I'd rather be blogging....

while most of the social networking  on the web is down within the middle east region...i'd rather be updating my blog site. i really don't know why it happens on holidays wherein this is the the best time to share our moments during the holidays.in a few hours we'll be saying goodbye to year 2009...and welcome the 2010! just want to live one day at a time and be thankful to God for all the blessings and guidance throughout the year. As we all knew that 2009 was the most challenging years wherein we witness the impact of the global crisis and the "swine flu" pandemic and also the never ending conflict in the middle east. with the crisis we were able to survive together with my family and hopefully things would get better soon. Thanks God for all the blessings!

down with flu...

One day after  Christmas i got a flu. yesterday I was sent home by my Director to take a rest. That was a relief for me ,now I'm having a day-off to rest. Here I am at home with my wife watching movies together "the Blind Side". Hopefully be feeli'n better by tommorow New Year's eve  and welcome the new year with a big bang! Thanks God for another year and looking forward for another great year in spite of the global crisis. Sabi nga kapag  sa aming mga OFW "sanay na sa krisis"

Keeping Christmas

Henry Van Dyke

---

There is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day, and that is, keeping Christmas.
Are you willing...

• to forget what you have done for other people, and to remember what other people have done for you;
  
• to ignore what the world owes you, and to think what you owe the world;
  
• to put your rights in the background, and your duties in the middle distance, and your chances to do a little more than your duty in the foreground;
  
• to see that men and women are just as real as you are, and try to look behind their faces to their hearts, hungry for joy;
  
• to own up to the fact that probably the only good reason for your existence is not what you are going to get out of life, but what you are going to give to life;
  
• to close your book of complaints against the management of the universe, and look around you for a place where you can sow a few seeds of happiness.
  

Are you willing to do these things even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas.
Are you willing...

• to stoop down and consider the needs and desires of little children;
  
• to remember the weakness and loneliness of people growing old;
  
• to stop asking how much your friends love you, and ask yourself whether you love them enough;
  
• to bear in mind the things that other people have to bear in their hearts;
  
• to try to understand what those who live in the same home with you really want, without waiting for them to tell you;
  
• to trim your lamp so that it will give more light and less smoke, and to carry it in front so that your shadow will fall behind you;
  
• to make a grave for your ugly thoughts, and a garden for your kindly feelings, with the gate open—
  

Are you willing to do these things, even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas.Are you willing...

• to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world—
  
• stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death—
  
• and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love?
  

Then you can keep Christmas.
And if you can keep it for a day, why not always?
But you can never keep it alone.

Once upon a rain in Al-ain....UAE

T-shirt painting naman!

here's for Christmas.....noche buena ! arroz caldo ka na mamaya!

Check this out ... nice commercials you never had the chance to watch it! (grab from the web)

Funny, Stupid, and Banned Commercials
Funny, Stupid, and Banned Commercials Hilarious commercials! Some are foreign, some are banned, all are extremely funny. JavaScript is...

faltu.tv

Kite flying

I have a good weekend with my son. As the weather cools down, an outdoor fun is great so I went out kite flying with my son . It was Nathan's first time to fly a  kite which he bought at a nearby store from his earnings in his little froggy bank.
I can feel his excitement. It was like a flashback of my younger days when my father made a kite for me and went outdoor to fly.

Living (grab from the web)

'Live with intention.
Walk to the edge.
Listen hard.
Practice wellness.
Laugh.
Choose with no regret.
Continue to learn.
Appreciate your friends.
Do what you love.
Live as if this is all there is.'

-mary anne radmacher

Spreading Islam thru violence is not the answer.

