Rolling with the Big Boys.... First Day High!!!!

Today started off like any other day... Woke up... flinched... did some stretching... procrastinated... did some some more stretching... finally forced myself out of bed, all in a record-breaking time of 37 minutes.

Then I went to the kitchen and fixed myself some breakfast... Everything seems all too quiet, in fact, I completely lost track of time as I enjoyed my cup of coffee for 30 frigging minutes before taking a shower... I was in the office fifteen minutes to nine... tardy again, but what the hey... I figure, since I'm the first one to leave the office anyway, that kinda sorta balances the whole schedule thing off, right?

I mean if you arrive late for work and leave late for work, you would've been late twice in one day.... And I don't think anyone would want that, right? Ergo, my line of reasoning is acceptable... Arrive late, Go home early =)

Anyway, on with the story... So there I was rummaging through my daily tasks and running for a 12 o'clock meeting when a colleague of mine stopped and asks me what today was as he fills out some form... So I told him, "Its Tuesday, October 24th"... it took a while for me to realize what I said... today is the First listing day of the stocks I bought (GECS)...

I tried to run back to my office to check the stats online, but the fools started pouring into the conference room signaling the start of the meeting...

Now, about meetings, you might not think of me as the life of the party type, but I can definitely consider myself otherwise when it comes to these meetings and stuff... Usually, I am one the persons that everyone looks at to dictate the course of what's going to happen...

I bet, everybody noticed how I wasn't really paying attention to what was going on... All I wanted at that moment was to get out of that room!!!

Finally after over an hour of incessant blabbing and pointing fingers, the meeting adjourned... I was the first person to leave the still steaming set of seats, stepping at some one's toes in the process...

I shot straight for my office and went to the web... And there, in front of me was the biggest shocker of the year!!! The frigging stock appreciated 62.93%!!!

While writing this... I felt that I cannot do any justice describing the set of emotions I'm going through so I thought I'd let the numbers do the talking! Before I show you the stats... I wanted to give a shout out to my wife...

"Babe, I was right on the money after all!!!! Wooohoooo!!!!"

Out of steam and wallowing in chaos

After the Eid Al Fitr holidays, I suddenly realized that a time off from work and home is no longer the prescription for combating depression. At least, I know now that it doesn't always work for me...

I vowed to change my attitude from being a fatalist-realist during the start of the year, but alas, my built-up sensibilities proved to be a worthy opponent. Not to mention that the grim realities of everyday living is like a Multi-Colored-Dot-Matrix Ad board along EDSA mocking you with all these problems and challenges like theres no tomorrow.

Feeling all too vulnerable, I tried to immerse my self constantly into physical and mental activities in my desperate attempt to fend off the onslaught of this depression. I even resorted to meditation and changing my daily routine to give it an extra kick.... Guess what? No USE!

I think when it comes down to it, the biggest mistake one can ever do when it comes to these things is to ignore them. So, I am writing it down here as a sort of self-medication to see if anyone else out there is sensitive and knowledgeable enough to provide me with some answers (or a clue, which ever works).

I know that spirituality brings some answers to these paradoxes - I've personally witnessed it work. Not that I'm poking my head into blasphemy again, it's just that, this time around, I wanted more specific answers and not just the usual "its all in His plan...." mutterings of some robed guy you see on Sundays.

I tried to ponder on things that happened to me that might explain this lull state I'm currently wallowing from. So far, I have not discovered anything out of the ordinary, except of course that the monotony of living as an expatriate, trying to cope with the illusion of success and fortune, is the only new thing in the mix.

I wanted to get direct answers from someone whose had first hand experience on tricks on how to make it living as an expatriate, constantly battling depression and work fatigue...

So I tried approaching my dad, whose been working here for around 18 years. Tried to fish some ideas from him about how he made it through all those years with his sanity still intact; all without giving away my intentions, current emotional and psychological state.

I wanted to preserve the integrity of the inquiry so that I can at least promulgate something unabated about combating psychosomatic fatigue and burnout. You could call it "A scientific approach to depression..."

As expected, he uttered vague and sometimes esoteric advices and anecdotes. I guess it’s just him being him. I think all dads are like that. It's like an unspoken code or something - "to be perfectly obscure, yet crystal clear...". I know because I do the same stuff too when my daughter pins me up with some questions of her own.

More than the usual phases that everybody goes through, I felt that what I was experiencing will not leave me until I find a way to understand it's complexities - sort of like Grey's Anatomy but milder.

So, without further a do, here’s my list on things that I think I'm getting my depression fix from:

1. Why do you have to slave like a dog when every month you end up with loose change from your so called "Pay Slip" (more like Spend Slip to me!) on your bank account?


