Financial Planning & U (dNeero conversation)

LP: Basa (Wet)

Alam nyo ba kung saan ito? Kinuhanan ko ito sa isang palengke sa Phnom Penh. Pero kahit saang palengke makikita rin natin ang ganitong tanawin kapag hindi maayos ang pag-pangangasiwa ng palengke. Sana magkaroon sila ng kanal upang ang tubig ay puedeng umagos at maging malinis ang paligid. Hindi palaging basa tulad nito. Delikado rin ito dahil maging sanhi pa ito ng mga sakit.

Do you know where is this place? This photo was taken in one of the markets in Phnom Penh. However, we can see this in any market where the management is not so efficient. There should be a canal so the water can flow out making the place cleaner. So the road will not always be wet like this. This condition is also bad as it can bring many diseases.

Dito naman nila tinatambak ang mga basang basura at grabe talaga ang amoy sa palengke na ito. Kumakapit pati sa aming mga damit. Sana matuto na silang magtulungan upang maging malinis ang palengke nila.

This is where they dump their wet garbage/solid wastes and the smell is so terrible. It stuck even on our clothes. Hopefully they can all learn to work together to make their market clean.

Marami pang mga basang kwento dito/More wet stories here
Litratong Pinoy

Of a new month and a city experience

It's now the 7th of July. June is gone, so fast! Work in the office is so hectic and toxic so time flies so fast. Good thing and I thank God for the peace and quiet at home. There are just the two of us...the only sounds we can hear are the tv and our laughter! It's so nice to come home to peace and quiet, it is a luxury indeed. To be able to rest after the rush and stresses of work. I think the only stress at home is to decide on what to cook or eat for dinner...I know this is quite shallow. Of course there are other major issues related to life in general, you know, living in this world of political strife, climate change, animal extinction, hunger, poverty, etc. We have a choice on how to handle them, though. If we can do something to make things better, then let's do it. If we can't, then there is no use being depressed by it. Today in fact was a holiday but where was I? I was in the office. Working coz I just had to work. But it was something that did not really stress me. Just have to work and if things didn't work out, it's no big deal also. Just try better next time.

Last week I spent nearly the whole day in the big city. I went to the Embassy and I was there at 845 am, and waited outside (just standing) until it opened at 9. However, as a rule, the time to release any document is at 2 pm. So I was at a dilemma what to do coz by the time I submitted my papers it was nearly 930 am. It was not practical to go back to my office as it would take me maybe 1.5 hrs to reach it, then another 1.5 hrs to get back to the city. So I'd better hang around somewhere and wait out for the 2 pm releasing time. The question was where? I wanted to get to an internet cafe coz I was thinking of my work. With my upcoming trip overseas I really need to work on the contacts I need to meet. I walked back to a gas station I passed on the way to the Embassy. There was a coffee shop there and I saw a sign earlier that they had Internet. So I went to order my mocha coffee and bread coz I did not have breakfast yet. I was thinking that I could check my emails and reply to them while drinking my coffee. Alas, the staff said the server was down. So why did they not remove the sign saying that Internet service was available?

After my breakfast I took the sky train to go to the nearest mall. Then I remembered that near this mall there is a second hand bookshop. I have ordered books from this shop many times by mail. So it would be my first time to really go there and choose the books myself. So I walked to this bookstore and spent some time there browsing through the shelves. It was quite difficult to look for the books and I think it is better for me to just download their database in excel and browse the file to order the books. I finally settled on two books which I have just heard and read about before. So this time I could really read them. I had 2 more books added to my collection that day.

I went back to the mall and it was nearly noon. Lunch time but I did not eat coz I was still full from my breakfast at 10am. I went around to look for the internet section. Along the way I saw some shoes which were on sale. I found one which I liked but unfortunately they did not have my size. I was glad to find the internet section and was able to check my emails and respond to them. I was so engrossed with what I was doing that I almost forgot the time. When I looked at my watch it was already 145pm. It was time to go back to the Embassy. I just took a taxi coz I did not want to walk a long way from the sky train station as it was so hot. I reached the Embassy before 2pm anyway. When I got there, I did not immediately present my claim slip as the staff was adamant to serve claims at exactly 2pm. And since there were people who came before me, they had to be served first.

I finally was able to leave the Embassy at around 215pm. I immediately left to go back to my office. Coz of the sky train and special service from my dear husband who picked me up at the last sky train station, I arrived in the office at about 330 pm so I still had enough time to continue my work. I was at the office until 6 pm. I was glad that I was able to get the documents I needed from the Embassy that day. I also thank God for protection and for keeping me in good condition as usually I do not feel good going into the city using public transport, due to the heat, pollution and the general atmosphere in the city that us folks who live in a quiet and green environment could never get used to.

