Saturday, July 31, 2010

A Replacement for My Stolen Phone

Jeff
Yesterday I bought a replacement for my phone that got stolen in the MRT station a week ago. I bought a Cherry Mobile D15. The phone that got stolen was a D10 and this new one is a bit of an upgrade because it has a better screen, has a camera and has a 3D sound.

Basically, almost all the features are the same. I would consider the dual sim phones of Cherry Mobile as a Best Buy if you already have a primary phone and are looking for a secondary phone. i will be posting a review of this in my tech blog soon so watch out for it.

Should Pharmaceutical Companies be Required by Law to Provide Information About Their Products Online?

Jeff
In my more than two years of writing reviews of different products I have observed that majority of the online advertisers have health related niches. Many of them are sites that publish information about their products. From the point of view of SEO marketing, the advertising they do helps more people have access on the information they want to disseminate to the people who search for their product using major search engines like Google, Yahoo or Bing.



This is very important especially for new products which have been recently discovered or formulated like new medicines, drugs and even natural weight loss pills, because people who hear about them or those whom they are targeting as potential consumers need to find lots of information about the product they will use especially from its manufacturers.

But, I have noticed that most of the initiative to make information available through the internet come from outside the country. I have encountered only a few local advertisers who have done this and this can cause problems for our consumers when companies do not have enough information available online about their product, especially the information from the new product’s makers.

There has been a case here in the Philippines where a medicine called Saridon, an affordable pain killer that is well known in Visayas and Mindanao. If you would search about Saridon in major search engines you would hardly find information about it from its product makers. This poses a problem because there have been warnings about Saridon from various newspaper columnists saying that Saridon is unsafe citing its previous formula containing phenacetin and its new formulation has propyphenazone that can have negative side-effects by those who take it .

So, the question is, what should the government or the Department of Health do about it? Should a law or a policy be made to require makers of different pharmaceutical products to make information about their product available online, whether through their official website or through micro sites like Facebook pages or the like? What would you suggest about this issue?

Monday, July 26, 2010

I'm In a "Thumbs Up" Condition

Jeff
My blog title may sound positive but it is to be taken literally because one of my thumbs is forced to point up because I was told by the doctor last Saturday to wear a thumb-wrist support. The joints in my trapezium and scaphoid hurt with the slightest movements.



Actually, that isn't the only part that hurts. Last Thursday night my shoulder was hurting so bad when I got home. I must have sprained my AC joint and that is the reason why I decided to see the doctor last Saturday. The doctor prescribed a week's worth of Celecoxib, told me to avoid overhead movements that make use of my right arm and also suggested to apply warm compress on the two parts joints that hurt. I guess my log furniture project can wait a few weeks more. But life and work must go on so tomorrow I'll be off to the church office and in our church in Makati.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

A Warning to MRT (Metro Rail Transit) Passenegers

Jeff
This afternoon, I got my pocket picked and the casualty was my Cherry Mobile D10, a dual sim phone which had my 3 sim cards (Sun, Smart which I just kept in the phone but not inserted and a PLDT mobile sim). I took the MRT from Ayala station to Taft and did not mind the side pockets of my pants where I usually place my phone. I am used to taking the MRT but since it has been quite a while since I rode it, I guess I just wasn't as vigilant and alert as before.



My guess is that my phone might have been taken while I and the crowd of passengers were pushing ourselves to get inside the train. Or, it might also have been during the travel because the train was so packed with people.

It was really my intention to give away a phone through Gadgets and Tech's 1st Annual Phone Raffle Contest (another blog that I own), not like the way it happened in the MRT. I feel angry at the person who took my phone but am more angry at myself because I should have known better. I have heard different stories of pick pocketing experiences in the MRT and have even heard of a pick-pocketer got beaten up (also in the Ayala station) for being caught.

I just hope this would serve as a reminder, more than a warning, for all of you or for all of your friends who take the MRT regularly. Be MORE alert and vigilant!

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Joining Another Season in the Marist Alumni Basketball League

Jeff
What I need in the next few days is to get back in shape for the Marist Alumni Basketball League which will kick off another season on July 4, 2010. It has been a while since I played basketball but I’m glad that martial arts training have been continuous for the past weeks since I got back from Africa.

Having done that, I won’t need diets for quick weight loss but I do need to develop stamina and endurance for the upcoming basketball games. Our team made it to the last four last season and we are hoping to make it to at least make it to the finals this time.