2. Why do we try to better ourselves on our careers when we know that along the way, a younger, more improved versions of ourselves will probably walk out of the University as your company writes you a pink slip and calls it "Early Retirement Availment...."


3. Why do we even bother to get up every day and work 8-10 hours and even put up overtime whenever we can, when we know we will only earn X number of Pesos annually and probably end up with less than 2% of that as your savings


4. Why do we even immerse ourselves with quaint childish forms of leisure, (shopping/gadgets/weekend getaways/clubbing/etcetera) when we know that at the end of it all, we'd end up with less Pesos on our pocket and have to do double the work just to pay off our credit card bills...


5. Why do even bother to dream grand ambitions of profiting from our very own business when the fact is, we're all chicken shit to commit to an unsecure, labor and capital intensive ventures, if we can stay in the comfort and so-called security of our day jobs. Content of the fact that we will never amount to something more than a glorified office grunt whether our designation reads Manager or President.

In retrospect, I understand that the laws of nature are immutable - Survival of the fittest, Winners never Quit, Think outside of the box,

or my all time favorite, life is hard, so quit your whining!

I guess there's little comfort to the fact that in 1898, a guy named Jacques Hadamard first propounded the idea of the Chaos Theory.

It states that any existing natural system that exhibits mathematical chaos/disorder (like brain cell function, lightning, electrical circuits, fluid dynamics, magnetic resonance, as well as human emotions) is almost always deterministic, meaning, the resulting action is a statistical certainty - ergo there is still Order in Chaos.

Sounds kind of the funky doesn't it? So does this means, I am in effect "statistically certain" to end up like a depressed whining loony???

Sadly, Mr. Hadamard's little theory seems to agree so...

Let's see Dr. Phil make sense of this shit....

Stand up comic made my day

Yet another reason why YouTube should be a staple on everyones home....

My brother-in-law tipped me this comedian from Canada of East Indian descent...

Cultural jokes will never be funnier again! This guy is funny as hell man!

Made me wet my jocks laughing to his shit!

Check it out!



"What a delightful feeling... That is smashing.... Oh my god! Im arriving!"

The Saga continues (Rolling w/ the Big Boys)

Another cosmopolitan day dawned last Wednesday when I received an alert text message from the local securities market. I was overpowered by the excitement...

Peeling my fingers away from my eyes, I almost shouted out in ecstasy when I scrolled down to read the message...

It wasn't long ago that I began to toy with the idea about investing in the stock markets... It was a trite understanding on my part, believe it or not - but the prospect of instant wealth is simply too much to resist.

Anyway, from the message it said that out of the 10,000 shares I applied for; I am accorded 43.91 percent. This came as both good news and bad news for me.

Suddenly, I found myself transitioning from a cheering lunatic to an indifferent fool. Because on one hand, I was hoping that I could get allocated the entire lot. On the other hand, I am also worried that the mounting positive response on the IPO might bring the share's market value into a plateau sooner than you could say "Show me the money!" *nudge-nudge...

You see, the entire Initial Public Offering (IPO) yielded so much attention that come close date it was reported 15.4 percent oversubscribed. This is suppose to be a good thing, by the way!

The said IPO was heralded as one of the most successful and obviously, the biggest and most commercialized sensation that the securities market here in Oman has ever witnessed.

As far as figures are concerned, the event bested the last IPO to about 57%, roughly translating to 61.34 Million USD in subscription capital!!! The allocation report, poured down all over the country where 5.3 percent of the total applicants was probably pounding their chest in protest as news that their application was denied. I was one of the lucky few that got awarded.

I really should be happy, but I was stumped as I thought about how all those unrealized capital would definitely be channeled somewhere... the question is... where?

If the corporations' appetite remains in gear, the money could get plowed back into the market as they secure their investment targets come the final quarter of the year. This means yahoo for me!

Now, if the anxious public's imagination gets overactive and started to snowball the stock too soon, the market value of the stock could be jeopardized. Which will mean, Boohoohoo-hu-hoo!

As I write this, the stock is being traded on the "Gray Market" at 25 percent of the IPO value; the sentiments of the public is on the rise... The official listing date for the stock is suppose to be on October 28 which would mean that if this gray market carnage pushes on, the stock might not realize the its full value.

The thrill of the game is short lived for me as my illicit felicitations now turn into a horrific waiting game. Knowing the caliber of the trading public in this country, my dreams of fortunes, might be a heartbeat away from a total loss...

