Friday, March 23, 2012

Summer Getaway!

Friday, March 23, 2012 0
It’s Bakasyon Season!!! 
The time that Manileños and all are definitely looking for place to satisfy long time thirst for fresh air.

Where the city lights would be unseen. . . 
Boundless paper works would be temporarily kept inside the drawer. . . 
And talking about endless stress would be enough this time, 
Because refreshments would only be the language to speak-on!
But it’s no qualm that most of the Bakasyonistas were tired of spending time in the common destinations they’re off every summer. What they want is new environment, new location to hang–on, and new venue to splurge picnic and bon fire activity. Undeniably, most of them were come to cross adventures and thrilling escapade. 
Well, you don’t have worries about . . .
Because the Province of Laguna is willing to catch you this summer. . .
Eagerly wanting to enchant you with the nature spark, which will definitely make this season an extraordinary.

This way to Laguna! 
Spending just 3 hours of trip from Manila, the sweetness of nature would be yours. If your location is Manila City, Quezon City, Pasig City, San Juan City, Mandaluyong City or part of Rizal, it would be easier for you to take the roller coaster ride; it is the way which definitely gives you a thrilling and exciting trip. 

Curious about it? Roller coaster ride is a highway, connecting Rizal and Laguna Province, it is fun to experience this road trip, most especially if you are a nature lover, because nature will reveal itself to you, as it is beside Sierra Madre Mountains. Certainly, you would be blinded by the vast green leafy surroundings, plus the limitless blowing of fresh breeze air that will suit you along the trip. 
A close shot of  SLEX

However, if you are living In Makati City, Taguig City, Paranaque City or any place near the South Luzon Express way, it’s about your chance to experience the smooth and stress free ride of SLEX. 




  
Panguil, Laguna. . . A New tourist Destination
Embraced by the Mountains of Sierra Madre, an awesome indulgence of nature . . .

The town of Panguil, one of Laguna’s prides due to its growing agricultural industry.
But aside from it, Panguil is now considered as one of the best spots in Calabarzon, as it is now a favorite destination of tourist, for mountain climbing and of course for swimming. . .
Well, it’s too long for introduction . . .
Enough for the mount watering description . . .
It’s about time to explore the hidden beauty of Panguil’s pride. . .
Nonetheless but. . .

The “ambon-ambon falls”
Ambon-ambon falls is considered as the heart of Panguil River Eco Park, like of other falls, it is also found in the farther portion of the Eco Park. And it takes 30 minutes of walking, climbing, and swimming to get there.Yes, efforts would be needed but as soon as you see it, there would be no other words, but “wow”.
Having been in a slightly long trip, perhaps it would be better to stay a little time in the Eco Park and gaze on the crystallized water coming from the mountain while having merienda or tanghalian in the floating gazebo.


And also, you can hang-on in the hanging bridge, a perfect place to take nature shots because you could see there the top view of the Eco Park.  

Adventure Starts here!
Family picture while trekking the Ambon-ambon
After lunch is a great time to start trekking to ambon-ambon, because despite of hot weather, the trees are there to give you shade. As it was mentioned, there are walking, climbing and swimming to get there.

But no worries, life guards are there to assist you, along the adventure. The Eco Park is also providing life jackets and helmet to secure safety.

Surely, nobody would be afraid. . .
And definitely, your digital cameras will never stop capturing while taking the steps.   

Photo while riding in a pagoda
There is also “pagoda” similar to boat, but it is made-up of bamboo, which is use to cross deep rivers. But to those who are expert in swimming, they are allowed to swim but of course wearing life jackets. 

It is extremely a different feeling to be in the place where the mountains, water and tiny organisms lived in.

It feels like you are in the late era, that only the nature would be the hiding place. The sound of birds and flowing rivers were the music in this place. The big stones covered with moss seems telling you “welcome to our paradise”.


Ambon-ambon falls in wide s
You will surely captivated by its beauty, notwithstanding the narrow paths to take and the long roads to step.

The moment you get in ambon-ambon, you will feel that there are really raindrops even it is not raining. Perhaps, why it was called like this.

Splendid in nature. . .
Overwhelming. . .
That everyone would dream to come back. . .

The water falls that offers a cure to anxiety and depression. Certainly, no joke!
While you were here, you would prove that “God is awesome”. Everything is planned according to perfection and to his magnificent grace.  




Camping Site
 
Escapade would not be completed without an overnight stay. Because night is the best time to chat and bond with friends and love ones, of course while eating grilled food and flaming a bon fire.

Too good to say, that Panguil River Eco Park is offering an overnight stay, you can bring your tent and all to feel the night with nature. It is an ideal camping site because trees and grass will comfort you during night time, and not to fret-on because the staffs of the said Eco Park are awake overnight to secure you.  

