Outage for Over 48 hrs
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Just a few hours after telling Ate Ellaine that the Electricity Corporation here (AES Sonel) has greatly improved on its services and that outages are no longer as rampant and lengthy as they used to be, one occurred. It was around 5pm on Tuesday and proceeded throughout the whole day on Wednesday, right up to about 6pm on Thursday.
Many at times, the corporation defends itself by claiming that the outages are due to natural factors beyond their control but the latest, which lasted a little more than 48hrs was clearly their fault since it was directly linked to bad equipment. At a road junction just about 15o meters from where my business place is located, there is a transformer that supplies a very large and highly populated part of the city. This transfer is heavily overloaded, causing it to fail from time to time. In order to reduce the load on the large transformer, a smaller one was installed but it seems the power of the smaller one was relatively negligible, so the problem continued. Each time the bigger transformer fails, technicians will climb up and try to make some fixes, which they normally should be aware won’t last for even a month.
The immediate failure of that transformer on Tuedsday evening was the installation of a new electricity line to an area with new constructions in progress. When the transformer failed, part of the town had power while the other part, mine, did not. On Wednesday, the electricians took out power from the other part of the city in an attempt to fix ours but failed since at the end, the other part of the city had full power but the voltage on our end was low, too low that it could not power my PC; just the florescent bulbs. On Thursday (yesterday), another attempt was made again but no one had any hope that the problem will be solved. Well, they tried there best and got things in order.
To everyone’s surprise, they didn’t replace the transformer with a new one as we expected. This is a sign of poor management. Had it been this was not a case of monopoly, Cameroon will have better and more constant electricity power supply.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
Yes, I Agree
By · CommentsI once watched a funny Verisign Commercial in which popular singer and rapper, Wyclef Jean, played the lead role. A woman approached him with a piece of paper to sign. Wyclef Jean immediately signed without reading. After that, the woman turned the other side of the page. Guess what? It was a very long agreement that stated that Wyclef Jean has agreed to be her aupair. Poor Wyclef. He underwent lots of trouble for that mistake and was constantly bullied and intimidated by that woman’s kid. At the end of the commercial… watch what you sign for.
At my former job site, there was a law firm upstairs. One day, a lawyer asked me to help him install software that can enable him play almost every known audio or video file on his laptop. I downloaded VLC player but was too busy to go and install for him. When he came checking on my progress, I simply gave him the software on a flash disk and gave him some installation instructions. I asked him to launch the vlc.exe file, and click on next, next, next and so on. At a certain point, an agreement will pop up. I instruction him to click “I agree” and click “finish”. “How can I just agree without reading”, he asked me. Well, read if you care.
Elvizy of Elvizy’s World also told me a similar experience with installation instructions on how an Orange Cameroon’s Internet Kit is configured and installed for use on a computer. The instructions clearly ask the user to click “I agree”, without any advice on reading.
Some websites and software advise users to read the agreement before accepting it. Some even use technologies that allow the “I agree” button to show up only after a period of time, about 5 minutes, to ensure that you have read it. Some will not allow the button show up until you scroll down to the bottom of the agreement page.
Do you read before clicking on the “I Agree” button?
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
How Do You Teach Kids?
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Teaching a kid can be a very difficult task since kids normally as not as “organized” as adults. No doubt they allow only the “old and elderly” to teach kids at the elementary level in Cameroon. Oh yeah, you got it. Only very experienced teachers teach at basic education level here. The greatest part of teaching a kid at a very tender age is not even getting the kid to know this and that, but to let him/her develop the interest of learning, the interest of wanting to know.
For a kid to develop interest in learning, the learning environment, starting with the teacher, has to be a very desirable and accommodating one. In order to make the lesson session less/not boring, the instructions has to make it light. It should be more of entertainment than learning. First of all, the teacher must have a strong sense of humor. Children learn better when they frequently have a laugh. Secondly, there should be a playground with some seesaw and toys. Third and not the least, the teacher must use models to teach so that children easily remember principles from such models.
Teaching models come in various types; sizes and shapes, but most of them are either just letters of the alphabet for spelling, numbers for counting, blocks for building shapes like rectangles, squares, triangles, etc. where these are not available, or not enough, an instructor can use some placards and draw white and dark circles on them for demonstration.
I have once been a very good teacher to my siblings and their friends but I always failed in one aspect. I never could keep my temper when a child gets unnecessarily naughty. Ha ha ha…
People often say “temper is the only thing one can’t get rid of by loosing”.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
The Significance of Birthdays
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After reading Ate Ellaine’s post about her birthday. I felt as though mine should be the very next day so that I can celebrate with friends, families and colleagues and have some fun too. Ha ha ha. Like Ate Ellaine, I was born on a 29 too, and so was Noela, but what is so peculiar about mine is that the 29th I am referring to belongs to February. Many friends ask me whether I do celebrate my birthday only on leap years. They ask if I always wait for 4 years to pass by so that I see another 29th February before I celebrate. Some do advise me to pickup 28th February or even 1st march, since first march is the day after 29th February and could virtually mean the same thing. 1st march? You got to be kidding. That’s completely a different month!