I'll be doing a part three on this saga soon.... In the meantime... keep those damn fingers cross will ya!

My Eureka moment

Have you ever had a moment where you have gone beyond the absolute limits of your reasoning and cognition skills and just basically accepted whatever is filling your head?

Lately, I have had some thinking done and came out with an awful realization about life...

Let me start by inculcating some of the concepts which this entry is based on.

Fact #1 : We as sentient beings have both our irrational and rational processes of consciousness
Fact #2: For the most part, we tell ourselves that we are endeavoring more on employing our rational processes.
Fact #3: But, truth is, we are the most irrational and impossible person we know.
Fact #4: We fancy ourselves as the master of our universe and seek all things possible to control our fate even resorting to changing ourselves completely.
Fact #5: We never thought for a second that we do not have complete command on all our circumstances, actions and ambitions; that no single achievement can ever be attributed to our careful planning and absolute execution.

While digesting all the things that I have to go through last year; it just dawned on me... We are all living a life that's not our own!!!

Let me try to tell you why I came down to that conclusion....

First, we all thought for a time that we have to learn everything we can to master ourselves. We were taught at school that we need to act for ourselves as no one in this forsaken world will do it for us (this line of reasoning is partly to blame to what happens or how we'll turn out late in life).

Second, as we grow, we learn to some-what master our skills, discovering along the way our strengths and weaknesses. We force ourselves to recover on our weaknesses and to improve further whatever strengths we have. Over our lifetime, this will be the driving force which will enable us to constantly undermine ourselves, renewing most of our old habits and actions in the hope that one day, our efforts will effect our set goals and plans.

But, even though we go through all these wonderful transformations in our lives, we still feel empty, unhappy and incomplete. We still feel that something else needed to be changed, added, or taken out... That has become our life's mantra!

This longing is more apparent to some people than others. People who have high disposition on their achievements and their aspirations, suffer more than those who have complete trust on whatever "fate" dealt.

We of all, should not belittle whatever achievements or merit we have. Although, your parents will tell you that to prepare for the worst, you should do everything you can, including pushing yourself to become another person altogether.

When I was 8 Y.O., I didn't care what will become of me 10, 20 years down the road. Honestly, I couldn't give a rats ass if try! This is because, I am complete then. I have no reason to push myself into becoming someone else I was not! I also have no intention of even caring about what will happen when I have a kid of my own. For me, that very moment, is where I wanted to be. That moment, I was happy, that moment, I was satisfied...

Its little wonder why this is so. You see, if you have experienced growth through constantly changing yourself, you will almost always find a reason to change something in your life. Your willingness to change yourself a little a day, will overtime be an addiction which you will have no control on. We all know what happens next, don't we?

My friends, this is a violation of nature. You see, although human beings are constantly pushing the boundaries, it is never nature's intention to bring him to the brink of self destruction. For most of us who chasing our illusive dreams, we are willing to sacrifice not just ourselves, but the countless others that look on us for support and inspiration.

We do them a great disservice because, in our efforts to better ourselves for these people, we give them less of ourselves and more of our "other selves". Which comes back as a viscous conflagration of never ending compromises and deals.

There was once a man that said, in order to reach heaven we should be like children! Untouched and unscathed of all the barbarism and atrocity that plagued us since the very first day we decided to challenge our classmate in a graded recitation. Or built ourselves up for that promotion at work.

You see I've realized, that in order for us to be fully contented with what we have and what we are, is that, we have to stop changing ourselves at a certain point in our lives. We are, need I say it? Most conveniently flawed! There is no reason why we should compromise ourselves in the pursuit of this concept of perfection.

If another person dislikes you for being you, then, we should try to find out the reason behind it. If we feel that we will be significantly changing ourselves just to accomplish that person's wishes, then, it's not worth the effort.

Frankly, I am still in the process of changing my train of thought which has been ingrained to me since birth. I do not believe that as individuals, we are tasked to go beyond what we are. If, in God's good graces we should find that these changes are appropriate and achievable, then by all means, do it. If not, then, don't fuss and sulk about "what could have been"...

I remember the words that my mother used to say... "I'll love you for nothing else but just being yourself..."! This my friends are powerful set of words that we can all learn and live by....

I miss my mom, and most of all, I miss my old life....


PS. Image is courtesy of n-design

So where is your iPhone?

Apple's iPhone is almost here!!! This is the raving news I just read from Apple itself. In summary, the iPhone will soon reach the European market by the end of this year. To read the news bit itself you can click here.

Although, the technology behind the iPhone is already available on other mobile devices, it is the consolidation of these features and the form factor that's what's making the difference.