Enjoying summer with friends and love ones is wonderful, but it would be more wonderful to spend it in new destinations, because summer only happen once a year and there is no other fun and exciting to do but to discover!!!




Online Ink (Your Digestive Mind Site) offers you a summer trip @Panguil River Eco Park.
Visit and discover the breathtaking “Ambon-ambon falls”. . .
 
Photos by: google and Panguil, Laguna’s official facebook.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

In Hook with Simsimi: The Cutest Chat-Bot Craze!

Wednesday, March 21, 2012 1
Question: Have you experienced going online with no friends available to chat with?

If you’ve answered YES, well, don’t ever again feel upset since today there is someone who will make the most of his time to chat with you. A friend that is so open-minded and responsive to all thoughts that you will share while making your heart laugh out loud. And it’s no other than SIMSIMI!


Simsimi, an app for Android and iPhone users, is taking the world by storm. Almost 2.7 million people are already using it, and that number is expected to grow over the next few months as word spreads about this innovative and entertaining app. Simsimi is a robot that has the ability to converse with users about a wide variety of topics. Simsimi also has the ability to learn from each and every user it converses with. It stores information from all of its conversations. So, when you text Simsimi about a certain topic, it is able to converse with you based on the information about that topic it’s acquired from conversations with other users.

Created in 2002 by the Korean tech company ISMaker, it uses artificial intelligence (or AI) to converse with human users.

A very detailed description of the Simsimi app is posted in simsimi000.blogspot.com.
"SimSimi is a super advanced chatting robot that makes amusing conversation to engage with users," the blog reports. "Using this app is really simple. Just start a talk session at your touch screen then Simsimi will instantly greet you with a cheerful chat. Like those typical messaging apps, just send your message through a chatting box. Don't be surprised by Simsimi's fast response. It's a super-duper robot, you know!"

The blog goes on to describe how the artificial intelligence built into Simsimi also allows it to "learn" new information from users, which allows the app to be called as the "the cutest chatting robot ever," to evolve over time:

"Simsimi's vocabulary grows by your input. You can teach Simsimi your own words as other users teach their own ones too," the blog describes. "If Simsimi has no data to answer your former message, it will say 'I HAVE NO RESPONSE'. Then you might select the 'TEACH' tab and instruct it your own words in a paired form of 'request & response'. Once you teach Simsimi a pair of words, it will make a response with those words immediately (approx. 3 minutes)."

The Simsimi app for iPhone is often described as analogous to the conversation features that the Siri software on the iPhone 4s comes with, only unable to interact via a voice-recognition interface.

Though Simsimi can not do many of the things Siri is able to do--from fetching directions to setting an alarm--Jung-hoe Choi, the president of ISMaker, believes his Simsimi app is a superior conversationalist:

"Contrary to Simsimi, Siri of iPhone seems to show the answer made by programmers," the blog said.

Monday, March 19, 2012

On What World Do You Belong? Wizarding or Post-Apocalytic World? (An Analysis of the Harry Potter Series and The Hunger Games)

Monday, March 19, 2012 0
The Hunger Games fever is undeniably reigning over the cinemas and bookstores in the town nowadays. At any moment, at any place, one can surely hear or observe someone or a group/bunch of people busy talking about it in a quite exalting way. Trully, this worldwide hit forged people to become obsess and be hungry for it’s stuff.

However, as this new craze go beyond the range of a typical fad, one can notice various comments. Reactions and comparison made by the public comapring the resemblane and differences between The Hunger Games and Harry Potter.

Through selecting reliable and worthy articles online, a list was designed showing some notable points of similarities and differences between the major hit that is striking the heart of every book and movie lover.

The Hunger Games
 

The Hunger Games is a young adult novel written by Suzanne Collins which is firt published on September 14, 2008 by Scholastic in hardcover. It’s film adaptation was co-written and co-produced by Collins herself and directed by Gary Ross. It was first released worldwide on March 23, 2012.

Overview
 The Hunger Games takes place after the destruction of North America by some unknown apocalyptic event, in a nation known as Panem. Panem consists of a wealthy Capitol and twelve surrounding, poorer districts. District 12, where the book begins, is located in the coal-rich region that was formerly Appalachia.

As punishment for a previous rebellion against the Capitol in which a 13th district was destroyed, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games, an event in which the participants (or "tributes") must fight in an outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one remains. The story follows 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, a girl from District 12 who volunteers for the 74th annual Hunger Games in place of her younger sister, Primrose. Also selected from District 12 is Peeta Mellark, a baker's son whom Katniss knows from school, who once gave her bread when her family was starving.