I just finished reading an article in a gulf newspaper where a girls school in Pakistan was blown up by militants. I just wonder what are they fighting for. It's a pure deprivation of an individual the right to live freely irregardless of culture and belief. This is pure ingorance of faith and act of terrorism. Anyway, they always have somebody to blame on.. "blame it on the Jews! the west" but in reality its a pure hatred. It has nothing to do with religion at all. I can't imagine shouting the name of God while beheading an individual. Stupid as I would say. I respect Islam, the bad thing is some people belong to this faith abused it to satisfy there own desires. In reality they commit more atrocities to there fellows. They create confusion and divisiveness and propagate hatred. I beilieve that no matter what religion you are into, what matters most is how live your life in relationship with God. No one is perfect but there is always room for a change.Enough of killings and terrorism, there are more problems to attend to. So many lives are wasted everyday without any valid reason.
Dear God "give peace on a restless world"

I took this photo right in front of our window in the office. It was almost 6pm when one of my office mate ask me to look at something amazing outside...as i peek thru the window i was stunned with what i saw. what i did was, i immediately grab my camera phone and took shots as i was really amazed with what i saw. it was like an orange ball of fire that explodes beyond....as if like a nuclear bomb has been detonated...you just imagined if this is for real i'd probably been turned into ash the moment it touched down. anyway, the good thing is i have something fantastic to share with...hope you like it folks!

Ang tunay na pakikibaka

Ang tunay na pakikibaka

Likha at titik ni Ka Noel Malicdem

Lumipas na naman ang isang gabi

Sa bukang liwayway kailangan nang lumakbay

Upang makibaka muli sa kanayunan

Maibahagi tunay na kapayapaan.

Di ko naman masasabi na ito’y himagsikan

O isang digmaan sa pamahalaan

Itinutuwid lang ang isang kamalian

At mamulat sa tunay na kalagayan.

Bakit daw walang kapayapaan

Sa lugar na aking sinilangan

Lumaki na ako wala pa ring katahimikan

Namulat na kami ito ang aming kapalaran.

                                   

Sa bawat pook na aking madadatnan

Dama ko ang hirap ng kanilang kalagayan

Ang tumulong para sa kanilang kaunlaran

Hindi ang umasa sa malayong pamahalaan.

Ang pagparito’y di naman pakikidigma

Kundi ang ibahagi na ma’y nagmamahal sa kanila

Hindi armas para takutin sila

Ipakita na may nagmamalasakit sa kalagayan nila.

Huwag sana masamain aking pakikibaka

Dahil ang hangad ko’y tunay na demokrasya

Hindi nang iilan at ang mangmang ang sinasamantala

Dito sa kanayunan nagsisimula ang tunay na buhay mapayapa.

Ang tunay na pakikabaka hindi sa kalye nakikita

Kundi sa kanayunan suriin ang tunay na problema

Magawan ng paraan para matulungan sila

Ang pag-unlad para sa buhay na mapayapa.

Huwag sana isipin ako’y isang aktivista

O isang rebeldeng may simpatiya sa komunista

Ang hangad ko lang maibahagi sa kapwa

Kapayapaan sa kanayunan maiwasan ang maling pakikibaka.

DEKADA Titik at likha – Noel Malicdem

Dekada ‘60

Isang pangulo ang niluklok ng masa

Dahil sa galing tao’y napaniwala

Sa pag-aakalang kaunlaran isusulong niya

Bagong lipunan ang sigaw ng pamahalaan niya

Dekada ‘70

Maraming pag-aaklas upang patalsikin siya

Pinadukot lahat ang mga kalaban sa politika

Pati Martial Law ideniklara

Dahil may banta daw ang bansa sa komunista.

Dekada ‘80

Lumala ang kahirapan bagsak ang ekonomiya

Di maitago lubog na sa utang ang bansa

Nag-snap election para manatili siya

Di nagtagal pinatalsik siya ng isang kudeta.

Dekada ‘90

Nakamtam daw tunay na demokrasya

Di naman nagbago pamumuhay ng masa

Wala pa ring katahimikan tuloy pa rin ang giyera

Anay ng lipunan gamit ang pulitika.

Bagong simula . . .

Lumipas na ang maraming dekada

Halos paulit-ulit lang mga pangyayari sa bansa

Hangga’t walang tunay na pagkakaisa

Juan dela cruz puro na lang sa umpisa.

Ngayong dekada . . .

