WengOnline

As a regular cab rider, I thought that I had mastered the art of estimating the taxi fare from point A to point B. I have managed to estimate a ceiling price for a certain destination. To be more accurate, I tried scouring the net for tutorials or how to or what nots, but I got . For a country that is proud to be a tourist destination, we must make sure that these taxi cab meters be routinely checked.

First, a few tips to remember once you get on a cab.

1. Make sure the driver flags down the meter. There are some cab drivers that will negotiate a price with you or ask you to add a tip. I’d rather tip if and when I feel like the driver deserves it (no haphazard driving and braking). I usually tip by rounding up the fare or adding Php 10-15 to the bill.
2. Make sure you have small bills and coins. There are times when unscupulous drivers will tell you they do not have change. Do not ride a cab with a Php500 bill and expect change. I make sure I have several Php 20 and even coins to pay as close to the metered fare as possible. See Tip #1.
3. Do not sleep while in transit. I’ve seen some cab riders sleep while riding. This makes you prone to a fast meter or even holdups. Your taxi driver might even take advantage of you while you are asleep.

Second, the rates:

1. Flag down rate. As of writing this, the current flag down is Php 30. This shouldn’t change for the first 500 meters.
2. Regular travel. Php 2.50 for each succeeding 300 meters.
3. Full stop/Waiting. Php 2.50 for every two minutes of waiting.

Parts of the meter. (I’ll get pictures some other day)

1. Idle/waiting timer (upper left corner) - the taxi must be at full stop for this to increment. The standard rate addition is approximately Php 2.50 every 2 minutes.
2. Odometer reading - the cab must run approximately 300 meters for this to increment by Php 2.50
3. Total Fare - the middle part where the largest numbers are. Your fare must be in Php 2.50 increments regardless of the distance.

Any other tips you’d like to add? Feel free to post them.

If you have some free time, you might want to try out this game at www.freerice.com. It’s a multiple choice game vocabulary game. For each correct answer you get, they donate 10 grains of rice. If you check out the totals, it seems that the trend is upwards and they are getting to give away more and more.

A friend of mine mentioned that it would have been better if it was a cup of rice instead of just 10 grains. Imagine how many people you can feed with that rice! I had just come from the company out-of-town activity and we just breezed through 10 kilos of rice. (Note: about 30 people were in the event.)

They also explained in their FAQ that the site was able to give way rice because of the advertising revenue it generated, but if I never click on any of those ads, would they still make money? My Google Adsense only has about $24 in it and its been running, or rather walking, on and off for the better part of four years.

This seems to be a growing trend these days. It started out with volunteer organizations setting up their own sites, then it moved into soliciting funds via the web, and then eventually sites that allow you to volunteer by using your PC. The Free Rice site works on a different model and tries to take up a different market, think of all those casual gamers. Just a few minutes a day and you could feed a family—plus you get to learn new words.

Try it out and let me know what level you get. They said its normal for people to reach level 48. I’m just at 42-44. Better brush up on my vocabs! Off to www.freerice.com.

I am updating to the newest version of wordpress and I encountered this error:

WordPress database error: [Table 'wp_post2cat' doesn't exist]

It shows when I post new entries and when I edit old ones. I think I’ve solved it. Still checking if everything works fine. Good thing I have a backup though. It still breaks, and again, default theme now, off all plugins. I think it works with my theme. A few plugins are on, but turned off Google sitemap. Was it Google? Turned on the rest, it still works. It is Google! I upgraded it and a few other plugins and now my site works like a charm. okay, I still need a cleaner theme, but at least it works now.

Lesson learned, Fantastico does not turn off all plugins for you. Follow the instructions for upgrade on the wordpress site and turn on plugins one by one.

I routinely check CNN for news in the morning while settling into my work day and was surprised to read this headline ‘Modesty is returning to fashion runways.’ It’s not something I was expecting anytime soon given the trends in the fashion industry and the recent issues on global warming which might prompt designers to push the limits on fabric coverage.