Katniss and Peeta are taken to the Capitol where their drunken mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, victor of the 50th Hunger Games, instructs them to watch and learn the talents of the other tributes. They are then publicly displayed to the Capitol audience in a televised session with interviewer Caesar Flickerman. During this time, Peeta reveals on-air his long-time unrequited love for Katniss. Katniss believes this to be a ploy to gain audience support for the Games, which can be crucial for survival, as audience members are encouraged to send gifts like food, medicine, and tools to favored tributes during the Games. The Games begin with 11 of the 24 tributes dying in the first day, while Katniss relies on her well-practiced hunting and outdoor skills to survive. As the games continue, the tribute death toll increases. A few days later, Katniss develops an alliance with Rue, a 12-year-old girl from the agricultural District 11 who reminds Katniss of her sister Prim. The alliance is short-lived: Rue is killed by another tribute. At Rue's request Katniss sings to her, then spreads flowers over her body as a sign of respect--and of disgust towards the Capitol.

Supposedly due to Katniss and Peeta's beloved image in the minds of the audience as "star-crossed lovers", a rule change is announced midway through the Games, stating that two tributes from the same district can win the Hunger Games as a pair. Upon hearing this, Katniss searches for Peeta and eventually finds him wounded. As she nurses him back to health, she acts the part of a young girl falling in love to gain more favor with the audience and, consequently, gifts from her sponsors. When the couple are finally the last two tributes, the Gamemakers reverse the rule change in an attempt to force them into a dramatic finale, where one must kill the other to win. Katniss, knowing that the Gamemakers would rather have two victors than none, retrieves highly poisonous berries known as "nightlock" from her pouch and offers some to Peeta. Upon realizing that Katniss and Peeta intend to commit suicide, the Gamemakers announce that both will be the victors of the 74th Hunger Games.

Although she survives the ordeal in the arena and is treated to a hero's welcome in the Capitol, Katniss is warned by Haymitch that she has now become a political target after defying her society's authoritarian leaders so publicly. Afterwards, Peeta is heartbroken when he learns that Katniss's actions in the arena were part of a calculated ploy to earn sympathy from the audience. However, Katniss is unsure of her own feelings, and realizes that she is dreading the moment when she and Peeta will go their separate ways.

Themes
The book and the film tackle issues like poverty, starvation, oppression and the effects of war among others.

The need for resources and starvation that the citizens encounter both in and outside of the arena generated an atmosphere of helplessness that the main characters try to overcome in their fight for survival.  

Film, Movie Review and Controversies
In Stephen King's review, he praised how the books "addictive quality" and also compared it to "shoot-it-if-it-moves videogames in the lobby of the local eightplex; you know it's not real, but you keep plugging in quarters anyway."

However, he stated that there were "displays of authorial laziness that kids will accept more readily than adults" and that the love triangle was standard for the genre. He gave the book an overall B grade. Elizabeth Bird of School Library Journal praised the novel, saying it is "exciting, poignant, thoughtful, and breathtaking by turns". The review also called it one of the best books of 2008. Booklist also gave a positive review, praising the character violence and romance involved in the book. In a review for The New York TimesJohn Green wrote that the novel was "brilliantly plotted and perfectly paced", and that "the considerable strength of the novel comes in Collins's convincingly detailed world-building and her memorably complex and fascinating heroine." However, he also noted that sometimes the book does not realize the allegorical potential that the plot has to offer and that the writing "described the action and little else". 

Kirkus Reviews gave a positive review, praising the action and world-building, but pointed out that "poor copyediting in the first printing will distract careful readers—a crying shame".Time magazine was positive and praised the hypnotic quality of the violence. Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, claims it is the "closest thing to a perfect adventure novel" he has ever read. Stephenie Meyer (author of the Twilight series) endorsed the book on her website, saying, "I was so obsessed with this book....The Hunger Games is amazing.

"The Hunger Games has been criticized for its similarities to the 1999 novel Battle Royale. Although Collins maintains that she "had never heard of that book until [her] book was turned in," The New York Times reports that "the parallels are striking enough that Collins’s work has been savaged on the blogosphere as a baldfaced ripoff," but that "there are enough possible sources for the plot line that the two authors might well have hit on the same basic setup independently." King noted that the reality TV "badlands" were similar to Battle Royale, as well as The Running Man and The Long Walk. Green also pointed out that the premise of the novel was "nearly identical" to Battle Royale.

The novel has also been controversial; it ranked in fifth place on the American Library Association's list of most banned books for 2010, the reasons being it was "sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, and violence."

Harry Potter

Harry Potter is a series of fantasy novel written by the British writer, J.K Rowling. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, its first of the seven novel was published on 30 June 1997. The initial major publishers of the books were Bloomsbury in the United Kingdom and Scholastic Press in the United States. The books, with the seventh book split into two parts, have been made into an eight-part film series by Warner Bros. Pictures, the highest-grossing film series of all time.