Isulong na ang tunay na demokrasya

Hangarin ay pagbabago tunay na pagkakaisa

Upang ang bansa’y mailayo sa diktaturya

Kaunlaran at kapayapaan sa susunod na dekada.

Sa susunod na dekada . . .

Sana mayroong ng reporma

Disiplina at hindi panlilinlang sa kapwa

Sa kanayunan wala na ang maling pakikibaka

Unawaan sa paniniwala para sa matahimik na bansa.

Gising na Bayan ko ! -pananaw ng isang OFW ni Ka Noel Malicdem

Gising na Bayan ko !

Wala na akong narinig na magandang balita

Mula nang ako’y umalis at mangibang bansa

Sa bayang puros na lang iringan ang ginagawa

Walang pakialam sa naghihirap na masa

Lahat na lang katiwalian ang nakikita

Ayaw naman tumulong para sa reporma

Kundi ang ipunin mamamayang bulag sa nakikita

Gamit ang simbahan kasama mga artista

Wala raw bisa ang pamamahala

Sa halalang pakapalan ng mukha sa politika

Mailuklok lang ang taong pag-asa raw ng masa

Sa bansang pabalik na naman sa diktaturya

Kailan ko kaya makikita ang tunay na demokrasya

Ang malaya kong magisnan tunay na pag-asa

Malayo sa hirap may buhay na maginhawa

Sa kapaligirang tahimik tunay na nagkakaisa

Sadya nga bang ganito kapalaran ng bayan ko

Paulit-ulit na lang na kasaysayan ang nasasaksihan ko

Sana gumising na at huwag magpaloko

Tunay na kalayaan sa lahat ng Pilipino!

ritmo ng disyerto- KSA

sa saudi may bayani

likha at titik na ka noel malicdem

jeddah, KSA

magagarang kotse,maluluwang na daan

malawak na karagatan,bakod naman nakaharang

maaayos na tahanan di mo naman masilayan

pati bintana ginawa pang may silipan.

ibong uwak nagliliparan

nagkalat sa buong kapaligiran

agawan sa pagkaing itinapon sa daan

di alintana masagasaan ng sasakyan.

pilit man na ako'y bigyan ng kasayahan

di ko magawa dahil ako'y napipilitan

iba pa rin ang bansang iniwan

kahit walang pera ligaya naman mararamdaman.

ang pagparito'y di ko pinagsisihan

upang ang hirap sa abroad masubukan

ipaalam sa bansang iniwan

bayani kami para sa kaunlaran.

K.S.A. - kwentong site sa arabia

K.S.A. - kwentong site sa  Saudi Arabia 

(isang tulang aking isinatitik habang ako'y nasa sa site at ibahagi ang aming karanasan bilang isang OFW)                                                                    

                                                                       

pagbaba ko pa lang ng sasakyan mga tao akin nang nasisilayan                         

pokpok ng martilyo, halo ng semento sa may daan                                                                    

sari-saring lahi, ibat-ibang salita mapapakinggan                                                            

simula na naman trabaho sa aking pinapasukan.                                                            

                                                                       

pangkaraniwan na sa akin mga sigawan                                                            

mga nakasimangot at bating "alaiko musalam"                                                               

muslim at kristiyano wala akong pakialam

trabaho'y magampanan walang personalan.

pagdating ng tanghalian sama-sama kami sa kainan

manok at kanin na ulam siya naming pinagsasaluhan

konting kwentuhan pagod lang ay di maramdaman

panandaliang tulog dagdag lakas sa aming katawan.

di mo bakas sa kanila pagod na nadarama

kailangan gawin dahil ito ang utos sa kanila

minsan napipilitan daanin na lang sa konting patawa

para maiwasan di pagkakaunawaan sa isa't-isa.

sa araw-araw na sila'y aking nakakasalamuha

marami akong napuna sa buhay nilang tinatamasa

sa hirap at pagod kapalit ng konting kita

kasama pa ang lungkot malayo sa pamilya.                               