Netherlands vs Spain: My Quick Preview of the 2010 World Cup Finals

Jeff
In a few hours, Netherlands vs Spain, the 2010 World Cup finals will be starting. It will be the match between two teams who are looking for their first World Cup championship. Below are the other information about the two national football teams.

Netherlands:
Has appeared in World Cup finals twice
Has won 6 of their last 6 games in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa
Has scored a total of 12 goals in this World Cup
Has conceded 5 goals in this World Cup

Spain
First time to be in World Cup finals
Has won 5 of their last 6 games in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa
Has not scored a a lot goals in this World Cup
Has conceded only 2 goals in this World Cup

After I finish my other online tasks and finish writing about adult acne then I will get a few hours of sleep and wake up to go out and watch the World Cup 2010 finals with my wife.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Experiencing My First International Trip: Kenya and Dubai

Jeff
This year was the year that I was able to travel internationally. Yup, it was my first time last June. I was able to join a missions trip to Nairobi, Kenya and we were also blessed to get a two-way ticket from Manila to Africa via Dubai.


This is Kibera, one of the largest slums in Africa



New friends from Kenya



Camel ride during the Desert Safari in U.A.E. (United Arab Emirates)



At the Burj Khalifa, claimed as the tallest building in the world


Jump shot at the world's 7-star hotel, Burj Al Arab

The trip may not have been as classy as a trip on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship but it was such a great experience – something I thought I never would have experienced. Above are a few of my favorite photos from that trip.

Another Visit to the Barber Shop

Jeff
It has been more than three weeks since I went out with my little boy to visit the barber shop where we usually have our quick trim. I feel that my hair is growing longer now and I would need to schedule a visit with my son again. Or, maybe I would just need to visit on my own. I am not used to sporting long hair especially because I have curly hair and it becomes hard to manage when it is longer than I can handle. I am looking at next Saturday or maybe even a day during the week. It will be short hair once again.

“The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” to be Shown in SM Cinemas: Press Release

Jeff
Starting this Thrusday, July 15, 2010, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" will be shown in SM Cinemas.elow is the official press release and synopsis.




“I love the world of magic, and to be able to bring that to a contemporary audience through `The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ was really appealing to me,” says Jerry Bruckheimer, legendary producer of such blockbuster franchises as “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “National Treasure.”
“I’ve always liked stories that have a magical element, and this film is one of the great magical stories of all time,” he adds. “We thought it would be tremendously exciting to develop the core of that concept into a brand-new story set in the modern world.”
From Walt Disney Studios, Bruckheimer and director Jon Turteltaub comes “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”—an innovative and epic adventure about a sorcerer and his hapless apprentice who are swept into the center of an ancient conflict between good and evil.

In the film, Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage) is a master sorcerer in modern-day Manhattan trying to defend the city from his arch-nemesis, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina). Balthazar can’t do it alone, so he recruits Dave Stutler (Jay Baruchel), a seemingly average guy who demonstrates hidden potential, as his reluctant protégé. The sorcerer gives his unwilling accomplice a crash course in the art and science of magic, and together, these unlikely partners pit their powers against those of the fiercest—and most ruthless—practitioners of all time. It’ll take all the courage Dave can muster to survive his training, save the city and get the girl as he becomes `the sorcerer’s apprentice.’

Set in modern-day Manhattan, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” might have some New Yorkers looking over their shoulders. “The idea is that sorcerers and the ancient art of sorcery are alive and well in present day New York City,” says Turteltaub. “It’s much more entertaining to show audiences the magic in things they recognize than to create something.” Indeed, the filmmakers transformed New York into a vortex of science and magic, home to battling sorcerers and playground for their powers.

While the film isn’t a remake of the classic Disney piece from “Fantasia,” “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” pays proper homage to it, a fact that didn’t escape the director. “’The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ has such a great Disney pedigree to it,” says Turteltaub, “and I knew right away that I’d be dealing with something that had to be excellent, had to be special, had to live up to its important role within Disney and the history of film. That piece from ‘Fantasia’ is as iconic as any eight minutes of film that has ever been created, so to be part of that was really exciting. You think, ‘all right, where do you go with that’—and that’s where all the creativity starts jumping.”

This new sorcerer and his apprentice are a far cry from Mickey and the blue hat. The live-action film is a contemporary take on the ancient art of sorcery, exploring good versus evil in a city where magic is abound in plain sight. “It’s a story about two quests,” explains Bruckheimer. “Balthazar has been searching the world through the centuries for his apprentice, and Dave then has to discover his true potential as a human being. Dave is a very serious student, and doesn’t need or want Balthazar in his life, or to be a sorcerer. If someone showed up at your door, and said that you’re really a sorcerer, you wouldn’t believe them either. But Balthazar is like a fly that keeps buzzing around, tormenting this poor kid until he succumbs to becoming this magical character, which I think every kid would want to be.”

