My Tatay Passed the Real Estate Appraiser Examination 2014! :D

First off, what is an appraiser? As Wikipedia puts it: 

"Real estate appraisal, property valuation or land valuation is the process of valuing real property. The value usually sought is the property's market value. Appraisals are needed because compared to, say, corporate stock, real estate transactions occur very infrequently. Not only that, but every property is different from the next, a factor that does not affect assets like corporate stock. Furthermore, all properties differ from each other in their location - which is an important factor in their value."

An assessor is for government properties, while an appraiser determines the value of private properties. An assessor is automatically also an appraiser, but an appraiser cannot be an assessor until he passes the licensure exam.

The licensure exam took place last July 13, 2014 at the Manuel L. Quezon University over at Quiapo, Manila. But before this day, Tatay had to take review classes from Cesar Santos that spanned a month of whole-day review sessions and he would even review at home. A few weeks prior the exam he would stay up until the wee hours of the morning just studying and solving problems. Imagine someone in his 50's who was still willing to go through all that effort to pass the exam... it was very inspiring!

I kept asking him if he was nervous but he just laughed it off and said he had faith in God. :D

Come exam day, me and mama were in full support of tatay and accompanied him to the exam venue.  Unfortunately there wasn't an allotted parking space, but we were lucky we got there early so we got to park right beside the gates. Mama didn't want to walk around the place so we spent the whole day just stuck inside the car. Thank goodness we had newspapers and other reading stuff so we didn't really get too bored. I think I even blogged there. Lol.

I managed to take a couple of snapshots from the exam venue so well here's what it looked like:

Aaaand before we knew it, the exam was over. The exam took one whole day (just like the UPCAT!) and  Tatay got tired so we headed over to Pancake House at the Mall of Asia to eat.

We only found out the results about a week after, but it appears that they already released it 3 days after the exam. Turns out the exam was harder this year, with just a 36% passing rate. Buuuut yeheees!! Tatay passed!! Yeahmeeeeen!!

You can find the complete list of successful examinees here:

http://www.prc.gov.ph/uploaded/documents/REA0714se.pdf

I am SO SO SO SO proud of Tatay! Of course we're really grateful for all the help that God has blessed us with, BUUUUT you have to admit that you really won't go anywhere if you don't put hard work into it.

So! If there are any real estate properties, both privately or government-owned, that you would like to have appraised, just contact me or hit the comments section below and I'll refer you to my Tatay, okay?? It appears that there's a lot of technicalities involved in these things that you really need a professional to work these out. My father is also a licensed real estate broker, you can visit his Sulit (Olx) page here for available properties (majority in Laguna, Cavite and Batangas area).

So yes, contact us! :D

Congrats again Tatay!

Behold the Loomband Craze!

Don't you find it fascinating that in the era of smartphones and Facebook, tiny little rubberbands in different colors have suddenly become a huge hit?

Loombands are pieces of colorful rubber bands that one can 'weave' and turn into happy bracelets. Rainbow Loom, the company that popularized loombands as we know it, was started in 2011 by a Malaysian named Cheon Choon Ng, based in Michigan. With only a $10,000-investment, Rainbow Looms have taken numerous playgrounds, classrooms, and homes all over the world by storm.

I personally don't do loom bands but I'm really fascinated by all these Facebook posts I see from friends who have become addicted with these. One of them is ate Flec, almost every weekend she posts one or two "themed" loom bands and people rush to buy them hahah. I love how she's able to mix and match colors to come up with really cool representations of various themes. Here are some samples (all photos taken from their Facebook with permission):

Belgium Origami

Red Velvet

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Oh Phoenix!

When did you last have a dream-come-true moment?

Mine happened last January 21 at the World Trade Center, because I finally FINALLY got to watch Phoenix live!!

If their name doesn't ring a bell that's because they aren't very popular in Manila save for a couple of songs like 1901, Everything is Everything, and Lisztomania. They're an indie band hailing from Versailles, France, their music has alot of 80's vibe and techno-psychedelic-rock going on. To me they're the kind of band that you don't dig for the lyrics because they're quite hard to understand, sometimes I feel like Thomas Mars (vocalist) is just blabbering hahah. You DO understand them eventually, but that's after you have already fallen inlove with the beat and their music. They don't exactly have the most number of fans because they cater to a specific taste in sound, but the few they do have are DIEHARDS.