Now, call me vain and a smug, but the iPhone's luscious looks alone will send titillating sensations up one's spine.

It is not the cool features, dazzling graphics and convulsing PIMs options, but the connectivity and feature rich applications of the iPhone that's driving me crazy.

I guess for the most part, its the fact that this piece of hardware has sent the entire mobile phone industry into a whole new level altogether that's making me drivel with anticipation of first contact.

I can rant about the iPhone all night if I want to, but I'll try to bring justice to the masses about the fact that the iPhone in itself is what I'd like to call as the "commercialized-prototype" device. You see, the technology of this caliber shouldn't relent to evil capitalist preying on susceptible naive consumers. It needs to be nurtured and cared for to fully develop its potential.

Give the marketing people a hand on the R&D process and you know they'll mess it up real bad just to make a quick cash. From what I've read, this premature launch has already smeared the iPhone's good name to kingdom come!

I'm listing some of them here for your reference:

• Although the touchscreen offers impressive graphics, the same screen is a handicap when one is using its on-screen QWERTY keyboard. The text input is frustrating because its susceptible to multi-presses and will almost always register inputting errors
• The predictive text system is as good as shit. Most of the time it offered no help at all.
• The mobile OS consumes a chunky 700MB out of the box, leaving the 8GB internal flash on a diet.
• It only offers limited compatibility with MS Exchange services and is also offers shameful support with other POP3 client applications.
• That supposedly cool MP3 collection of yours cannot be used as a ring tone!
• The document manager doesn't support PDF Formats, only native WORD and EXCEL files
• this also means that the browser does not support Adobe Flash plug-ins
• You need to subscribe to periodic updates over the web, no real surprise there folks!
• Doesn't support MMS and voice dialling features
• You cannot Copy-Paste entries, a drag for those quick liner fixes
• Currently doesn't have expansion options for external storage
• Doesn't have video recording out of the box, the shit is an upgrade option!

All in all, the iPhone pretty much tips the scale to the useless-piece-of-crap category. I guess I'm just all for the glory that the iPhone represents. Because ground breaking technologies like this can never be put down. It deserves our respects and admiration - although the same cannot be said to Apple's marketing and sales division.

So, I believe the question is.... Where is your iPhone?

Well, one is on it's way here, with my name on it, thank you very much...

Rolling with the Big Boys.....

Okay, I don't know how else to put this so I'll just say it plainly.

About a month back I was blessed with an opportunity to finally start my hands on Stock Market Investments. I figure, I really didn't have much money anyway so what do I have to loose?

My dad's into this stuff a long way back. He's had his fair share of wins and blunders too. He gave me the inspiration to try my luck at this alternate form of solicited gambling.

Although, I was raised in a devout Catholic household, taking chances and going for broke was tolerated with temperance and of course common sense.

This decision, believe it or not, was not based on my compulsion alone. You see, most of the banking institutions here in the GCC doesn't offer interest returns for you hard earned cash. The shrewed banking system offers promotional rigs and lotto like teasers instead - where they impose this "rigged" prize money draws every month.

So, short to say, with the second baby coming soon, I needed to increase my residual income - and fast! Thus, with a calculated decision, I strapped my stock-investing-jocks and got myself my very own, Investment Portfolio (aka Subscriber Account).

Next, I had to fill-out this one page form for the subscription and allocation application. Thanks to my dad's first hand information on the market, I am around 77.43% (give or take) assured that the investment might yield significantly profitable figures.

This is indeed a brand new world for me. I have to learn the "talk" to walk the walk. Because talking in layman language with brokers and other investors will only give you snob faces or illicit repartee and one-liners followed by high school giggles.

I hope that I will have a positive experience with this one, lest I forever concede to hopelessness and despair. I really, really, really, really need the extra dough!

Anyway, here is the FAQ sheet on the company I'm betting my chips in. And here's their prospectus.

The IPO (Initial Public Offering) concludes September 10, public trading of the stock will probably be a month after. I'll fill you guys in on what will happen. Cross your fingers for me guys!

For all the times that I've been impossible

I stumbled on this one in YouTube... I remember this song used to ply the airwaves non-stop. Way back when I was small, this song use to put me to sleep...

This song was written and arranged by no less than the great Rey Valera, and is now covered by Brownman Revival... Good times....

To my beloved wife, this is for you. For all the times I've been impossible to be with... I know I could be a handful sometimes, but, always remember that there is no one else for me, but you...

Is philanthropy for everybody?

The question whether or not to give back to society is a topic that's been debated upon by countless scholars, theologians, institutions and lay people throughout the history of our country.