Overview
The novels revolve around Harry Potter, an orphan who discovers at the age of eleven that he is a wizard, living within the ordinary world of non-magical, orMuggle, people. His ability is inborn and such children are invited to attend a school that teaches the necessary skills to succeed in the wizarding world. Harry becomes a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and it is in here where most of the novels' events take place. As Harry develops through his adolescence, he learns to overcome the problems that face him: magical, social and emotional, including ordinary teenage challenges such as friendships and exams, and the greater test of preparing himself for the confrontation that lies ahead.

Each book chronicles one year in Harry's life with the main narrative being set in the years 1991–98. The books also contain many flashbacks, which are frequently experienced by Harry viewing the memories of other characters in a device called a Pensieve.

The environment J. K. Rowling created is completely separate from reality yet intimately connected to it. While the fantasy land of Narnia is an alternative universe and the Lord of the Rings’ Middle-earth a mythic past, the wizarding world of Harry Potter exists in parallel within the real world and this is how Potter's world contains magical elements similar to things in everyday life. Many of its institutions and locations are recognizable, such as London. It comprises a fragmented collection of hidden streets, overlooked and ancient pubs, lonely country manors and secluded castles that remain invisible to the Muggle population.

Themes
According to Rowling, a major theme in the series is death: "My books are largely about death. They open with the death of Harry's parents. There is Voldemort's obsession with conquering death and his quest for immortality at any price, the goal of anyone with magic. I so understand why Voldemort wants to conquer death. We're all frightened of it."

Academics and journalists have developed many other interpretations of themes in the books, some more complex than others, and some including political subtexts. Themes such as normality, oppression, survival, and overcoming imposing odds have all been considered as prevalent throughout the series. Similarly, the theme of making one's way through adolescence and "going over one's most harrowing ordeals—and thus coming to terms with them" has also been considered. Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to bigotry" and that also pass on a message to "question authority and... not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth".

While the books could be said to comprise many other themes, such as power/abuse of power, loveprejudice, and free choice, they are, as J. K. Rowling states, "deeply entrenched in the whole plot"; the writer prefers to let themes "grow organically", rather than sitting down and consciously attempting to impart such ideas to her readers. Along the same lines is the ever-present theme of adolescence, in whose depiction Rowling has been purposeful in acknowledging her characters' sexualities and not leaving Harry, as she put it, "stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence".Rowling said that, to her, the moral significance of the tales seems "blindingly obvious". The key for her was the choice between what is right and what is easy, "because that ... is how tyranny is started, with people being apathetic and taking the easy route and suddenly finding themselves in deep trouble."

Film, Movie Review and Controversies
 Early in its history, Harry Potter received positive reviews. On publication, the first volume, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, attracted attention from the Scottish newspapers, such as The Scotsman, which said it had "all the makings of a classic", and The Glasgow Herald, which called it "Magic stuff". Soon the English newspapers joined in, with more than one comparing it to Roald Dahl's work: The Mail on Sunday rated it as "the most imaginative debut since Roald Dahl",a view echoed by The Sunday Times ("comparisons to Dahl are, this time, justified"),while The Guardian called it "a richly textured novel given lift-off by an inventive wit".

By the time of the release of the fifth volume, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the books began to receive strong criticism from a number of literary scholars. Yale professor, literary scholar and critic Harold Bloom raised criticisms of the books' literary merits, saying, "Rowling's mind is so governed by clichés and dead metaphors that she has no other style of writing." A. S. Byatt authored a New York Times op-ed article calling Rowling's universe a "secondary secondary world, made up of intelligently patchworked derivative motifs from all sorts of children's literature ... written for people whose imaginative lives are confined to TV cartoons, and the exaggerated (more exciting, not threatening) mirror-worlds of soaps, reality TV and celebrity gossip". 

Michael Rosen, a novelist and poet, advocated the books were not suited for children, who would be unable to grasp the complex themes. Rosen also stated that "J. K. Rowling is more of an adult writer." The critic Anthony Holden wrote in The Observer on his experience of judging Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban for the 1999 Whitbread Awards. His overall view of the series was negative—"the Potter saga was essentially patronising, conservative, highly derivative, dispiritingly nostalgic for a bygone Britain", and he speaks of "pedestrian, ungrammatical prose style". Ursula Le Guin said, "I have no great opinion of it. When so many adult critics were carrying on about the 'incredible originality' of the first Harry Potter book, I read it to find out what the fuss was about, and remained somewhat puzzled; it seemed a lively kid's fantasy crossed with a "school novel", good fare for its age group, but stylistically ordinary, imaginatively derivative, and ethically rather mean-spirited."