                                   

sa paglipas ng taon marami akong natutunan                             

sa mga taong nakasama at hirap na nasaksihan                         

mapalad daw ako trabaho nila'y di ko nasubukan                                 

di lang nila alam mas mahirap aking ginagampanan.                               

                                   

tingin ko sa kanila ay di naman naiiba                            

nagkataon lang sa trabaho kami ay magkaiba                            

sa mabuting pakikisama kami ay nagkakakilala                         

maging bahagi ng buhay, alaala ng saudi arabia.

isang tula alay sa aking Ama

alaala ni papa 

(isang tula sa aking yumaong Ama)  

mula pagkabata kasa-kasama ko na siya                                              

laruang saranggola siya ang gumagawa                                     

pati sa gupit halos kami'y magkapareha                                    

sa tuwing darating may pasalubong na dala.                                          

                                               

pinalaki kami tahimik at maayos na pamilya                                          

sa munting bahay na puno ng saya                                            

di magawang magalit kahit inis na siya                                       

lalo na kay mama pag kami'y pinapagalitan na.                                            

                                               

lumipas ang panahon kami'y malaki na                                      

siya namang paghina ng aming papa                                          

sakit na nararamdaman ayaw ipadama                                      

di namin alam siya pala ay malala na.                                        

                                               

buong pamilya lungkot ang nadama                                          

dahil alam naming iiwan na kami ng aking ama                                      

lalo na ako na di ko man lang naipakita                                     

pagmamahal at pag-aaruga noong siya'y malakas pa.                                        

                                               

pumanaw man ang aking ama                                       

mabuting alaala iniwan sa aming pamilya                                               

tapat na ama mabuti sa mga anak niya                                      

di ko man lang nasabi bilib ako sa kanya.                                             

                                               

umiiyak ako tuwing naalala ko siya                                           

di ko man lang naibahagi tagumpay na nadarama                                              

isang ama na kapiling mo sa hirap at ginhawa                                        

di mo bakas ang hirap mabuhay lang ang pamilya.                                                         

                                                           

sa buhay ko malaking bahagi siya                                                         

lahat na tagumpay alay ko sa kanya                                                      

alam kong kapiling na niya ang may likha                                                          

ipinagdarasal na patnubayan naiwang pamilya.                                                  

                                                           

maraming salamat sa iyo aking ama                                                      

sa magandang aral at buhay na pakumbaba                                                      

sa tamang landas sana ay matularan ka                                                 

sa aming buhay laging kapiling ka.                                

Just Be! (grab from the net)

There is much you can know through silence. There is much you can learn by quieting your thoughts for a while.
There's no need to attempt to stop those thoughts from coming. Simply choose not to hold on to them, and soon they will recede from you on their own.

Make the choice to disconnect yourself for a time from your judgments and analyses. Allow yourself to simply be.

Take in the beauty of life without feeling the need to do anything about it. Know fully the extraordinary experience of being alive, aware, and accepting of all the goodness that is there to fill you.

Put a little distance between yourself and the confusion. dilemmas and anxieties that so often insist on grabbing your attention. Give yourself the opportunity to remember who you truly are.

Spend some time enjoying the quiet and profound beauty of being alive. It will fill you with a powerful energy that can add value to all you do.

An Amazing Love Story (grab from the net)

He met her on a party. She was so outstanding, many guys chasing after her, while he so normal, nobody paid attention to him.

At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised, but due to being polite, she promised. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, she thought, please, let me go home.... suddenly he asked the waiter.

"would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee."

Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red, but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it.

She asked him curiously; why you have this hobby? He replied: "when I was a little boy, I was living near the sea, I like playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my
hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who are still living there". While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched .

That's his true feeling, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can tell out his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has responsibility of home.

Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family. That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning
of their story.

They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thanks to his salty coffee!

Then the story was just like every beautiful love story , the princess married to the prince, then they were living the happy life... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee e, as she knew that's the way he liked it.

After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said: "My dearest, please forgive me, forgive my whole life lie. This was the only lie I said to you---the salty coffee.

Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead.I never thought that could be the start of our communication! I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything..