LP: Dito Lang (Only Here)

Dito lang sa iyong tabi
Mararamdaman ko ang init
Dahil sa lamig ng Disyembreng gabi
Dito lang sa iyong tabi.

Only here by your side
I can feel the warmth
Coz of the cold December night
Only here by your side.

Kinuha ko itong litrato noong nakaraang Disyembre sa isang lugar na malapit sa bundok. Malamig nga naman kaya dapat lang may katabi para mahimbing ang tulog. Kahit saan tayo makakarating basta ang ating mga mahal sa buhay hay dito lang sa ating tabi, masaya na tayo.

I took this photo last December when I went to an area near the mountains. It was really cold and you really need to have somebody by your side so you can sleep really well. We are already happy wherever we may be as long as our loved ones are by our side.

Marami pang mga kwentong Dito Lang/
More Only Here stories

On Father's Day

By this time we would already have gone online shopping for some Father’s Day gifts for my Dad. We would usually send cards wishing him well and to express our love and gratitude to him as our Dad, send him text messages, call him and pray for him. At home, he would always wait for those greetings from all of us. And he would know who would not be able to greet him. Sometimes he would feel bad about it but he was mature enough to understand if we called him late, probably due to time zone differences or the phone network instability. The latter often happens on such occasions, including Christmas and New Year, as everybody is trying to call home.

But this time, we can only remember our Dad in our minds and hearts. As he is not here physically anymore. What we could do to honor his memory is to do what he would usually advise us to do – to live a life of integrity before man and God, to be strong and remain steadfast in our faith in the midst of difficulty and adversity, to trust the Lord at all times, to be happy, to do our best, to be compassionate towards others especially the disadvantaged and the oppressed, to live simply, to keep reading and learning ... so many more that he has taught us about life. So much treasure, but priceless.

And so, for our Dad’s memory, we would like to share this poem by D.J. Brown. He had already read this, because this was on a card sent by my sister to him way back in 2003, when she wrote to him during her (my sister’s) birthday to express her thankfulness and appreciation to him for all his love, sacrifices, care and goodness as she was growing up. She said that she thanked God for giving her a father like him, and she considered it a blessing really! She added in her P.S. that this came from her heart. I am sure that all of us children have the same words to say to him, time and time again, not only on Fathers’ Day but on every occasion that we have the opportunity to do so. I am sure that when he read this message he was also touched.

Dad, as I was growing up,

you always made my world feel safe.

The deep calm of your voice steadied me…

and the strong circle of your arms shielded me.

I never felt vulnerable or afraid,

Because for me, you seemed unshakable.

As I got older, though,

It dawned on me that the world you faced everyday

was a lot bigger and scarier

Than the one you had created for me.

And I wondered, sometimes,

if you felt like relying on someone else’s strength for a change…

Now that I’m an adult

and living on the outside of your safety net,

I finally understand what sacrifices you made

to make sure “my world” felt all right all the time.

Growing up in the sanctuary of your love is something

I will always cherish and a memory I could never forget.

Now, more than ever,

I appreciate you for that.

I love you, Dad.

May you all express your love and appreciation to your Dads on Father’s Day and every time that you have the opportunity to do so.

LP: Imposible Ba Ito?

Imposible ba ito? Naghaharana itong mama habang kami ay kumakain sa isang Lesehan, ang kainan sa gilid ng kalsada sa Yogyakarta, Indonesia, kung saan nakaupo lamang sa sahig ang mga kumakain. Di ba parang imposible na maging instrumento ng musika itong hawak nya? Pero kahit ganito lang ito kasimple nakakatulong pa rin ito sa paghahanapbuhay.
Is this impossible? This man is serenading us while we are eating in a Lesehan, a streetside restaurant in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, where the diners sit on the floor. It seems impossible that this piece can be used as a musical instrument, isn't it? However, even if it is just simple it can still help in earning an income.

Imposible ba ito? Ang mama naman na may gora ay naghahanapbuhay rin. Hulaan nyo kung ano ang kanyang ginagawa. Dino-drowing nya ang litrato na nasa cellphone.
Is this impossible? The man wearing a cap is also trying to earn an income. Guess what he is doing. He is drawing the picture which is in the cellphone.

Marami pang mga imposible sa/More impossible stuff at
Litratong Pinoy.

Philippines celebrates 111th Independence Day

Even as we celebrate as a country and a people more than a hundred years of independence from colonial rule, may we also experience personally freedom from all bondage and slavery which go beyond what can be seen.