Archive for December, 2007

Time to Reflect

Published at December 31, 2007 in Attitude and Success. 10 Comments

Usually, when the day is over, I reflect on what I have accomplished and experienced. I do the same thing when the year is turning.

Did I achieve what I had planned for the year? Did I make an effort to improve myself in a moral, professional, social, or personal aspect? Am I the same person that I was same time last year?

Happy New Year Welcome 2008

In just a few minutes, a new beginning will be dawning. Two kind of goals will be listed: the new ones (fresh, unattempted goals) and the old (the undone goals). Between the two, which list of yours do you think will be longer?

As I stretch my reflection 2 years back, the list of old goals gets longer. 3 years back, 4 years, it goes on and on.

I remember 5-6 years ago, when I was still 25-26 years old, I had envisioned myself having my own business by the age of 30. I shared this dream with my friends back in the Philippines.

Obviously, it didn’t happen. I moved here to New Jersey and everything changed. 5 years later, certain priorities had moved up the list and my standard for success became different.

Now at 31, I still plan to be my own boss 6 years from now. And while working for it to materialize, this is how I am going to play the waiting game.

Currently, my bestfriend is an on-the-rise manager; another friend of mine has started his own business; and my college mates have their own success stories. Viewing my life from the outside, some people might consider me a failure compared to them.

I’m not. I learned that comparing yourself to others will only make you unhappy, and you end up trying hard to do things that are not applicable to you, or worse, beyond your capabilities. And that will only lead to frustrations.

Golden opportunities have also been given to me and i grabbed most of them. One of which enabled me to be more socially aware, both online and in the physical world.

In the last third of the year, I learned to blog properly via planetsaedel (my previous blogs that started way back in 2003, were more of personal diaries that nobody read and were left to flounder), and this site has helped me expressed my thoughts, opinion, observations, and insights with others.

I have learned to share things about me comfortably.

Below are some of the simple goals I want to accomplish in the next 12 months. Some of these, I will explain in details as the days pass by; and some of the bigger goals, I will share in due time:

  • monetize via Paid Reviews to support this blog and experiment on various niche blogs.
  • learn how to dance
  • smile confidently.

All things considered, I can honestly say I’m a better person, but at the same time, I don’t want to be complacent with my personal achievements. I still want to improve. How about you?

Ask yourself: Am I better person now? My answer is: You’ll never be, unless you start spending some time to reflect on your personal life and find your greatest strength.

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All relevant links in this post are my original articles. I encourage you to click and read them if you’ve missed them before. Happy New Year to all!

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10 Commonly Used Net Lingos To Improve Your Internet Experience

Published at December 27, 2007 in Blogs and Blogging, Observations and Opinions and Something Fun. 16 Comments

Internet ChatWhenever I read an interesting article that has a lively discussion, I sometimes feel the urge to join in and contribute. I want to share what I know.

However, when I encounter a foreign word or a Net Lingo, I lose momentum because I still have to research its definition if I can’t figure out what it means in a sentence.

It’s frustrating sometimes when a time-sensitive discussion goes hot and I want to reply to some of the comments. Looking up the words can be a waste of time. How I wished I knew those words at the start because, before I can respond after research, somebody has already “stolen” or written my argument.

That’s the reason why I am going to share with you my top 10 popular internet lingos to help you improve your online surfing experience:

Alphabetically arranged:

• FTW – For The Win – Commonly used in sports forum, particularly in sports game updates where members talk about the player who is taking the buzzer-beating shot for the win.

• LMAO – Laughing My Arse Out – Used by people when they read something real funny. LMAO has replaced the old LOL (Laughing Out Loud) and ROTFL (Rolling on the floor laughing). Two things I noticed about LMAO. 1.) It is seldom used by women. 2.) It is frequently used by a top SEO master Vic Franqui. For SEO ranking purposes? I am not sure. :P

• QFT – Quoted For Truth – I personally like this one. Short but powerful. It simply means a vote of approval when a person reads something honest and truthful and he can’t pass up the chance to quote the author.

• SFW / NSFW – Safe For Work / Not Safe For Work – These terms are often suffixed after a topic title to forewarn a reader that he is about to view a post that contains graphic pictures/videos and his work might be at stake if he tries to view it. By the way, shouldn’t you be working instead of watching videos? :P

• WTH – What The Heck – This is usually followed by a question mark, to express utmost disbelief. “Heck” can be substituted by another “H” word unpleasant to Christian ears. WTH is a cousin of a stronger term WTF which is normally the choice expression of a foul-mouthed person.

Honorable Mentions

I separated the next 5 because their definitions are pretty much self-explanatory. All of them are used in chats, text messages, discussion boards and forum:

• AFAIK – As Far As I Know.
• IDK – I Don’t Know.
• IIRC – If I Recall Correctly
• IMO / IMHO – In My Opinion / In My Humble Opinion.
• OTOH – On The Other Hand

IN CLOSING

Learning new things is a challenge. If you are a member of a forum, don’t be afraid to ask. Most of the time, members are more than willing to help you out. But if you are too embarrassed, then make sure to bookmark this page and share it with others who are afraid to be branded as “newbie”.

Do you have a top 5 or top 10 Net Lingos? If you still have doubts on certain net lingos, feel free to come back and post them here.

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How To Spend Christmas and Holiday Vacation Wisely

Published at December 24, 2007 in Attitude, Observations and Opinions and Simple Tips and How-To. 4 Comments

Season's GreetingsI have two weeks of vacation to serve as a stress-reliever for a tough teaching job. I want to enjoy every minute of it and at the same time, I want to have a quality vacation that will improve my well-being.