Now I'm dying, I afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth: I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste.. But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life!

Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you.

Having you with me is my biggest happiness for my whole life. If
I can live for the second time, still want to know you and have you for my whole life,even though I have to drink the salty coffee again".

Her tears made the letter totally wet.Someday, someone asked her: what's the taste of salty coffee?

It's sweet. She replied.

Love is not 2 forget but 2 forgive, not 2 c but 2 understand, not 2 hear but 2 listen, not 2 let go but 2 HOLD ON !!!!

Don't ever leave the one you love for the one you like, because the one you like will leave you for the one they love.

Persistency - Element In Reality (grab from the net)

One of the keys to being successful in anything you do is persistence. Lets clarify the word 'persistence' :- It is ability to be persist on instances. And one of key element in this instances is your main Objective in life.

Persistence is success formula made up form the grouping of: confidence+ sustainability +Will power + endurance + self-esteem +patience & optimism.

Take an instance of building a muscle. If you have never exercised before, the first time you go to a gym, chances are you will not be able to bench press 100 lbs. However, if you are persistent, and you consistently go back to the gym, you will find yourself getting stronger and closer to your goal / objective with each and every visit.

It signifies that once you have realized & determined exactly what it is you want to achieve, you must take Significant & considerate action using good plan on a consistent, persistent basis in direction to succeed.

And on success path, Obstacles are the natural roadblocks, our job is to be persistent and work through those obstacles. If you find little or no obstacles along the way, chances are you are not really challenging yourself coz person realizes his potential when he is on peak of his performance & ability.

If you see any successful person, you will learn that the vast majority of them have had more 'failures' than they have had 'successes'. This is because successful people are persistent; the more they stumble and fall, the more they get right back up and get going again. For example, India got freedom because of the persistence & patience of great revolutionaries on their objective to make India free.

Just spend some time to learn persistency form others experiences, OBSERVE ANTS, funny isn't it; factual it is. They are much smaller than us, and teaches us Unity ? Discipline ? Team work -Hard work ? Persistency & killer instinct to achieve their goal.

Keep in mind that you must constantly reevaluate your circumstances and the approach you are using to reach your goal. There is no sense in being persistent at something that you are doing incorrectly, its self-deceit! At times you have to modify, multiply & magnify your approach along the way. Every time you do something you learn from it, and therefore find a better way to do it.

What Life is All About? (grab from the net)

When we look at lives in any places in this world, we may come to the similar red line. Those lives consist of phases that take living creature from a step to a further one. Be it human or plants or animals, their lives are all the same. It's a growth from youth to old then die.
As for human life, we grow from infants to a cute little baby, from teenager to adult and then old. In between the phases we are expected to live the life at the fullest. In other words, we spend the days with expectation of having improvement and development.
We learn, and are taught to learn every single step so that we become better and better. When things go on as we want them to be, we would feel content and happy. Knowing that we have achieved something and that we move on to a better situation. But sometimes, we have to deal with something that we wouldn't want nor expect. Something that makes us down and sad. When such thing happens, we usually come to an unpleasant situation that often makes us not knowing what to do.
However, do we really ever notice that everything happens is only a scene that put us on a temporary condition?
Just picture this life as a journey?
We understand that every trip has a final destination which takes us to a journey that passes many scenes of places. Suppose we are going to Rome from London by car. When we go through the way we may find that not all the road is good, and not all places we go by has beautiful view. Not to mention that we may get stuck in a traffic jam somewhere along the way. But of course we may find beautiful places that tempt us to stop by. All the things we see and find all through the way can give effect to our trip duration. They can enhance the speed, delay or even cancel the trip. It depends on us. Are we going to let ourselves get carried away by the temptation or get defeated by the hardship we find that we forget our final destination? Will we also let the obstacles take our time and focus that they cause delay to our trip?
Only WE know the answer, for only WE know the destination.
Therefore, don't let good things that happen in our lives makes us blind to move on. Always be alert that things change. Get anticipated for the changes.
But if we face bad scenes, don't let ourselves down for too long. Raise head up. See far ahead. Think of the final goal so that we can pull ourselves together to deal with the situation. Keep in mind that it was just one of the parts we surely go by.
So when we are fully aware that any kind of things may happen, we'll have more self-control and we know that those things are lessons for us to be better. Coz even when we get struck in a hindrance, we'll know that it was only something that makes ourselves improved. For the way we handle the situation will teach us to be more creative in thinking.
In other words, self-improvement can be gained either through happiness or sadness, through good or bad times, through ease or hardship. The main thing is, everything happens for a reason?..a reason for our own goodness.
So, let's keep on moving? Go through all the way until we reach our own destination.