What is the significance of my birthday to me? Can I celebrate it on any day I feel like? As I Googled the web about the significance of a birthday, the most striking thing I found, obviously, was the celebration that usually takes place on one’s birthday. Searching further for why there should be a celebration, I taught that it all started right back, even before the birth of Christ. Primitive pagan cultures believed that evil spirits often visited people on their birthdays. To keep someone safe on his/her birthday, therefore, he/she was surrounded by well-wishers who sang and danced almost the entire day. The singing and dancing gradually evolved to a full celebration filled with eating, drinking, playing of friendly games, lighting of candles and making wishes… etc.
Coming back to my initial question, what will be my answer if someone asked me for the significance of my birthday? These are the things that will run across my mind to help me put the answer together.
GRATEFULNESS TO THE MOST HIGH: My birthday reminds me that God has seen me through a year and allowed me b part of the next year. Isn’t that great? I don’t want to think of death as something very bad, no Christian should, but being human, we really don’t want to leave too soon. We want ourfamily and friends’ company.
ANOTHER STEP UP THE MATURITY LADDER: Being one year older, on that day, I think of myself as a more mature person. Maturity comes with many trials and tribulations, one of them being responsibility both for self and for others.
DEEP DOWN MEMORY LANE: Wow! One year already? As I stand amazed at how fast time flies, I try to reminisce on the past to visualize my failures and successes. Most people say the past as yesterday and we always should let go. That’s true! No one can live in the past, but it is important to always look back in order to build better roads and bridges into the future.
A PLAN MUST BE LAID: “Tomorrows bread shall come tomorrow”, they say, but I strongly believe we should make a plan on how to fetch for tomorrow’s bread, how to used it, and how to preserve some for another tomorrow.
SPREAD THE WORD: With all the above in mind, there is one thing that must be done. You can’t keep it all to yourself. Letting those around you know is very important. So too is letting them be part of the fun. That is where the celebrations come in.
Happy birthday to all of you celebrating yours today. Making the best of wishes, for you, on your behalf.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
Sharing Computer Knowledge is my Passion
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I hate teaching. Of every dream I had as a kid, I never dreamt of being a teacher someday. No offence. Teachers are the greatest people we can find around us. They help us acquire one of the most invaluable tools in life, wisdom. To me, they are like cheerful givers. I love sharing and giving but hate teaching. So, here comes the controversy.
However, I have realized that I can’t just stay away from teaching someone something I know very well. Take physics for example. In my final year in secondary school, I was the one who took my class for physics practical sessions almost till the end of the year. I enjoyed teaching my mates physics because it is a subject that flows in my veins.
Another subject I will love to teach my mates is computer basics. I just don’t feel comfortable when I see mates who are not computer literate. One disturbing fact is that some of them have even spent about 3, 6 or 9 months in computer training centers but still very blank in the subject. Wheat do they teach them there? I keep wondering. Maybe they were taught all the theory they don’t need and were deprived from the very basic facts they ought to learn.
Personally, if taking a friend of mine on computer studies, I will like to start right away with the definition of a computer. Then I will continue with the various types of computers, laying much emphasis on laptops and desktop computers (desktop proper and tower).
The more you teach someone who wants to learn, the more you learn what you are teaching. I must admit that teaching my pals have made me more aware of the minute things I used to neglect, and this has greatly improved my computer usage skills.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
My Heartfelt Thanks To All My Birthday Well-Wishers
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Truthfully, I miss blogging. I really do. I feel like I am torn between the devil and the deep blue sea. You know, I wanted to write this article so many days earlier, to thank all who left their Birthday Greetings by way of Posts at their Blogs or through Comments.
Not being able to do so made me so uncomfortable during that period. But here I am to thank most profusely to all my Blogpals for their kindest of thoughts and wishes on my Birthday.
My health recovery has been particularly difficult because COMELEC, the government agency that I work for, is now tediously preparing for the May 10, 2010 National and Local Elections. I have had to work very long hours (overtime hours) till late at night. Work has become ever more stressful and it has an adverse effect on my blood pressure and Asthma.
Which goes to explain why I have been forced circumstantially to take time off from blogging. It will help me to get the much needed rest and regular sleep that a recovery demands.
There are days when my blood pressure rate allows me to smile and then there are days when it freaks me out. It is so difficult with the present work demands and would even be worse if I continued with my hours of blogging each day.
I wish to get back to regular blogging. Windy opposes that move now, saying that it should only be when I am more capable in controlling the causes that affect me. And that includes improving the ventilation and room temperature in my house too. I am going to do that very soon.
But back to where I was instead of all this morbid status about my health. My Birthday was celebrated on a scale that I never intended it to be. Health-wise and with my job demands I was not really in the best of moods to celebrate it. My mom protested and finally had it her way.
