I just returned from our trip to the Philippines and there are so many things I want to blog about. Not sure if they will all come out in one sitting but I’ll do my best to keep each blog as focused as possible to one topic.

Main thing I want to express is the great thing called family. Yeah we all have our ups and downs with our own but as I get older and as the people around me get older, I begin to appreciate family in more profound ways. The family I left in the Philippines proved to me that as people we continue to evolve and in turn, our relationships too. I’m lucky and grateful that I’m seeing healthy cousins coming along the pipeline. They value education and soon they will reap the rewards of their hardwork.

What about the Philippines? There is a huge problem blanketing the Philippines at this very moment. If we look at the world from a macro level first of all, we start to see major changes in ways our planet operate. We have witnessed evil in 9/11 and the war in Iraq. The first black President in the world’s most powerful nation. The rise of environmental conscious consumers and marketers. The collapse (and soon the rise) of wealth in developed countries. The ever increasing trends in like minded individuals coming together to accomplish one mission (be it good or bad) with the help of the Internet and new technologies. All this will give rise to new wealth and new power but where will Philippines be in the mix?

I believe the Philippines is being eaten by the worst virus of all. Self-hate. Why do I believe this? Let me explain. The morality of the Filipinos in general is very questionable upon observation. You could argue we are the most moral people with our churches, customs and tradition but I disagree. Huge amount of the population are constantly being reminded that they’re not good enough, not smart enough, not brave enough and not beautiful enough to be leaders in their own country. Let me give you some examples.

Driving in Manila there are two things that you will notice right away. First are the massive billboards that is scattered on top of buildings with images of light skin, small noses airbrushed pictures of actors/actresses selling different brands. They are the constant reminder of an image, an implicit message that is continually being pushed to the subconscious of everyday people of the Philippines. Second is the inconsiderate ways drivers practice as they disregard traffic laws in most areas. Lack of morality is the common culprit in both examples.

Only in the Philippines where you will receive better attention and acceptance if you speak in English and not in your native tongue. Children are raised to believe that speaking English showcases their position in the social class. Social class versus a person’s ability to perform is what determines a person’s worth in the Philippines.

When did the Philippines became a whore for foreigners? I thought the Philippines was liberated more than 100 years ago but it seems the slave mentality is stronger than ever, only now it’s accepted. There is no pride in being a Filipino in the Philippines. Anybody who tells you otherwise is a hypocrite. There is a stigma in speaking Tagalog in hotels, restaurants, malls, tv, commercials and in many school system and social circles. Whores for foreigners. We need to really evaluate our moral guidelines. I witnessed the thousands of dedicated people join in the Black Nazarene procession during my stay. Morality is missing in the lives of the Filipinos, they just like to think it’s there. On the same day I saw hundreds follow the Black Nazarene I saw on tv a variety show host being treated as a god. He was offered praises, cash and adulation.

The Philippines can no longer look to their government for leadership and change. The Filipino can no longer look to the education system to save them because they can’t afford it. The Filipino should find a way to revolt much louder than the rally during EDSA in 1980′s. The youth of the Philippines in their 20′s and 30′s are frustrated and they are as equipped with social networking tools like their counterparts in developed nations. I hope there will be a change in the minds of the Filipinos.

Revolt against the oppression. The Philippines was a turned into a conquered nation in the hands of Spain more than 300 years ago. Then became prisoners under Japanese rules then puppets with the Americans. We were made prisoners and slaves in our own land. We thought we have been liberated but look around you today. We are still slaves but only now we don’t fight it.

The whole event with him arriving, me talking to my close aunt and business starting to pick up makes me feel that the universe is talking to me. Nothing could be better when the stars line up in your favour. I will be bigger than what I can imagine and I know some power greater than me, wants me to be BIG.

So grateful tonight. Extremely happy and I will never allow myself to have another fallout like that with people I care about the most.

33 yrs today was a special day. And every year on that day I thank God for the blessings he’s given me.
Something special about birthdays that makes me remember of where I’ve been and where I’m going. Life is good.

Two weeks ago Olive and Oliver had their wedding. They both looked good and it was a really great celebration. Everybody was dressed up. The band, the music, food and drinks were all good. Everybody had a good time and I’m sure the new couple will remember the night for all their lives.

Click here to check out the pictures.

I run XP in my machine and now it’s saying that it can’t locate “itunes.msi” file. So what a non-techie should do now? Have no fear I say to myself. Find the best solution. Google it!

I did and I found out how to fix it.

First you need to first install the Windows Install Clean Up utility (if you don’t already have it).  Next, remove iTunes from the list of programs.  Third, go to iTunes website and download the latest version (in my case it was iTunes9).  Sit back and let it do it’s thing.

It’s important to note that you should backup all your songs in an external HD.  It really helps in situations like these to know whatever happens, you got all your songs somewhere else.  Take it from a guy who lost years worth of photos when my HD went bust.  Which brings me to another point…NEVER BUY BUFFALO HARD DRIVE.  Shit equipments.

Well, since leaving that company I manage to create more cash flow channels than I had with that job. Life is truly a wheel. Today might not be your day but guaranteed your time is coming. So the key is to just keep moving.