THE GREATEST ADVICE (Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life)

Don't date because you are desperate.
Don't marry because you are miserable.
Don't have kids because you think your genes are superior.
Don't philander because you think you are irresistible.
Don't associate with people you can't trust.
Don't cheat. Don't lie. Don't pretend.
Don't dictate because you are smarter.
Don't demand because you are stronger.
Don't sleep around because you think you are old enough & know better.
Don't hurt your kids because loving them is harder.
Don't sell yourself, your family, or your ideals.
Don't stagnate!
Don't regress.
Don't live in the past. Time can't bring anything or anyone back.
Don't put your life on hold for possibly Mr. Right.
Don't throw your life away on absolutely Mr. Wrong because your
biological clock is ticking.
Learn a new skill.
Find a new friend.
Start a new career.
Sometimes, there is no race to be won, only a price to be paid for some of life's more hasty decisions.
To terminate your loneliness, reach out to the homeless.
To feed your nurturing instincts, care for the needy.
To fulfill your parenting fantasies, get a puppy.
Don't bring another life into this world for all the wrong reasons.
To make yourself happy, pursue your passions & be the best of what you can be.
Simplify your life. Take away the clutter.
Get rid of destructive elements: abusive friends, nasty habits, and
dangerous liaisons.
Don't abandon your responsibilities but don't overdose on duty.
Don't live life recklessly without thought and feeling for your family.
Be true to yourself.
Don't commit when you are not ready.
Don't keep others waiting needlessly.
Go on that trip. Don't postpone it.
Say those words. Don't let the moment pass.
Do what you have to, even at society's scorn.
Write poetry.
Love Deeply.
Walk barefoot.
Dance with wild abandon.
Cry at the movies.
Take care of yourself. Don't wait for someone to take care of you.
You light up your life.
You drive yourself to your destination.
No one completes you - except YOU.
It isn't true that life does not get easier with age.
It only gets more challenging.
Don't be afraid. Don't lose your capacity to love.
Pursue your passions.
Live your dreams.
Don't lose faith in God.
Don't grow old. Just grow YOU!
When you give someone your time, you are giving them a portion of your life that you'll never get back.
Your time is your life. That is why the greatest gift you can give to
someone is your time.
Relationships take time and effort, and the best way to spell love is
T-I-M-E because the essence of love is not what we think or do or provide for others, but how much we give of ourselves
God is good all the time!

A picture will do... in a few days from now F1 grand prix will

debu in Abu Dhabi ,UAE. I know i can't afford to have a ticket for

this event so might as well grab the oppurtunity for a free picture

courtesy of Etihad Airways...so the thrill will always be there! broooom! 

how time flies...

How time flies talaga halos di ko na namalayan uwian na naman pala at heto nasa bahay ako kaagad at tapos ng magdinner. Napakabilis talaga ng araw parang kailan lang happy new year at eto na ulit ilang buwan na lang new na ulit. Salamat kay Lord at hindi tayo pinapabayaan kahit sa ganitong situation kung saan may global crisis at sakuna pa sa Pilipinas. Lakas ng loob at dasal na lang and life has to move on no matter what!

Dubai Desert Safari

really good fun especially the dune bashing and the weather at night time is totally extreme.

Dune bashing ride was wild and exciting. The sand boarding and camel rides were something to try, but not spectacular. I was even given the chance to dance with the belly dancer.Truly it was a fantastic experience!