Below is a plan I have developed to accomplish my goal for the remaining days of the year:

1. Spend Quality Time With Family – Christmas, like what Jeni has commented in my previous post, is a time for togetherness. It is meant for family traditions. While my family is back in the Philippines celebrating a normal Filipino Christmas, my father and I plan to attend the midnight mass on Christmas Eve and then watch NBA games on the 25th here in our apartment in Jersey City.

2. Open Gifts Right Away – It may sound unreal, but I discovered that some of the presents I received from last year remained unopened for 365 days. It’s funny, but at the same time, I felt upset for being too lazy sorting them out. Some of the items could have been useful to me the past year. The gifts include: candies and chocolates, neckties, shirt, and other things. Therefore, my advice for you is to not procrastinate: open the boxes and bags on Christmas Day and sort them out right away. Don’t let the chocolates grow some hair!

3. Learn New Things – I am a directionally-challenged person: it would take me several trips to a destination before I can master the roads. That is why I appreciated receiving a Global Positioning System (GPS) device. It is a gadget that guides drivers in directions via satellite. This is the first time I’m using one so I’m more than willing to spend time learning and testing it by driving around the community using my old Honda.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

4. Rest and Relax – Are you going out with some friends to watch AVP (Alien Vs Predator)? Do you prefer to sleep or read a book? Perhaps listen to iPod and download music from iTunes? Whatever it is that you plan to do for relaxing, then just do it. The essence of vacation is to rest, recharge, and then….

5. Prepare for the Days Ahead – Chance favors a prepared mind. My preparation before school reopens on January 2nd, includes: tidying up my room, doing the laundry, and doing some work that I brought home. I want to come back looking fresh without any vacation hangover. I want to stand tall so others will see me ready to work, ready for the new year.

I hope you find these tips useful. If you have other tips and recommendations, feel free to leave a comment below.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all PlanetSaedel.com Readers! (Also, Happy Birthday to my father!)

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Christmas Isn’t All About Material Things

Published at December 21, 2007 in Observations and Opinions, Personal and School/Teaching. 13 Comments

Santa Claus, True Meaning of ChristmasI have read a few articles saying that kids of today are not getting the real meaning of Christmas — that they only care about material things and Saint Nicholas, or more popularly known as Santa Claus. I was not convinced.

So, Tuesday morning, during my computer class, I asked my grade 2 students to write in their notebook what Christmas means to them. I required them at least 2 sentences.

When they were done, I collected and read all the 25 notebooks. I was surprised by their answers: none of them wrote about Santa Claus. Zero.

As a matter of fact, Baby Jesus was their main answer, followed by these keywords: Love, Sharing, Caring, Family. (in random order)

Sure there are a few students who also answered “time for fun“, “getting presents” and the like. That’s part of the tradition.

These kids are 7ish-8ish years old. They are at the tender age of innocence and will believe almost anything a trustworthy adult would say. So I wondered: How come Santa Claus was left off? Do they “already” have an idea who Santa Claus really is?

My curiosity didn’t end there. The following day, I had the 1st graders, so I took the chance and interviewed random students by asking the same question: “What does Christmas mean to you?”

The answers were basically the same as the previous grade. This time, however, a couple of students finally mentioned the name Santa Claus. Still, it’s just a blip on the radar. And I felt good they are not materially obsessed.

I just had to laugh at some articles that blame the changing times if kids associate Christmas with material things. The point is, we want kids to realize the true meaning of Christmas, but it is us – the grown-ups – who color Christmas with money and attach Santa Claus to material things. The kids are just the reflection of us.

And then we write or talk about how kids today don’t get it.

Maybe we need to look at ourselves at the mirror and ask why.

Bring the kids to church; learn who Saint Nicholas really is and teach the kids why he – as Santa Claus – is a great symbol for this season; give something to the less fortunate without asking for return. These are some of the practical things we can do to teach them the real meaning of Christmas.

I watched my students play in the computer. And I thought: Christmas spirit isn’t really lost yet, but it depends on me and you.

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Write In Your Best Condition

Published at December 14, 2007 in Blogs and Blogging and Observations and Opinions. 8 Comments

I got home last night with one thing in my mind: to write. Having been fully immersed in work the entire week, I was happy that I could finally be able to set free the overflowing ideas in my mind. I was back in my sanctuary. So, I began typing on the keyboard.

Unfortunately, the physical exhaustion has affected my writing capabilities.

My fingers were stuck at the home keys, my eyes began closing, my head started dropping. I tried to fight it, but failed. I arrived at a conclusion: I was physically tired.

And there was no sense of forcing something that has no power.

Strength

So I asked myself: should I continue just for the sake of writing despite my temporary incapability? If so, shouldn’t I be worried that I might sabotage my post?

My main objectives for having a blog are 1.) to express myself, and 2.) share my thoughts, opinions, and observations with others. Writing unsatisfactorily would be a shame and a disrespect to myself and to my readers.

With that in mind, I made a decision: I turned the machine off, took a break and then slept.

Now – fresh and recharged – I am reminded of basketball players when they are not healthy. Basketball is a physical game, and an injured player is not allowed to play until he is 100% healthy or cleared by the team doctor (some exceptions apply).

The risk of aggravating the injury is simply too high if a player forces the issue. Besides, will he be able to give something of significance given his limitations?

Same goes with writers and bloggers.

A writer should also rest if he needs to, because just like athletes, he should be in his excellent physical condition to bring out the best in him.

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