Looking back in the last 12 months, there were plenty of things that happened. I’ve lost a job, but there are cousins of mine who lost a parent. Two of my homies became first time fathers. I’ve seen places in this world that I only saw in books growing up. I’m very grateful for all the things I was able to do in the last 12 months. But what I am mostly happy about is that God continues to give Reggie and those I love excellent health. That’s the one thing I am most grateful for.

The storm, Ondoy that hit the Philippines, Metro Manila to be exact is something nobody in their 30s have seen before. Local news coverage described the event as a heavy rainfall equivalent to a full month of precipitation coming down hard within 5 or 6 hours.

Metro Manila including the Rizal provinces were hit hard. Marikina and Cainta are mostly under water. Manila, Quezon City and Makati City were not spared. I couldn’t believe these cities would bow down to the power of Ondoy.

The heavy rainfall was unexpected and came very quickly.

True to the Filipino character, during these moments of despair everybody where helping to the best of their abilities. Rich and poor were all affected so the storm brought us together.

The total damage is still not known. Plenty of outpouring support from various people in Twitter shows the world is concern about those who have lost plenty in the storm.

I encourage all of you to take action in helping bring much needed relief in the Philippines in the next weeks perhaps even months.

You can pledge your support at www.redcross.org.ph or by sending email to fundgeneration@redcross.org.ph

We want to align ourselves with us many different channels as we can so we can drive a lot of traffic into the clinic. We’re telling all our friends and families to refer us to everybody they know. Thank you all for your support.

For the opening day, the only services we could offer were massage and physio therapies. Both practitioners received good reviews from staff and people so I was very happy to hear that. But at the end of the day, they were both tired from all the scheduled appointments they had. I felt bad at the end of the day and had to reassure them that for next time the schedule will be much better.

We had a good first week and in total there were two walk-ins. We’ll need to look for other ways to bring in people and we hope the Ryerson students coming back to school will generate more traffic. There are a lot of potentials to our clinic with its excellent location and brand new amenities. Soon we will be known in the downtown Toronto as the best physical rehab clinic around.

Personally, this venture scares me sometimes. Then I snap out of it quick because I remember everything in life that’s rewarding is a gamble in the beginning. I’m just thankful that I was given this opportunity by the Boss in heaven and what makes it even better is that I have a very understanding and supportive wife. Without her love and support, none of this would even make sense.

I wanted to document here that this clinic opened on the day I lost one of the most important people in my life. Lolo would’ve been very proud of what I’ve accomplished thus far. September used to mean sadness but now I can replace it with the feeling of new beginnings. Here, I dedicate this clinic to him in my own personal way. Should God allow it, this is not the biggest venture I will take part in. I will be bigger. But as always, I will always share my gained treasures in lessons learned with my friends, cousins and those who wants to learn.

By the way, last year 2008, end of September I was told to beat it by my old job. Now, a year later I own what could possibly be the biggest business I’ve been a part of with unlimited potentials. Thank you God. Thanks for everything.

We arrived in Chicago late Saturday afternoon and stayed at the Marriott Hotel Oak Brook. The place had great facilities, which you would not expect looking at it from the outside. Their lounge and lobby was pleasing to the eye with a grand piano although nobody ever played it. Perhaps we were there at the wrong night. The restaurant was decent and the people were friendly in fact, everybody in Chicago were friendly. The pool was nice and big and we all witnessed Madi’s first dip in the pool and she lasted a good 5 minutes before she realized the size of the water in the pool was not the same in her tub at home. But again, she was a trooper and I was impressed by her. She was very cute in her bathing suit. Check out our pictures.

The first thing we noticed is the big assortment of restaurants in Chicago. Almost everywhere you look it was one restaurant after the other. They all looked so good. It was tempting to eat at each one but there was not time and luckily we hit a couple of spots that were really good. One being this Japanese/Chinese style restaurant that I can’t recall now but the place was nicely decorated and the food and staff were great. The other was Giordano’s Pizza where we had the deep dish. A word of advice, do not order more than one pie even if there are 4 of you. It was delicious but a lot of it went to waste because we just couldn’t eat it anymore…and I love pizza.

We went downtown on a Sunday and it’s easy to see that Chicago upholds its Christian values and I was very proud of that. Downtown Chicago is a great place to see. We didn’t walk around that much because it will tire out Madi but by driving around you can tell there were a lot of spots that you can go camera crazy in.

Chicago waterfront is one of the best I’ve seen. We saw it during a bright sunny day and WOW! It’s a must to see.

Of course, the trip wouldn’t be complete if the girls didn’t get to shop so we hit the Magnificent Mile. To me it was even more magnificent because Reggie didn’t end up buying anything. Ha!

Overall, the trip was a good one. What made it even better was the time I was able to spend with my good friend Elmer. We’ll do it again for sure but next time, we’ll fly.

Wait wait….how could I forget. I finally got to see the “shrine” of the greatest basketball player this world has ever seen. What a great way to say thank you to Michael Jordan. There will never be another player like MJ. What a great competitor and his drive is just admirable.