Ten Simple Ways to Save Yourself from Messing Up with Life

Having gotten tired, finally, of watching funny videos on Youtube and of seeing exquisite pics on Friendster, I surf the net for articles worth reading. And this is what I've found: a list of ways on how not to mess up with life.

1. Stop taking so much notice of how you feel.
2. Let go of worrying. It often makes things worse.
3. Ease up on the internal life commentary.
4. Take no notice of your inner critic.
5. Give up on feeling guilty.
6. Stop being concerned what the rest of the world says about you.
7. Stop keeping score.
8. Don't be concerned that your life and career aren't working out
the way you planned.
9. Don't let others use you to avoid being responsible for their
own decisions.
10. Don't worry about your personality. You don't really have
one.

See the full article here.

Bad Service

I really do not know what’s wrong with my Internet connection. I thought the amount of P899 covers a month of good subscription. But, no, it does not. In most instances, I have to wait until 10 PM, just to get connected. Now I’m luckier because I just waited until 5 PM.

Last May 5, I informed the telephone company ( which at the same time is the ISP) about the problem. It did a quick action by sending a technician who identified the modem as the cause. He thus replaced it with a new one. Two days after, though, the problem recurred. It even went from bad to worse. Since then, it is easy to connect but it doesn’t last a minute. Clicking the refresh button is of no use. The modem has to be turned off for a few seconds then turned on. After that I wait for the DSL light to appear just to connect again. In a one-hour connection, I spend half of it, 30 minutes, staring not on the monitor but on the modem. This is so annoying, especially when I do blogs. Before I can finish the last sentence, a message appears below the screen: Cannot contact blogger.com. That means starting all over again.

When I went to the office of the telephone company to pay my May bill, I told the clerk about my dissatisfaction about their services and my plan to have my subscription canceled. She told me that I have to pay P3000 as termination fee. I thought she was just kidding but, she wasn’t, it was written clearly on the brochure she handed me. She was kind enough though to give me another option: To contact their hotline every time an inconvenience is encountered. It turned out however to be not an option but another problem. No one answers each time I dial the number.

Until now I cannot see the logic of anyone asking a fee for the termination of a bad service. Anyway, I am willing to pay only for a good one.

Ukay-Ukay

I usually shop at malls but yesterday I tried ukay-ukay, for a change. Nowadays, ukay-ukay stores sprout in Naga but I went to the one recommended by a colleague, who gave some advice too.

1. Ask for a discount 'coz the prices aren't fixed.
2. Scrutinize every part of the item you buy for anything that ain't
right. It's like finding a reason for additional discount.
3. Don't look too interested in what you like.

It worked. For P550, I now have three pairs of pants: a Rambo Culture (not so popular a brand yet still imported) denim for P200 and two slacks, a Gi0rdano and a Baleno, for P350. All fit me well and look good as new, except for the missing button of the last one. But, that's no big deal. My grandma is good at fixing things like that.

Now I realize why many people frequent those places: cheap prices and brand-name products. These two don't go together at malls. So next time I shop, I know where to go.

Best Songs

This is the list of my ten favorite songs.

1. Viva Forever by Spice Girls Video|Lyrics
   
2. Go the Distance by Michael Bolton Video|Lyrics
   
3. Reflection by Christina Aguilera Video|Lyrics
   
4. Against All Odds by Westlife and Mariah Carey Video|Lyrics
   
5. 100 Years by Five for fighting Video|Lyrics
   
6. Survivor by Destiny's Child Video|Lyrics
   
7. When You Believe by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston Video|Lyrics
   
8. Welcome to My Life by Simple Plan Video|Lyrics
   
9. I Will Come to You by Hanson Video|Lyrics
   
10. Believe by Cher Video|Lyrics
    

"Terminal" Joke

Yesterday afternoon, on my way back home, while I was seated in the jeep that was not yet filled up to capacity, my attention was caught by the conductor who seemed to loathe the spaces between the passengers. I just observed the way he moved his lips as he silently counted the number of passengers that would still fit in. He then spoke in a voice that was both a command and a request, "Isog isogi man po nindo".

Each of us then moved closer to the person seated next to us, except for a decent-looking young guy who was completely absorbed in composing a text message in his 3G cellphone. Somewhat annoyed, the conductor stared at him and spoke in a manner that was purely a command, "Noy, isog isogi man". The guy for the first time heard what he was told, complied, then resumed his texting.

The driver of the jeepney next in line who had sensed the irritation in the conductor's voice humorously said, "Ata na maboboot an pasahero mo, papairisogon mo".

That was the first time I heard that joke. And that was very funny.

Best Poems

Here is a list of some of the poems I like much.

• Silence by Edgar Lee Masters
  
• If by Rudyard Kipling
  
• A Litany for Survival by Audre Lorde
  
• The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
  
• Keep A-Goin by Frank Stanton
  
• One Art by Elizabeth Bishop
  
• Faith in Mind by Sengtsan
  
• Decalogue of the Artist by Gabriela Mistral
  
• Conceit by D.H. Lawrence
  

About The Title

Now that the summer class is finally over, it's high time I post a blog, I think. Since I created my blogger account seven months ago, I already changed title four times and wrote a number of posts I never published. It was a create-delete thing for me, which was just a waste time.

What I've done reminds me of Penelope, a character in Homer's The Odyssey. To serve her purpose, she unraveled at night what she had just woven during the day.

And so I have my fourth and hopefully final title Penelope's trick. This has nothing to do with trickery. And this has nothing to do with weaving either. It is best to leave trickery to those without natural talent and weaving to those with adroit hands. This is just a blog of someone who loves the written words.