They were introduced to me by my friend Ron, I think 3-4 years ago (who I saw in the concert by the way) and I fell in love with them ever since. I have a copy of all their albums and I know them by heart (no not the lyrics though heheh). And I was one of the many who clamored for their visit. I did realize though that it may be a little far off since they didn't seem to have too many fans here. But the concert scene in Manila has significantly changed, with so many foreign acts coming in (though I wish the OPM scene could be even half as robust). Together with the release of their much awaited album, "Bankrupt!", we finally had our piece of amazing news, Phoenix is finally coming to the Philippines!! I swear I screamed!

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Simple and Meaningful Christmas :)

It's Christmaaaaaas!!! :D

I gave myself a 2 week Christmas break and I'm so giggly about it hahah! I'm considering this as a reward break from all that nonstop working that I used to do. For 5 years, a buzz of pressure was always at the back of my head, if I'm not working I ought to be studying, and if I'm not studying I ought to do something productive to make the most out of that precious, precious time. I know things are entirely different now because I can finally tell myself "hush sweetie, calm down, we've got time". :)

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Roomie Triple Date!

One of the things I'm really thankful for is how I've always had really awesome roommates. And my current boarding house is no exception. I may not be there all the time (specially on weekends) but I love how close we have become, and it's always awesome to have someone to girl-talk with at the end of a looooong day, or someone to borrow clothes / critique your latest get up/ share gossip with or simply just laugh your heart out. 

Sadly though, one of us is about to leave for Cebu, because she just had one of the most awesomest job offers in the world. Okay I'm exaggerating but it's an awesome awesome job offer nevertheless. So, a despedida partey is a must! And turns out it's one of the most fun we've had. Wee!

We had four super sulit hours over at Acewater Spa, followed by a bundat-sagad buffet dinner over at Yakimix, then a sing-till-you-drop session at HQ right in the middle of Guadalupe Whew!

Madame Meriam, Maila Senyora, and Lola Marshee. hahaha

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We just hit 5K views! Oooh Wow! :D

Haha ang kilig ko lang. This blog has hit more than 5000 views today. Maybe it isn't much considering that we've been at it for half a year, but hey it's got to be something! :P

We're having alot of fun doing this. Lately whenever we see something interesting we're like "hey pwede sa blog!". It's a welcome break from all the toxicity from work. And when I say toxic I mean toxic to the nth-level-(insert-more-expletives-superlatives-here).

We love how it's a really cool learning experience for both of us. He's learning how to take photos in varying angles, setups, concepts, lighting conditions, and moving subjects. While me, aside of course from learning more about tech, consumer needs, writing, and such, I also study the perspectives of the people that we meet and get involved with and I'm learning so much. What great opportunities are opened up to us if only we could let go of our prejudice. :)

And we're raring to do more! Yey! Live with Delight! :)

To everyone who has dropped by this site once, twice, and a couple more times, thaaaanks alot nakakainspire lagi. Heehee.

For now however, I need to focus on the upcoming exam next week (insert-nagging-Ray-here-HAHA). There's a Lenovo entry to be published tomorrow and after that, the awesome awesome HTC Butterfly launch (fangirl mode ON), though this will have to wait until exam is finished. We're really really EFFIN busy with work so sometimes we couldn't update blog entries right away but I guess it's okay. *Priorities*Priorities*.

By the way, meet Crimson, my new friend. He's my first teddy! Yes my first teddy at twenty-six years of age. When I was a kid I wasn't allowed to play with my bears because I had asthma. I like him so much I take him anywhere haha. And here he is nagging me to manage my time. Heehee.

Umayos ka Marshee!

I created a wordle for the page, wee!

Midsummer Night's Dream by Ballet Philippines : A Delicious Taste of Ballet

(This is the first post in a series of valentine dates that me and ray had. :) Not only did we have one, nor two dates, but we had FOUR. hahah amf! There's was a pre-valentine-simplejoys date, a valentine-working-date, a post-valentine-ballet-date, and a super date!)

For my valentines gift, I've been thinking of something new to give Ray, a new experience that we've never done before. I remembered our bucket list including a wish of watching a stage play together. Incidentally I dropped by my Ensogo notifications and voila! "A Midsummer Nights' Dream" vouchers were available for an incredible discount!

Official poster to A Midsummer Night's Dream

So I proceeded to buy for the two of us, then made a really nice envelop to hold it with. I handed it to him during our ice-cream-valentines-working date last Feb 14 and we were all set to go.

Tickets in exchange for the voucher :)

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How about some music? :)

It hasn't been very evident in this blog, but i actually love music.;)
I've always said that music is my gasoline. My loves range from rock to techno to funk to indigenous music. Okay lets add some pop heehee.

