time to penetrate the market. Our talent pool competes globally and not just locally - and compared to fresh graduates of business schools here in the Philippines, well you can say that we command a well-deserved premium (I remember telling my friend that we may be broke but we don't come cheap).

But there's still a rough road ahead. But an exciting one nonetheless because the landscape has changed for the better. I guess it's best incapsulated in the final words of this video from Canadian-Indian standup comedian Russel Peters. Believe me, I have had the exact same conversation about job opportunities. Well, except the part about disco dancing.

June 25, 1990

Mrs. Leoncio, my new adviser and English teacher, called me out to the center of the room.

She asked me to read a few paragraphs of “Little Women” in front of the class.

I was 12 years old. In the seventh grade. In my nth school. And just got back in the Philippines after two years in Goose Creek, South Carolina.

It was my first day in school. And man, was I nervous.

I started reading.
F@#$ if I remember what I was reading.

I was wearing a black shirt and jeans and my British Knights. Everyone else was wearing their school uniforms.

And everyone else was staring at me. At least it felt that way.

I kept reading, with my eyes glued to the borrowed book from my seatmate.

For some reason, they were laughing. Was it my accent? Was my fly open? Did I just fart while reading?

Mrs. Leoncio then tells me to pause whenever there was a “period” or a “comma” whenever I read aloud, and to not run through the sentences.

Clearly, I was not good in public speaking.

I tried to stay calm and looked around the room. I felt restless and embarrassed.
And then I saw her.

Her pretty face. Her lovely smile. Her beautiful skin. She was wearing a red headband.

And did I mention that pretty face?

With palms sweating I was asked to go back to my seat.

I asked my seatmate if I was really bad. He says yes, so I must have made an @$$ of myself. I probably sounded like Speedy Gonzales.

I then asked him the name of the girl with the red headband who is seated near the back.

He turned to look around.

He then told me her name.

Michelle.

Da Man!

Jack Black said in the School of Rock: Stick it to The Man!

I’m sorry Jack, but in this case, The Man is too good.

And no way am I giving him the finger for what he just pulled off.

Are you kidding me?! A 25 year-old Lebron James + a 25 year-old Chris Bosh+ a 28 year-old D Wade = WTF for everyone else!

Yeah, sure, LA has Kobe and Pau and Ron Artest’s psychiatrist, but I’m almost sure that a lot of veterans will find a way to join Lebron and company. Just look at 3-point specialist Mike Miller, who could have received more than the veteran minimum on other teams looking for a quality shooting guard.

Back in Cleveland, James wanted a better roster but management delivered too late. I mean, they could have gotten Shaq earlier or they could gotten Amare, but they settled on Antawn Jamison. So I don’t blame Lebron; I think Dan Gilbert was too comfortable with keeping him in Ohio.

I feel sad for NYC, but Cleveland has it worse. Maybe NYC can try to sign and trade Lee for a quality point guard (but I’d choose Lee over Amare’s knees any day).

(I still think this will be a fun NBA season; they’re going to make this as fun and profitable as they can to avoid a lockout).

He has won championships as a player and as a coach in Los Angeles, made basketball relevant again in New York as the head coach of Ewing and Co., and gave Miami its first championship as President/Coach. That’s a great career, but to have Lebron and Bosh join Wade is friggin’ awesome.

Pat Riley is The Man.

Peace is expensive!

I just had to read the letter sent to the Inquirer by a former head of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process.

The most recent person to hold the post, Ms. Anabelle Abaya, is claiming that Php 170 million is unaccounted for. General Esperon, in his letter as former head of OPAPP, claims that since June 2008 this office had spent Php 227.8 million on a reintegration program for rebel-returnees.

That's far too many millions of pesos being thrown around for a failed peace process here in the Philippines, particularly in Muslim Mindanao. But maybe on the flipside, that's the value of how much this past administration tried to spend to resolve the armed conflicts in RP. But with all the allegations of corruption under the former administration still looming over our heads, I am really sad that someone earns a quick buck at the expense of so many others.

Then again, it's probably the same in any country, except that we're one of the 13 most corrupt in the world. Who earned (or earns)from this level of corruption? The Almighty knows.

There will be justice. Maybe not in this lifetime, but definitely in the hereafter. But until then, we mortals must carry on.

Would I look good without a shirt?

Vampire.

The wife thinks I am more of a vampire than a werewolf, and considering the vampire gets the girl I didn't ask any further (I think she said that primarily because I would look like this without my shirt rather than the mutated version of Tolits).

Yeah, so sue me! I had a date with the wife and we watched Gayclipse last night. The wife is really into the Stephanie Meyer books - she consumed those four novels faster than I can lose ten pounds (not happening). And I am really into my wife (pogi points, if she reads this).

But the really entertaining part of the film was when I got somewhat excited to see The Lady in The Water in the movie. So when I said, "Look, Bee, it's Bryce Dollar Howard!" And throughout the movie, I kept on noticing how weird Bryce Dollar Howard's eyes were (they are like Lady Gaga eyes!) and whenever I asked/complained why it wasn't Bryce Dollar Howard in the last two films (I think it irritated the nearby audience). The wife giggled whenever I said Bryce Dollar Howard.

The fight scenes were ok, I just don't get why the living dead/blood sucking parasites become crystal when they die (spoiler alert!... too late) and why the wolves don't need a full moon to become giant dogs. And how come Wolverine can heal himself but the wolfman here has to wear a cast? Dracula would have whipped all their @$$es. (did the author name the lead role after Bela Lugosi?)

Anyways, when the credits rolled and we waited for people to exit, I found out why I amused my wife so much. I read the name: Bryce DALLAS Howard. I'm so glad I'm married to her.