Globe (in)Visibility

South East Asia, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

[Please pardon the incoherence of this post, this is a rant and I just feel obligated to warn those who might fall victim to this Globe Visibility folly. ]

Globe Visibility sucks, period! (or should I say, exclamation point.)

To anyone out there planning to subscribe to Globe's mobile broadband service, be it a prepaid or a postpaid plan, I'm telling you now, forget it!

The service isn't worth it at all. Now see, the real problem lies not on finding a strong signal nor is it on connecting to the network (believe it or not, this thing connects to the network in a jiffy. Hence your meter also begins in a jiffy, uh-huh) it's not about the speed even! It's about sustaining the download line, making sure that the flow of data is sturdy and constant. Globe Visibility has this problem and it's a miserable problem!

To give you an idea, the service comes with a software that allows you to configure the type of connection you prefer, EDGE, GPRS, or HSDPA/3G. There's also an internet odometer of sorts that indicates the flow of data being processed through the connection, thus you are able to monitor if the computer is successfully downloading/uploading data so you'd know how soon you can watch that popular video on YouTube or if the urgent email will be sent to your boss on time. 90% of the time, despite of the strong network signal also indicated, the download/upload meter reads 0.00KB sent/received. That means no YouTube for you, no email sent either. I know that the modem used for HSDPA/3G internet connections are based on radio waves and in itself isn't that reliable for networking purposes and that there's a whole bunch of other factors to consider that may contribute to this crap, but if it happens all the time, ALL the time, then something really has to give and I don't care if the problem lies with my computer or with Globe's infrastructure, it still is a problem! I think I should sue... hmmmm... Anyway, what bothers me really is the value I get in return for this product. For the price of the modem at P2,500, plus the rate of the service at P20 per hour (P5 per 15minutes,) it's just not worth it.

Say I'm an average internet user who spends 2.5 hours of surfing per day. P50 times 30days equals P1,500/month, that's the price of a decent Cable or DSL connection. Why am I wasting so much money on such a crappy connection??? This doesn't even include the 30minutes I have to wait to establish a download line, nor the hundreds of times I hit the refresh button whenever the dreaded "This page cannot be displayed..." message shows up, argghh!!! Beats me...

I have had the service for close to a month now, and Lord knows how much of my precious time has been wasted just trying to establish that download line! Take note also, that once you're connected, your credits start ticking off too. It doesn't matter what time of day you try to connect, and I'm guessing it doesn't even matter where you're located. I live at the heart of Makati City, my room is slightly elevated, there are no barriers that surround my residence, nothing whatsoever that may cause significant interference to my wireless connection, the same problem leaves me at the end of my wits everytime! Well at least they're consistent in that department, leaving me unsatisfied, stressed and so freaking grumpy.

If you have the budget, I suggest you get a Cable or a DSL internet service instead. You'll save more money, plus it'll be more reliable regardless of what speed package you get. Remember, consistency is the key.

An additional note to those who might attempt to refute my recommendation here: My computer has it's own Wi-Fi modem which works just fine whenever I find a hotspot at malls and such. I turn this off whenever I connect to Globe Visibility using the USB modem so as not to cause any interference. I tried using Globe Visibility at 4 different locations now namely at Ayala Center, RCBC tower, Makati Executive Tower 2 and at San Antonio Village. the results are the same. I'm also using the newer modem the one that has no wires and can be inserted with a micro SD card (Lord knows what it's called) so go figure.

The Next Bobby Fischer

The Next Bobby Fischer, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

I remember playing chess with my brothers. My third older brother in particular was pretty good at it, when we played, he won 98 times, okay, 99 times out of 100. But the sole win I had came after years of agonizing defeat. There was this rare occasion when I was able to find an opening on his impenetrable defense and attacked with my knight, before you knew it, "CHECKMATE!" That was one of the best feelings in the world, being able to trash-talk a semi-grandmaster. Lord I'm good!

After that it was back to normal, I lost the games that followed, unsurprisingly. The next Bobby Fischer, or Eugene Torre to localize, certainly isn't me. hehehe.

PooRADA

This is how we are today. We simply refuse to face the fact that as a people, we are PooRADA. Yes, we have reasonable salaries as middle-class denizens but shouldn't we be better off than we really are? As a taxpayer, it pains me that a huge portion of my hard earned money goes down the drain every payday, flows through filthy the pipes of the bureaucracy, before it eventually finds its way inside the miserable POZO NEGRO. That is, yes you know who I am talking about, She Who Must Not Be Named. The hardest part is that there really is nothing we can do about it, is there? At least for me, this is how I feel, PooRADA. There is no "Change I Can Believe In."