However for the past few months I've been running out of new material to listen to. The last upcoming OPM greats I've known are Franco and Tanya Markova. Everyone else seems to be sounding alike. Though I think Mr.Bones and the Boneyard Circus is promising too. But I'm yet to fulfill my dream of watching Taken by Cars perform live. I'm lucky to have caught Cynthia Alexander before she left though. I just still think that OPM has lost so much since NU 107.5 died. :( Jam 88.3 seems to be trying to replace it but ugh that's a different story. Ok I'm blabbing.

Back to my search, i hit a eureka moment when i stumbled upon this music blog obscuresound.com. It has got all the things that my playlist needs and it's really refreshing to hear awesome tracks from the other side of the world. I'm a new fan wee. I'm sharing a couple of them here every now and then. And maybe a song of the week from old classics. They won't always be radio-friendly and you may even find some of them weird, but to hell with it i'm sharing anyway. Just because I want to. :p

So heres my first find for 2013. "Sterling" from Spires. They're a progressive metal band based on Manchester, UK. (Yes i'm more inclined to Brit rock because the Americans have gotten a little too emo i dunno maybe thats just me heheh.)
Enjoy! :)

Photo-Stress-Busters

I think all sorts of careers get more stressful by the minute.

I used to think that what we do at work is more stressful than others, but sharing work-rants with roommates and meeting other people, made me realize that everyone else just leveled up. Expectations are higher because technology kept making a way to make everything easier and more convenient, thus more to do with lesser time. Or maybe it's the other way around: technology had to keep up with rising expectations. You see, easier doesn't always mean better (at least for us).

Stress knows no time, and doesn't give a damn. If you don't handle it then it handles you. Stress and work haunts us even until we get home. Fact is it has become a norm. And that's the sad part because it's the family that suffers the most. I'm fast realizing how much quality time with family and the people who matter, has become more precious nowadays, and making these moments count are just as important.

I came across Papa Ray's photos from his Christmas 2012 vacation and a much deserved break. What i have always loved about him is that he never fails to make his whole family feel loved and cared for even if he's miles away from them. And I just love how photographs are able to capture these precious moments that only happen once a year:

The queen of the clan: Lola Nita! :)

Baaaabiiiieees!! Super cute! :)

Pretty cousins, noh? :p

In spite of all this RH Bill brouhaha, who's to say that small families are better with wonderful smiles like that? :p

And below photo is from the birthday party of our dear friend's son. It was my first time to attend a Jollibee birthday party and indeed it was alot of fun! Baby Josh couldn't get enough of Jollibee! :)

Now I know why Jollibee is such a classic hit :)

I guess I can't blame the rising prices of cameras and other photo-gadgets. Pretty much like fashion, you don't really need high end designer clothes but you'd love to have the best quality anyway. And these photographs aren't merely images- they're frozen memories. A quick break and escape from the fast-paced environment that we have here in the city.

It doesn't really mean that we all need to burn money with those DSLR's. Almost all mobile phones already have their own camera and I'm still happy with the 5.0 megapixel snapper of my Samsung Wave. A photo may be pixelized and all but as long as it captures the memory of a moment well spent, then its worth much more than a high-end image of nothing but fake smiles.

So while we're all struggling to deal with stress levels at an all time high, let's keep counting those happy moments and just snap away. Yes? :)

Twelve-on-o-Twelve: A Year-end Gratitude List :)

There's been 365 days this year and 365 chances to live, to make it happen, and to let life happen to you. My 2012 has been FULL and AMAZING, that I can only end it with a heart full of THANKS. :D

So I compiled a quick list of of my top dozen super-thankyou-universe-dozen for the year (in no particular order) :D

1.      FINALLY managing to cut my "no-swipe's" at the office. bweheheh. I am one forgetful lady and I know it. But the most harm it has done to me was losing approximately 20-25 days worth of pay last 2010 only because I keep forgetting to swipe out of the office, and at some point got too embarrassed to file for adjustments. Thank God I was finally able to discipline myself to stick to a routine and effectively cut my “no-swipe” down to only 5 this year. Oi achievement na yun!

2.      The gift of “renewed” health. Sometime September this year, we went to a popular Chinese doctor over at Binondo, and I was diagnosed with ovarian cyst, gallstones, and fatty liver. FREAKY! So I went to a ‘real’ doctor and had all of these verified via lab tests and they all turned out fine. I know it’s just a bozo experience but this made me conscious with the things I ate because I swear I had a real scare. I even got to see a matured egg cell in my ovary during the ultrasound it was so cool heehee. I’m healthy! Yey!