Opening in SM Cinemas nationwide on Thursday, July 15, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International.
Visit www.SMCinema.com or Facebook.com/SMCinema for the branch directory, promos, and events for “The Sorcerer's Apprentice”.

50% Off at Pepper Lunch if Netherlands Win vs Spain in the 2010 World Cup Finals

Jeff
Pepper Lunch will be giving 50% discount on May 12, 2010 if Netherlands become the 2010 World Cup champions. This is a unique promo and only those who will be wearing an orange shirt will be able to avail of the discount if the Dutch become world champions.




All Pepper Lunch branches will give the 50% off on a Pepper Lunch meal and will limit the discount to one meal per person in orange. Like what my wife posted on FB, I surely am thinking positively and am cheering for Netherlands.



When Oranje become champions, the whole family will be going to Pepper Lunch to avail of this promo. We will be wearing our Netherlands 2010 World Cup home jerseys. Never mind that many of the players of the Dutch are quite old and experienced (not old enough to need some prototype 37-c cream). They have been in a very long winning streak and are just about to reach the climax of their campaign on the 12th! Go Oranje!

Friday, July 9, 2010

Oracle Paul "Psychic" the Octopus Video

Jeff
The Oracle Paul "Psychic" the Octopus Video predicts Spain to win against Netherlands in the 2010 World Cup. I do not actually believe this but it's just too funny to not blog about. Watching the video in Youtube and reading the comments make it look more ridiculous especially because many people believe it.



If you would look at the Oracle Paul "Psychic" the Octopus video, you would see that the animal, yes that’s what an Octopus is, just picked the box nearest to it. So there was really nothing supernatural or oracle-like in that. I am cheering for Netherlands, but if Spain wins, many people would actually believe this octopus which has become tradition in the major football matches.

Anti-Dutch fans may mock Sneijder and Robben about needing hair growth shampoo but they might just eat their words because those two heads may be the ones who would give Oranje the 2 goals that can bury the Spaniards.

Birthdays and Growing Older

Jeff
Psalm 90:12 “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”


I was chatting with one of our young people last night in FB. He turned 18 yesterday and I told him that he was not a minor anymore. Unlike many of the young people I talk to he did not want to grow older yet. Usually, young people want to mature fast, but this young man did not.

You see, he’s had a not so good childhood. His parents were separated, and he and his brothers were left with his mother who died before he turned 15. That left him to look after his younger brothers. He missed a lot of years in his life that many children enjoy – fun, play times.

This made me think about my own birthday which is coming this September. I will be celebrating my 35th birthday soon. And at this age I am sure that pretty soon I would need the help of the best anti wrinkle eye cream available. But aside from the fact that my body is getting older and older I should really be thankful that I have had a better childhood and generally a better life than this young man. Growing older is something that I should be thankful for with the blessings that God has allowed me to enjoy in the many years I’ve lived.

I just am thankful that the young man ‘s life did not come to waste or was not just thrown away because of the not good past he’s had. He is now following God and, with the help of our church’s youth ministry, trying to maximize his life and live it the way God has planned it to be.

Monday, July 5, 2010

The Medical Needs in Kibera

Jeff
In our visit to Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya, I encountered this medical clinic along the main road this very large slum area. (See photo below).



I did not try to go inside and see what services they offer and how they administered the different medical procedures they offered. But basing on the looks of the clinic I think a person who is not used to the kind of living conditions in Kibera would not entrust his or herself to be treated in this place. We hope that when we come back next year we would be able to bring a team of medical practitioners with us and offer some free medical assistance program or services not just to brothers and sisters in Christ in their area but to the rest of the community as well.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Active White Spa Milk Salt from Active White

Jeff
At the beginning of the month, I had the opportunity of trying out the basic facial service of Active White Health and Beauty Center. This facial center complements the company's consumer products especially their very popular Active White Spa Milk Salt which gives softer and smoother skin and is formulated to nourish and moisturize skin.



The Active White Spa Milk Salt from Active White comes in seven variants: Milk, Orange, Coffee, Avocado, Coconut Strawberry and Grape and these, plus their other products like acne cleansers, are available at SM Department stores, Watson's, Mercury Drug, Southstar Drug and other leading outlets.

The Active White Spa Milk Salt