If the world needs another sign that Britney Spears’ look is yesterday’s news, check out New York Fashion Week. Gone are the skin-centric, tummy-revealing and possibly private part-exposing trends that Spears and friends like Paris Hilton made ubiquitous. Instead, designers are embracing modesty, using sheer fabrics and lingerie looks to subtly hint at sexiness. It’s an extension of the ladylike trends for fall; designers seem to have made the collective decision that a lot of skin isn’t in.

I had to read that twice to make it sink in. Skin isn’t in for the fall season, its trendiness is on the fall. Good.

I had a professor during my undergrad that sported clothes designed [and probably even made] decades before I was born. I have never [ever] seen her repeat her clothes—that must be one big walk-in closet. Fact of the matter is that even if her clothes were something out of my grandma’s closet—and they do look like so—she was still fashionable. Her clothes didn’t look too out of place since she had aged gracefully through the years.

Sidenote: For those readers who have studied in the same university as I did, she teaches Filipino Literature and is the mother of another former professor from the same university.

“Art” is a play by Yasmina Reza that was originally written in French. This version being one in Tagalog. This is the first Tagalog full length play that I’ve seen. I admit it is still a challenge for me to watch shows in Tagalog since I’m more used to shows (TV, plays, musicals, movies, etc) which are in other languages. This play was also performed in my university, but I wasn’t able to see it then. I believe that one was in English.

Ticket Price—6/10: Php500(Orchestra, Right Side) c/o Gibbs Cadiz, he shares free tickets which were generously given by the producers or the directors of the shows. This show is really in demand, since a guy was standing near the stairs leading up to the venue and asking for extra tickets. A scalper? Hold on to your manes.

I was seated on last row at the back, 2nd seat from the aisle. I had been so use to theater seats being as comfy like the newer movie houses. The Music Museum’s seats are really due for replacement. They aren’t broken or diry, but they are a tad uncomfy. Also, from the last row in the orchesta, my feet couldn’t reach the floor as the seats were unusually high.

Acoustics—6/10: They seemed to have problems with the positions of the lapel mics. I heard clothing brushing across the microphone on several occasions. At times, the performers’ voices also seem to fade in and out. Maybe its just me, but I didn’t particulary like the sounds for this venue.

Performers—9/10: I had always thought that movie actors were more used to having several takes for a scene. I thought they wouldn’t pull off those long lines and would have to do ad-libs. Btw, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt since I don’t know how the translation went.

Length/Storyline—7/10: The play started around 30 minutes late, so it felt longer than it should have been. There was no intermission and due to nature of the story, the play is really wordy.

This is a comedy about 3 friends and the story begins as one of them, Serge, buys an expensive pure white painting for Php 200,000. One friend, Mar, is appalled by this, and the other, Jun, can’t seem or rather won’t take sides. Conflict begins and strains their friendship even putting Jun’s wedding into peril.

I think I would have enjoyed this play more if it had been set in another venue.

I had always been a fan of Sesame Street. It’s great how children can be taught things by puppets. From Batibot to the Muppets to Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, we see how puppets can bridge the gap between age, race, and color. I watched this show last Sept 16, the Sunday matinee.

Here’s my analysis of the show. I hope to make this format my standard for evaluating a show and just add to it if needed.

Ticket Price—9/10: Php1250(Orchestra) c/o Gibbs Cadiz , he shares free tickets which were generously given by the producers or the directors of the shows. With this ticket, I was seated on the right side, 4 rows from the front, 3rd seat from the aisle. It was a good position for seeing the performers and the smaller screen (also to the right). The only problem with this seat was that I couldn’t see one window on the 2nd ‘floor’ of the structure.

Acoustics—8/10: Since this auditorium is taller and less wide than other show venues, I felt that the sounds were better. However, during cetain portions of the show, most noticeable when Aiza was singing, the sound would shift to one side of the auditorium. Maybe it was just me? I also noticed that it was on the side where the performers were. Intentional, perhaps? It still distracted me.

Performers—10/10: Two thumbs up for dual character roles by Rachel Alejandro, Felix Rivera, and Joel Trinidad! It’s hard enough to control a puppet, sing a song in a different accent, or alternate different voices, but to do them all together, that’s a great performance.

Length/Storyline—7/10: For a musical, it was quite short since the numbers weren’t big productions. Overall, the songs were integral in telling the story. Taken individually, you can let the kiddies hear them.