By contrast, author Fay Weldon, while admitting that the series is "not what the poets hoped for", nevertheless goes on to say, "but this is not poetry, it is readable, saleable, everyday, useful prose".The literary critic A. N. Wilson praised the Harry Potter series in The Times, stating: "There are not many writers who have JK’s Dickensian ability to make us turn the pages, to weep—openly, with tears splashing—and a few pages later to laugh, at invariably good jokes ... We have lived through a decade in which we have followed the publication of the liveliest, funniest, scariest and most moving children’s stories ever written".

Charles Taylor of Salon.com, who is primarily a movie critic, took issue with Byatt's criticisms in particular. While he conceded that she may have "a valid cultural point—a teeny one—about the impulses that drive us to reassuring pop trash and away from the troubling complexities of art", he rejected her claims that the series is lacking in serious literary merit and that it owes its success merely to the childhood reassurances it offers. Taylor stressed the progressively darker tone of the books, shown by the murder of a classmate and close friend and the psychological wounds and social isolation each causes. Taylor also argued that Philosopher's Stone, said to be the most light-hearted of the seven published books, disrupts the childhood reassurances that Byatt claims spur the series' success: the book opens with news of a double murder, for example.

Stephen King called the series "a feat of which only a superior imagination is capable", and declared "Rowling's punning, one-eyebrow-cocked sense of humour" to be "remarkable". However, he wrote that despite the story being "a good one", he is "a little tired of discovering Harry at home with his horrible aunt and uncle", the formulaic beginning of all seven books. King has also joked that "Rowling's never met an adverb she did not like!" He does however predict that Harry Potter "will indeed stand time's test and wind up on a shelf where only the best are kept; I think Harry will take his place with AliceHuckFrodo, and Dorothy and this is one series not just for the decade, but for the ages". 

People’s Commens and Suggestions
 Goodreads.com
By Ο ένας, ο οποίος ονειρευότα
- That is a very hard decision to me! Suzanne Collins did such an amazing job and J.K. Rowling did an amazing job also! I can't pick which one's better though. Tough, very tough decision!! ): 

By Rae *PottWhoviStarGleek*, Primrose
- I'm personally for Harry Potter. While Suzanne started the series out AMAZINGLY, the following books weren't up to par with the first one and there seemed to be several things that appeared to be done on a whim. Nothing TRULY seemed planned out in the latter books, but especially not in Mockingjay.
In Harry Potter, however, everything fits- even Harry not seeing the thestrals at the end of book 4 in the carriages to Hogsmeade Station because JK has said that you only see them when you come to terms with the death of the person that you saw. And many people found, that while the series started out great, the better books were the latter ones (I'm of this opinion myself). And there's so much thought put into every single detail of the story, it's quite brilliant. 

By Kate, Rue
I personally believe Harry Potter is WAY better. It is an incredible series that got so many people to read, not just Harry Potter but other books as well, and it was just so well written and thought out.
The Hunger Games was a good book. I don't think even that one was great, although it was entertaining. Catching Fire was ok. I still haven't read Mockingjay. Even with the gigantic cliffhanger she left you on in Catching Fire, it wasn't enough to make me really want to read Mockingjay, in contrast to Harry Potter, where I read all of them starting with the fifth on the day they came out. I also don't think it had the same effect on people that Harry Potter did-some people read it who don't ordinarily read much, but I don't know of very many people who started reading more because of it.
To be honest, it all comes down to personal opinion. But my opinion is that Harry Potter is by far better. 

By Amelia, the pragmatic idealist
- HARRY POTTER all the way!
There, the only annoying character was Hermione, and she wasn't the main character. It got harder and harder for me to like HUNGER GAMES because I came to despise Katniss, and think she's one of the worst characters I've ever read.
Plus, HARRY POTTER is a way more inventive and creative series. I think Suzanne Collins got popular with her series because it shocked people, not necessarily because it was well-written, nuanced, or especially creative. JK Rowling practically created a new language with all the spells, incantations and so forth.

PS to Rae and Kate - Agree and agree. :D 

By Writersblock55
- I agree, Amelia! :) I like harry potter better too.
 Harry Potter is a classic novel of magic, friendship and the whole good-meets-evil shabang. Since there are so many characters you are sure to like at least one.
The Hunger Games is a good dystopian novel but lacks the amount of characters that you really feel like rooting for (besides Katniss/Peeta, of course).
Both books have elements of suspense and twists/turns but I must say that Harry Potter is the winner! 

By Andrea 
I feel awkward here, since I'm gonna vote Hunger Games. Oh boy. Lol, I mean, Harry Potter just never really appealed to me. When I was younger? Sure. But, it's wizardry. Hunger Games is something that's not really magical at all, which I prefer. Maybe that's why I also chose Twilight over Harry Potter? Lol, werewolves simply make my day. Just saying. :) 

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Anton Diaz: A Man who deserves a clap

Saturday, March 17, 2012 0
A simple, but with elegant sense of dreaming. . . 
The mind of passion. . . 
A man who deserves a clap. . .  
Ladies and gentlemen. . . 