There were two celebrations held on that day. The first celebration was with my Office colleagues at work during Lunch hour. The logistics involved in transferring the cooked dishes from my home to the Office was a sight to behold 
Later in the evening, there was a celebration at home for my family, relatives and Church members. If there’s something about Filipinos, I can say that we personify “Party animals” as the term is used. It’s a very cultural aspect about the Filipinos and probably has something genetically linked with the Spaniards who once ruled the land for over 400 years.
My Family
With churchmates
Baby Ewoks giving me a birthday kiss ;-)
Yes, it was a memorable celebration. It was the day I officially turned 25 forever! Well, I will be until I invoke my right to change my mind. I know many of you will raise your eyebrows and will protest with so much vigor but hey!
It was my birthday so please… give me some slack
My birthday cake :-)
I was not able to complement it with the same energy over here at Blogosphere but let me say this: I miss you all and Thank You for your thoughtfulness, blessings and personal good wishes across my blogs,via SMS, Email, Friendster and Facebook. You all know who you are
Above all, I thank the Lord for the new lease in my life.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
Most Men Hate Taking A Woman to the Market
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…even in a supermarket where all items are tagged with non-negotiable prices, there is still a problem.
Women are generally skilled at shopping than men. They love shopping. I guess it is their desire and passion that rapidly builds up their shopping skills. Above all, women are patient. They don’t care going round the whole market over and over until they get the Link To Copy: best Buy for the product they are looking for.
Women, generally have that natural skill of matching a product to a corresponding price. They have a very high bargaining power. Most women start by offering to pay as little as less than a quarter of the seller’s proposed price, and end up buying for less than half. This is not only time-consuming for a man accompanying a woman to the market, but also boring. A woman, generally, won’t pay until she is quite convinced she can’t find it cheaper.
Sometimes, the price is not the only problem. Brands cause even a greater problem. While a man thinks a computer is a computer and any will do the job, the woman will critically go into investigating Dell, Compaq, Gatway…etc, until she settles on one before the bidding starts. Most men won’t have that patience.
While a man needs just a few minutes for the shopping session to be complete and over, a woman has all the time in the world to choose and bargain. So, ladies, don’t be surprised your man is not wiling to accompany you to the market. I am talking from experience. Ask Noela. I almost get angry each time I go shopping with her. She doesn’t care. “Baby, you look and sound sexier when you are angry”, she teases. “Can I have more of that dare-devil look”?
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
WWW means Welcome Weight Watcher
By · CommentsIf there is any truth in the saying, “you can’t have the cake and eat it” (in the metaphorical sense), it would apply to what has become a distinct clarion about the dangers in uncontrolled eating habits and growing obese.
Like most of my fellow countrymen, I am enticed by food. I suppose this craving for eating lots of everything especially at Parties and with friends for meals has a lot to do with how the media has relentlessly brainwashed spectators and audience with advertisements.
Recently I read more about BMI, something I had recently published in an article here. That’s one practical way in realizing how I am performing with my health, by verifying my Body Mass Index.
While reading through articles about the same issue, I stumbled on fat burner and it is an effortless way for anyone who lives an imbalanced lifestyle, loves to eat too much and is inconsistent with keeping a healthy weight.
Now that would change the axiom that I can’t have the cake and eat it? – (in the literal sense)
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
It is time that my home interior needs a makeover
By · CommentsMy family has been living in our present home for 10+ years. Over the years we have made improvements around the house. We never took a holistic approach with all the changes that were introduced and how that would affect the family in the long run.
Well, firstly, it is not easy to get all the family members to agree when choices are to be made. Then, it is also being short sighted when costly improvements are made piece meal without looking at the overall finish.
We do not live in a large house and that itself makes it even more difficult when it means adding a new item to the rooms. Well, not until I discovered about plasma mounts.
These furniture solutions does make a huge difference where room space matters and they are aesthetically better than what we presently have all our rooms cluttered with – which is old fashioned, space-grabbing furnitures.
This time we are going to work smarter at our home makeover.
I wish you blue skies and all things nice,
I Beg Your Pardon
By Scotty's Princess · Comments (1)Of late, I’ve been receiving messages that the Comments feature at Lainy’s Musings was not working.
It would not accept Comments submitted. A message appeared immediately after the Submit button was clicked.
The message said:
The most brilliant old man, Windy was informed about it and poor old man, he had to find a needle in the haystack.
After a bout of frustration and totally disheartened, he took a break then came back and whacked the problem out of sight.
To make the long story short, this blog had to be redone and even that did not stop the problem.
Windy has a secret that I failed to understand and did not follow his instructions before and a hacker managed to find a way and to link his Oops script that redirected anyone who clicked on the Submit button after completing his Comment.
In the meantime, we have to be patient while good ‘ol Windy gets everything back to ship shape for Lainy’s Musings.
Please be patient, Lainy’s Musings isnt floored yet.
Dream On Hacker!!!
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