Note that due to the storyline, it is also only for mature audiences, kiddies cannot watch this show and some teens might require explanation for issues tackled.

Guys and gals! A friend of mine is selling her CANON 350D. I’ve seen the unit and its still in great condition. Just look for a battery grip and it’ll be a great buy. The details are below, feel free to contact her directly for any questions.

Update: Camera has been sold. Only the lens is available.

Could Sell Separately: P10K
Canon 28-105 f/3.5-4.5 II USM (Bought at B&H store in NYC last May 2007 with 6 years and 8 months Worldwide warranty) with original receipt

Willing to Meet in:
Paseo De Sta. Rosa - Weekdays
Makati/Ortigas Area - Weekends

Contact #: 0918 936 9974

From the BBC:

“Because of the one-child policy there are fewer children in China. So, many schools are changing into old people’s homes. It’s very common now.” On the ground floor, the residents queue up for lunch. Some of them have pensions to pay the care home fees. Others rely on their children to pay for them. In the next few decades, this burden will get heavier and heavier.

In the US, locations like Philadelphia assisted living are getting more common. However, for a developing country like the Philippines, it doesn’t seem like we’ll have this problem anytime soon. I’ve met with people who have at least 3 or 4 siblings and some as many as 17. The problem is the lack of ability to generate income.

Living with grandparents in the house isn’t anything different to us, Filipinos. We have always had extended families living together. An uncle or aunt would be living with us or close to us. I had also experienced living with my grandma, my dad’s sister, her husband, and my 2 cousins. Good thing we were still living in a regular or rather a 5-bedroom house then, otherwise it would have been a cramped environment.

Have you tried living with relatives? It might be them living in your house or you living in theirs, how was the experience?

Bar hopping is a term I haven’t heard in a long time, perhaps the people I hang out with do not generally frequent Clubs and Bars. We frequent dining places and movie houses. Perhaps the allure of newly renovated movie house has spurred the renewed interest in watching a movie. I used to watch a movie almost every weekend or so back when I was in high school. Movie tickets, then, were about Php 50 or so. Note that the dollar exchange rate was at Php26 only. So, its about US$ 2 for a movie ticket. Today, it has risen to an average of Php 160-350, depending on the movie house you go to. Of course, in the provinces, the prices might still be at Php 50 or was that Php 80?

Now, your Php 200 buys you a reserved seat in the country’s cinema houses. The reserved seat just means that if you plan to watch a movie at 6pm, you can buy your tickets as early as you can and then go back to the theater just as the show starts. You can take your time browsing through the mall stores and not have to scramble to get a good seat. It certainly is a high price though. Its 60% of the minimum daily wage just for a 2 or 3 hour movie.

I choose a few good movies to watch every now and then, and the rest, I wait for them to be shown on cable. I don’t even notice that I haven’t watched some of the movies when I’m swamped with both work and homework. Watching movies and TV is a type of recreation that should be moderated, otherwise, we soak up everything like a sponge. I’d rather absorb the good stuff, wouldn’t you?

According to Wikipedia, Botox is used in the treatment of migraine headaches, cervical dystonia, blepharospasm, severe primary axillary hyperhidrosis among other things. I primarily know it to be a cosmetic treatment as I hear it from some of my neighbors. These neighbors are in their 70s or so and probably have wrinkles all over, but I have not seen their wrinkels that much. Thanks probably to these treatments. Howstuffworks.com put its very effectively ‘If an area of the body can’t move, it can’t wrinkle.’

That’s how they stop the wrinkling. The more technical explanation involves acetylcholine, the neurotransmitter responsible for triggering muscle contractions. A series of proteins, VAMP, syntaxin and SNAP-25, are essential for the release of acetylcholine. Certain botulinum toxins attack these proteins. Botulinum toxin A (Botox) affects the SNAP-25. When all of these happen, your muscles do not contract.

The acceptance of cosmetic Botox, BTX-A as it is called in the labs, use for the treatment of spasticity and muscle pain disorders is growing, with approvals pending in many European countries and studies on headaches (including migraine), prostatic symptoms, asthma, obesity and many other possible indications are ongoing.

Head over to San Diego botox cosmetic for more info if you want to try this treatment.