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And Though It's Been Said, Many Times Many Ways...

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,Jack Frost nipping on your nose,Yuletide carols being sung by a choir, And folks dressed up like Eskimos.Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe, Help to make the season bright. Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow, Will find it hard to sleep tonight. They know that Santa's on his way; He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. And every mother's child is going to spy, To see if reindeer really know how to fly. And so I'm offering this simple phrase, To kids from one to ninety-two, Although its been said many times, many ways, A very Merry Christmas to you 

When I think of Christmas this song always plays in the background. :) I just love the classic rendition of Nat King Cole. Makes you want to sit in a couch as you feel your insides warm up :)

This Christmas has been very very meaningful to me, in the sense that a couple of things have inspired me to really share my blessings. This year has just blessed me with so, so, so much. And it really felt good to give it back to the universe, in a more significant manner. More so, when I knew that those whom I shared it with, badly needed a blessing. 

At one point it has gotten sooooo stressful. I mean I wasn't really used to it. I'm used to spending Christmas only fussing about myself, my family, my monito, some friends, and one inaanak. But this December was a different story altogether. All the extra-curricular activities and gift-giving/ gift-wrapping/ gift-hunting with schedules that are hard to beat, was almost driving me crazy.

But then when all was done and given, it felt very FULFILLING. :D :D And for this I have him to be thankful for. Thank you for really inspiring me with your ENORMOUS heart. :) :) Being with you is seriously life changing in all aspects hahah. 

"This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone. - Taylor Caldwell"

I think I just experienced the real essence of Christmas.  :) 

****

Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall.

- Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas

A Cab To BenCab

The highlight of our Baguio trip is fulfilling my 2 year-old dream of seeing the Bencab Museum. This is the Museum set up by National Artist Ben Cabreras in the mountains along Asin Road, Baguio. We took a 15minute taxi ride (main mode of transpo, all taxi drivers give the exact change! lol) and weeehew hello Bencab Museum! :D :D

AMAZING IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT. I felt like I was in a playground hahah. It's a simple three-story building, all painted in white, and with different rooms each having a different name: Erotica Gallery, Contemporary Gallery, Philippine Contemporary Art, Print, Patio Salvador, and the Bencab Gallery.

Daylight filled almost all corners of the place and made me feel like it tries to be one with the nature that it surrounds itself with. The white walls and simple cubic rooms provided the right backdrop to the different kinds of exhibits that the museum housed. The structure in itself is refreshing and awe-inspiring at the same time.

My favorite part of the museum is the Bulol Installation (see above). It's a whole wall filled with wooden images of people in a sitting position. Those are the Bulol's- gods of our Ilocano forefathers. Carved out from age old wood, these images are known to watch over crops and ensure abundant harvest and protection against natural calamities.

"Handcarved from hardwood abundant in the region, these primitive sculptures emphasize the male and female genitalia, representing fertility and abundance…"

 I kind of felt starstruck. This is actually an altar for the ancient gods, and couldn't stop myself from paying homage.

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Cars, Driving, and Such :p



So hot you want to lick it :p

I've always had a thing for shiny cars heheh. This is taken from a transport show of vintage cars by papa ray. Was browsing his photos when I came across this one. *Fell-in-love*Just like Asiong Salonga's car!

**

Tatay asked me "What if we upgrade your license to non-pro?"

Geez I wish I even had the time to finish our driving lesson sessions. I really get a kick out of sitting behind the steering wheel. :p

Tatay has got to be one of the best drivers I know. Basically because he knows how to enter a time-space warp every 6:45 am just to beat our shuttle to the pickup point, OR chase it all the way to San Pedro. Hahaha! Early morning thrills for ya! (And I enjoy the father-daughter talks we share on the road :p )

AND, he takes the ride so smooth you don't even feel you're chasing. Well unless he beats the green traffic light as it counts 3…2…1… SPACEWARP!

Haha. Must finish those driving lesson sessions this year. #notetoself

Hitting the Top, One Shot at a Time :)

You might have noticed that top right section of the blog no longer holds the "About Me" portion, but now has the "Contributors" link. Weee I'd like to welcome my co-creator for my blogs (and the love of my life :D ), Papa Ray! (applause!)


In a nutshell, I'll do the writing while he does the 'shooting', great deal, yes? :D

What I'm loving about this is that we both get to develop the things we'd like to do, and in the process get better at this, together :D

And I'm super excited! :D


*Singing* Because once we hit the top there's no stopping us! :D