On one hand, scholars argue that the very act of generosity is endangering the less fortunate because they gain no advantage in the exchange. The more we give alms to them, the less they would likely participate with their own well being. On another school of thought, they say, that generosity is giving people a chance to live in dignity.

Whatever your side is on this issue, I suggest you find the time to sit yourself down and scrutinize your thoughts some more.

Although, this particular advocacy is a rarity now a days, we can still find one or two people in our circle that genuinely participates on these endeavors. You see, the cruel modern world doesn't give you any reason at all to even think about extending yourself in the service of others. One is simply unable to substantiate one's own means during their entire productive years, ergo, they have a ready made excuse.

In most of today's youth, it is no longer hip to bore nobility and generosity. More and more people have become obsessed with their own successes and feels that they have earned every right not to share what they have.

Another modern blunder that I cannot fully comprehend is the fact that now a days, bigotry and anti socialism reigns free within our society. All of a sudden, the segregation of classes and social standing became sensationalized overnight. It is just no longer fashionable to be identified as a philanthropist.

More often than not, people who engage in social preponderance are branded as old fashion or downright stupid, because earning enough for yourself alone will take you a lifetime to accomplish, so why even bother, so they say.

Again, due to our country's socio-political and economic condition, any charitable act given is interpreted as being tainted with a personal agenda or subscribing to other illicit goals, further adding injury to the already fickle minds of the filipino people.

Financial freedom is everybody's problem. Money is now the driving force in our so-called modern society. Everybody for himself - that's the new anthem!

Whether or not you are included in the lucky 10% of the population, who’s born with a golden spoon, or you belong with the rest of us, everyone needs to do their own part to encourage philanthropy and social responsibility.

We should aspire to better ourselves not because we dream of bigger sums or grander schemes. We should always consider the truth that we are all here for a purpose. That purpose is to share your God given gifts to others.

Admittedly, we are a crying shame compared to what our society was once before, but with everyone pitching their own little share, overtime, that little share will be big enough for you, me, and everyone else. Then, maybe, our country might have a chance.

An "Exchange" of Scenery

A week ago I was happy man, a contented man whose simply enjoying my newly renovated 12 foot by 18 foot room for an office...

Now, that's all changed...

It was a hellish two week ordeal! I mean, just keeping tabs on my situation would would put to shame the processing power of 17-Tandem Xeon Quad-Core Processors, 4 x 36MB Cache Memory with 2500MHz Front Side Bus.

I think I'm developing a severe anxiety complex with Microsoft's Exchange Server 2003 Enterprise Build!!! The damn thing requires a nose-bleed-inducing amount of pre-deployment tweaking for a relatively simple forest with VPN Encapsulation!!!

I mean I've already tried several approach to go around the Domain Controller element that I'm starting to seriously doubt why I even deserve to live! You see, although the company's network setup is relatively simple, the encapsulation and transport methods for the Dynamic IP VPN networking requires the dexterity and patience of a rocket scientist on Meth!

Running out of time, I decided Microsoft's Exchange Server is not worth the pain and suffering... It became apparent too that if I push for Exchange, I'm gonna be admitted to an asylum before the month is over!

I was seriously contemplating skipping town and maybe even change my name to some exotic foreign sounding one, start a career in showbiz and never touch another computer for the rest of my life!!!

Then, as if by mysterious force, it just came to me, I remembered, I was keeping around a simple MX based software which doesn't care jack shit about tunneling protocol conflicts or DC configurations...

I quiver at the idea that I've finally found the answer!!!

The solution was Alt-N's MDeamon Pro 8.1.3 build!!!! God bless FOSS in all it's superficial glory!!!

I just gotta raise my worn out hat to Alt-N for saving my sanity from this cruel, capitalist software conglomerate giant, whom shall remain nameless (Clue: Your probably using their Operating System right now)....

You guys are the best! If I have a million bucks to invest, I'd throw you guys half... errr, a quarter of it... Sure, nobody really knows who the hell you guys are... And maybe nobody really care, but hey.... you save me years of therapy.... and I applaud you guys hereafter....

If you ever need my help... just come out and ask me for it.... without hesitation, you'll have it...

Here's a link to MDaemon FAQ for you reference... If you need any help with your MDaemon, you can hit me up or drop me a line (+968 99454779) anytime!!!



Note: I am not in any way related or connected to Alt-N Incorporated. I have received no compensation in any form for my opinions as expressed. I only hope that Alt-N will have the conscience to offer illicit contributions or ramification for freelancers like me who are patronizing and promoting their products such as, but not limited to the matter mentioned herewith.