MR. ANTON DIAZ

“The moment you said you’re successful, parang that’s the end, ibig sabihin hindi ka na mag-iinovate”.
Encountering these words from a man, whom not yet consider his standing a success is more than of listening in a three hours lecture, more than of learning theories and formulas. Truly, it was inexplicable sense of fulfillment to exchange words with a man composed of ardor enthusiasm.


It was 1:30 in the morning, Thursday, March 15, when our team got the chance to interview Mr. Anton Diaz, though almost everyone is comfortably lying in their bed at this time; Anton is still spending his time in his food business. Perhaps, 24 hours would never be enough to accomplish his entire task.

Aren’t we so lucky to have his time?

Anton Diaz is one of the pioneer bloggers in the Philippines; in 2005 he started “Our Awesome Planet”, a respected food and travel blog in the Philippines with over 15 thousand hits per day, 31 thousand followers and 7 thousand readers. Having an advocacy of promoting Philippine tourism through “Food and Travel Secrets in the Philippines” and inspiring Filipinos and realize that living in the Philippines is truly awesome!

Right after college, Anton worked as a Chief Information Officer of the Procter and Gamble for 13 years, before becoming a full time online entrepreneur. 

“Ang interest ko talaga is kumain, we like to eat, we like to travel, so blogging is just a documentary of travel and adventure”, revealed by him,  which truly proved that every successful man only followed what of their heart desired. 

“Kailangan totoo ka, so kung gustong-gusto mo ang isang bagay, gusto mo, kung ayaw mo, ayaw mo”. Pertaining to his one secret “the authenticity”. For Anton, blogging is just a lifestyle, not an additional effort, which perhaps the best weapon to find success, like of him, who found it through pursuing what he really love.

Because of his fearless start in the world of online, Anton also had an opportunity to make his interest into a tangible business. Recently, he is a co-founder of “Mercato Centrale” found at Bonifacio Global City, which considered as a favorite food stop and week end market. And soon will have another branch in Alabang to be called “Soderno”.

Anton, now one of the Philippines leading internet marketing gurus and entrepreneur was recognized as a Go Negosyo’s Inspiring Young Filipino Entrepreneur in 2010 and last year, he was featured in Go Negosyo’s 7th book “Go Negosyo’s 50 Inspiring Stories of Young Entrepreneurs”.

It is definitely a long road for like Anton Diaz, for a man who is just enjoying what he is doing and not thinking of being on the top. “Kapag naisip mo na successful ka na, kapag lumaki na yung  ulo mo, that’s the beginning of your downfall”. Anton never stops dreaming, as to him “It’s like you’re discovering food and you like to eat”.

For seven minutes of interview, it seems that we want to absorb all things about him. His thought, ideologies, and most especially his ultimately different kind of passion. A heart, that is burning with blue fire to discover and to innovate.

He’s a man of success, a family man and a man of patriotism, sees in his compassionate thoughts, “so success for me is like people say that, my three boys would be the role model of our society and would contribute to it, that’s success for me”. 

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Spreading HOPE through Facebook status

Thursday, March 15, 2012 0
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
That simple status marked the beginning of a movement which will give hope to children to continue value their education despite of the adversity they need to surpass before going to school.


Jay Jaboneta: A must-know individual
An “ordinary individual with extraordinary ideas”, that’s will best describe Jay Jaboneta.

He . . .  . .
was born in Cotobato City, Philippines.

graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce Majoring in Management Accounting with a minor in Philosophy in Ateneo De Davao University.

was a corporate employee for 5 years before he volunteered to be part of the Presidential and Senatorial campaign in the Philippines in 2010.

was the head of the New Media Officer under the Presidential Communications Operations Office but decided to leave this job to be more focused in Yellow Boat of Hope.

was the first Filipino who appeared on a TEDx talk outside the Philippines.

is the man behind Hungry People, a website for leaders and other individuals who are hungry for ideas worth spreading.

is the Fire Starter and the Storyteller of the Yellow Boat of Hope.

was one of the Yahoo! Philippines’ Pitong Pinoy (Seven Pinoys) awardee in June 2011 for his significant contribution as a modern day hero.


Jay Jaboneta during his talk about Yellow Boat of Hope in College of Communication (COC), Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP)




Photos by Flordelyn Manaog of sisterscomp.blogspot.com

Online Ink, Writer’s Black and Block Mates with Mr. Jay Jaboneta.

Online Ink, Writer’s Black and Block Mates with Mr. Jay Jaboneta and Mr Jun Lubid (in white). Thanks to Sir Lubid for making the talk possible.