PooRADA, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Something off-topic (as how my mind usually works, it's non-cohesive), here comes the huge irony. Come paydays, we the PooRada people, find the means to splurge on luxuries like purchasing PRADA bags; We line up for a latte or two at STARBUCKS; We stuff ourselves at buffet tables at KAMAYAN, DADS and SAISAKI; Hail TAXIS here and there and willingly immerse ourselves in depressing traffic; Swipe our VISAS and MASTERCARDS like there's no tomorrow. This is how it went down for me last Friday (except for that PRADA bag) and I know for a fact that it's how it went for you too. Don't deny it, I saw you at the mall! So here we are, feeling PooRADA. There is no change I can believe in because even change does not believe in me.

Thanks for reading my bi-polar post.

Burning Candles

Burning Candles, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Confidante.
Father Figure.
Role Model.
Friend.











Atty. Rolando C. Dela Cruz, Prinicpal SLU Boys' High from 1998-2004.

May his soul Rest In Peace.

About the Photo: HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

The photo first and foremost is an official entry for a Halloween contest at the office. The theme is anything that involves a pumpkin. I've posted more details about the photo shoot over here. Second, about the poem, they wanted a write-up that describes the photo, so what I did was veer away from conventional journalism and went ahead and made a poem about it. I had no idea that the concept would be such a hit, everyone loved it!

The entry looks very promising as we have already seen the so called "competition." Haha! The results would be out not until Nov.1 Manila time and all of us here at the office are so excited about it! It's heartwarming to hear such positive feedback from the photo I took and the poem I made. But I refuse to take sole credit for the job as it was a concerted effort from many of us here. The concept I had wouldn't have materialized if not for the efforts of the fantastic production team who made the whole set from where I drew inspiration of the Poem itself. Good Luck to us all and Happy Halloween and a peaceful All Saints' and Souls' Day!

P.S. I wrote my name as the author of the poem but when the draft was finalized, some "higher powers" decided to not make it part of the entry upon submission. That saddens me a lot.

A "Lovely" Night

A "Lovely" Night, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

"The Tale That Never Was"

A Cinderella Parody

A lovely night 'twas supposed to be
To meet her Prince and love-to-be.
Such tales instead possess the knack,
Of twisting fate with loathsome luck.
The Crooked Night had other plans,
A ball with chains in place of dance.
The stars in the lonely heavens trembled above her,
Not in amazement but in dread of danger.
"Oh Fairy-mother come to me!"
Girl of Cinders cried shakily.
No fairy dust however came,
But chilly winds of icy taste.

Here now you ask how it began
How Witch contrived her wicked plan.
At Hallows Eve this Girl did see
A lovely glow beneath the trees
Before her eyes to her delight
A pumpkin bore such lovely light.
The pumpkin flushed and how it grew!
Unknowing this was Witch's brew
For in her heart a true desire
Her heart the Prince had set afire
Attend the Ball now was a must
The tempting Coach she had to trust.

"There's no one here to heed your plea."
A whisper said so eerily.
A hag whose very breath can fell
From filthy brims where darkness dwells.
Now, the Girl of Cinders will forever be
Under her spell of uncertainty,
Of despair, where hope is forever lost
She found herself now trapped in frost.
The Girl of Cinders' story told
In rather dark and lonely prose
And this is how it came to pass.
A Tale of Cinders that never was.

-KC Alabanza

I Envy The Child

Innocence 2, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Never too afraid to try out new things. Always inquisitive. Trusting and Meek.

I, the 25 year old, too afraid to get out of the shell I myself have created.










Actually I just want to quit my job but simply can't. hehe...

Discipline

Sun Bathing, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Fishes, ants, these turtles, they all line up. Why can't we?

Drink Up!

Perhaps you haven't noticed or maybe you're numbly indifferent about it, oil prices have been going up, up and away by the day. What impact does this have on you as an individual, you may ask. Well, there is this picture that presents itself to us, it can be as inconvenient as the "Inconvenient Truth" that is global warming, here comes a more pressing issue which is "Peak Oil."

Peak Oil as I understand is when the world's total oil production reaches its maximum. Production then starts to decline but the demand for oil increases or remains constant. Some say that its fruition is nigh, others say that we have 20 more years before this peak is reached. Regardless, the imminence of Peak Oil is bad news indeed.

Peak Oil as an issue is far too deep for the likes of me to fully comprehend and I'm writing this not to act all smart but rather to shed as much light as I can to those who up to now, seem to be totally apathetic to the issue. I won't discuss this in detail, but its repercussions are now being felt and too hard to ignore. As an oil dependent country, and one that is almost totally run on imported oil, our economy is left at the mercy of oil price increase. Almost every facet of our lifestyle is based on crude oil, from the toothbrush and paste that we use every morning, to the very fruit or vegetable we fill our tummies with at dinner, crude oil is used to produce these things if not transport them to us end-users and consumers. So as soon as gas prices increase, so does the price of every product in the market, and living becomes more and more costly. With an economy as volatile as ours, and with terrorism, fascism and instability hiding behind the shadows of this crisis, who knows what to expect? Only time can tell when this country (and the world) implodes..

The questions therefore are:

What can we do to curb this crisis? Leaving our cars at home and taking the bike to work is not the answer as the problem goes beyond our mode of transportation and automobile fuel consumption.

How long do we have to wait in order for our leaders to spur into action? This problem is here to stay and it is futile to believe that oil prices will ever fall down. This is a matter that clearly needs government intervention, or heck, world intervention.

Why not turn to renewable energy right here right now? Maybe the cost of obtaining such sources are still so dependent on crude oil, i.e. the acquisition of raw materials are still based on petroleum-run machineries. If so, do the benefits outweigh the cost(s)?

The questions are endless that's for sure, but our future (that includes the near future!) isn't certain. It's as if Armageddon is drawing closer and this is the type of end that we as a people have chosen. The ultimate question is, as humans, as a race, how strong is our will to survive?

I don't mean to shut out all the optimism within us all, but isn't this the perfect time to show the wonders of human intelligence and the power of will? If one can create such vast technology to dig such vast a hole, the ability to create ways and means to climb out of that hole is also tantamount, right?

"Dye-Hard"

A year ago, I wrote something about a new 24/7 adage, that of Kobe (24) and Lamar Odom (7) fusing as a new dynamic duo reminiscent of the Jordan and Pippen era of the 90's. It seemed then that I was talking about was heresy, a false premonition, a crazy notion to think that these two Lakers could even equal or be better than the deux-bulls who combined for a total of 6 NBA championships in a decade. What followed that article was a series of horrible mistakes, mishaps and near-tragedies for the Lakers as a whole. They squandered a 3-1 playoff lead to the Phoenix Suns back in 2006, they got eliminated in the first round of the 2007 playoffs, again by the Suns, injuries seemed to hound each and every player and ultimately, the "Man," Kobe asked to be traded to "Pluto" of all places. No kidding, he did!

So I jinxed them. Fine. I was born with a birthmark in my rear end. Fast forward to 2008, no one, myself included, ever thought that those struggles would have led them this far: Kobe Bryant, the 2008 MVP, his first ever in 12 seasons, playing the best team-ball ever in his life; Lamar Odom, finding himself and his purpose on this team as a very effective "fourth-scoring option;" Los Angeles receiving a donation in the form of Pau! Gasol, the Lakers winning the West; Finally, reaching the NBA Finals after those arduous years of ruin.

Now, call it clairvoyance, a prophecy, or simple luck, but part of it all was that I never lost faith in this team. Despite the jeers and trash-talking of my peers and friends and even my own brothers, all anti-laker minions, I endured and somehow refused to give up on the team I have learned to love as a growing teen. If there's anyone who deserves this success, it won't be Kobe, or Lamar, or the Lakers, but instead it would be the fans. Fans like me, die hard you may say, but also hard to dye with any other color other than Purple and Gold. With that my jinx has finally turned to fortune and there's no turning back for my unlucky rear-end now! Lakers all the way!

Twilight

[Salvaged] Twilight 2, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Fifty percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings. Progress could be both a blessing and a curse. And by the way, this blog entry has nothing to do with the book of the same title. Sorry girls.

Didju know?

Dolphin + Sea Lion, originally uploaded by karoluscamilius.

Did you know that there's a village in Japan that slaughters dolphins? I was shocked upon seeing it on CNN. You can search it online if you want to. I know it's wrong (so is the slaughtering of dogs sa Pinas) but we're speaking of dolphins??? Dolphins who along with chimpanzees are next to humans in terms of intelligence????????? WTF???!