The Yellow Boat of Hope
Jay was currently working in Presidential Communications Operations Office when he encountered the story of the swimming children in Zamboanga, Philippines.

Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.

Those children need to swim back and forth in going to school every day. Upon knowing this, he made a facebook status and it became viral as a lot of his friends wanted to offer help for the children.
Children who strive for education during low tide
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
The idea of transporting the children from their homes by boats rather than swimming was created. They named the first boat they gave in the community as ‘New Hope’ because they believed that they are not just providing a vehicle that can ferry these children to school, but they are providing them a source of hope and renewed optimism as well.

Yellow boat brings ‘Bagong Pag-asa’ for the children
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
 Jay and his group discovered other communities with the same situation. Now, the Yellow Boat Project is currently present in three communities in Philippines: Layag-Layag, Brgy. Talon-Talon, Zamboanga City; Isla Mababoy, Brgy. Guinhadap, Monreal, Masbate; and Lakewood, Zamboanga del Sur.

More Yellow Boats, more hope for the children
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation
Being a TEDx Speaker
TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences -- the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer -- TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversations, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize. (http://www.ted.com/pages/about)

Visit http://tedxmontpellier.com/intervenant/jay-michael-jaboneta/ to watch Jay Jaboneta in TEDx Montpellier.

Jay found a way on how he could explain to his audiences about the Yellow of Hope and on how they could easily understand his purpose in doing this. So, he used the word HOPE and made acronym out of it to share his story.

Jay Jaboneta as the first Asian and Filipino to talk in TEDx, France.
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.

H – harnessing your potential/passion. “As this has become sort of a personal mission for me”;

O – open your mind/open your heart. “We have to open both our minds and our hearts to the many opportunities to help in the world”;

P – perspiration. “I shared about the importance on acting out our potential, our passions in life”;

E – empower others. “Lastly, I emphasized the importance of sharing our personal success stories with others so that we can help build more leaders and change makers in society”.


Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
The True Heroes
“Sacrificing his work and giving out his own wallet in order to be a STORYTELLER”, isn’t it admirable? Jay used facebook to let people know about the story of those children as he promotes to use social media for social change. 
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
Truly, everyone has his own way to let his hands for others, even the people in those communities were all willing to offer 99% perspiration, and that’s the reason why Jay is more inspired to persist his purpose.
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
Aside from boats they produced, Jay’s team also raised funds to build additional school as the number of children who wanted to go to school increased, after they initiated the Yellow Boat Project. 
The school that was build through the people who eagerly offer their help.
Photo credits to Jay Jaboneta’s presentation.
As the new school was build, more teachers are also needed.  Teachers who chose to share their knowledge to those children spend almost 125 pesos a day for transportation, but it was just nothing compared to the joy they can get in teaching those amazing children.

Currently, they are looking for individuals and organizations who can help them build a social enterprise so that their operations can become sustainable. To be specific, they are looking for private donors who can fund their daily operations on the administration/operations side so that all their public calls for donations will go 100% to their projects.

For additional information about Yellow Boat of Hope and if you are interested to lend you’re helping hands, just visit the following links:

“I have to stress though that the real heroes of our story are the children who used to swim to school. They are the brave heroes in our story. I am just the storyteller” – Jay Jaboneta

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

All About BLOG (A Survey Regarding Blogging)

Tuesday, March 13, 2012 1
To be acquainted with what other people’s thoughts and ideas regarding the skyrocketing level of blogging, a survey was conducted through a set of questionnaire.

The line of questions were generated to be also familiar if there are individuals who are still clueless regarding the matter.

Profile
Out of one-hundred respondents (100) female has taken seventy-four (74) total spot while the male filled up the twenty-six (26) spot.

Respondents who were in the age bracket of 10-15 was only one while the 16-20 garnered the most with ninety-five individuals and the last but not the least, the 1-25 bracket comprises of four respondents. All of the respondents are single and on their college level.

Research Questions
Ninety-three (93) respondents claimed that they were all familiar with blogging while only seven (7) candidly answered that they were not aware of it.

Through selecting notable definition of blogging by those who were familiar with it, listed below are some given descriptions that would clearly define what blog is:

- Blog is a way of expressing ideas and views through the internet.

- Blog is a place where you pour out your feelings, emotions or simply for documentation of your life

- A medium of modified social networking through an article-like interface.

- A website containing a diary/ journal about a particular subject.

- Blog is an online means of writing articles to get across to the online audiences/readers.

- Blog is an avenue where you can write anything under the sun.

- Blog is a medium to express one’s self

When asked if what blog site/social networking site that respondents found more applicable in using, the facebook gathered the total votes of seventy-eight (78) which is the highest followed by twitter with fifty (50) votes and on the third rank is the blogger with thirty – nine (39) votes chased by tumblr with thirty (30) votes and the word press who got eleven (11) votes showed that people were not much aware of using it.

When asked if what blog site / social networking site that respondents found more interesting to read, for the second time, facebook gained seventy-six (76) votes, followed again by twitter with forty-three (43) votes while blogger secured it’s third place with thirty-six (36) votes, tumblr with thirty-three (33) votes and word press with twenty-two (22) votes.

Under the classification on what age does respondents started to read blogs, the age bracket of 10-15 years of age filled the fifty-one (51) respondents while the age bracket of 16-20 was answered by forty-two (42) respondents.

Under the category on what age does respondents started to write blogs, the age bracket of 10-15 years of age garnered a total of twenty-eight (28) respondents while the age bracket of 16-20 hoarded fifty-two (52), and the last bracket, 21-25 accumulated only one (1) respondent.

Researchers were also asked if how often do they read blogs. The results showed that readers who were able to read blogs daily comprises of seventeen (17) respondents, while readers who were able to read blogs weekly has been filled up by forty-eight (48) respondents and readers who were able to read blogs has been occupied by sixteen (16) respondents.

Researchers were also asked if how often do they write blogs. The outcome revealed that bloggers who are able to post blogs online daily were seven (7) respondents, bloggers who were able to post blogs online were thirty-nine (39) and a total of twenty (20) respondents claimed that they can only post blogs on monthly basis.

When asked if blogging was really their interest, a total of forty-five (45) respondents affiemed that it was really entertaining while a total of fifty-five (55) respondents answered that it does not suit their interest.

Current events, personalities, food, animals and places were the given category for those who are interested and not much on blogging depending on what topic they were more inclined to.

For those people who found blogging an interesting one, according to them, current events with twenty-three (23) votes is the most interesting field they often discussed with followed by personalities with eighteen (18) votes. However, the places category covered the third place with fifteen (15) votes and on the fourth rank, the food gathered eight (8) votes and on the last rank, animals garnered only one (1) vote.

However, those people who do not found blogging an interesting and exciting one were also asked if what particular topic they were interested. The result exhibited that for the second time around, the current events section covered a total of twenty –nine (29) votes, followed by food on the second rank with twenty one (21) votes, on the third place was the personalities with seventeen (17) votes, the fourth place, which is places with fourteen (14) votes and the animals with a total of five (5) votes.

The respondents were also requested to tell if what tempted them to blog. And some of the valuable answers were as follows:

Passion / trend
Crucial topics
Interest
Peers / professor
Religious belief
Brings the artistic side
Share experiences
Inside thoughts / free will
Modernization

When asked if what blog site they prefer the most, the abundantly designed or simple, most of the respondents affirmed that simple blogs are more appropriate and convenient to use compared to elegantly designed blog site.

And lastly, the survey questionnaire showed that some of the respondents considered blogging as a career because you can gain profit from it and it is another way / means of earning money.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Pasig City: Say NO to plastic!

Sunday, March 11, 2012 0
20 years before a single plastic can totally be dissolved. Imagine, when all the plastics we consumed will be vanished? Every day, people used plastic and each day, it will just add to the number of plastics needed to be gone. Consequently, plastics will never be disappeared or at least lessen if we will not find a way on how we will minimize the use of these anti-environment materials.

Burning is not the solution
Well, there’s one way on how these plastics will be melted – through burning. Ooopss! It’s a no, no to put all the plastics together and put some fire to solve our problem in these plastics. There is what we called global warming (the reason why we are experiencing today an abnormal condition in climate) and one of its causes is the burning of some materials including plastics.

PasiGreen City
September 26, 2009.
The day when the normal Saturday of Pasigueños became unforgettable and miserable as the typhoon Ondoy attacked the city. Many of the barangays were ruined because of the unexpected flood brought by the continuous rainfall of the typhoon.

January 4, 2012.
In the National Book store, Ever Ortigas, Pasig City, a customer asked the cashier if she can put all the things she brought in a plastic and the cashier replied, “Maam, simula pa po nung January 1 ngayong taon iniiwasan na pong gumamit ng plastic dito sa atin. May memo po na binigay at city ordinance po yan na ‘wag ng gumamit ng plastic.”


According to some vendors in the city, the first offense for those who will be caught in using plastic is a fine of 500 pesos. To avoid this, they use brown packaging or newspapers for their goods.



Today, Pasig is not totally a plastic-free city because there are some products that still need to put in plastic like meat, fish, oil, rice, etc.

To the consumers, it is advisable to bring bags as you go in the market like the pictures below:


It is a good start for Pasig City as it welcomed the year of the water dragon with a pro-environment campaign. In using and carrying goods through brown packs is obviously hassle but the main thing is we are starting to show our concern in the environment.


 
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