You Got Tech

You might've heard or (hopefully visited) You Got Tech, a blog that I launched on New Year's Day with friends from all over the country (and two are currently blogging from other countries!).

So, why a tech blog for non-techies? I do not consider myself a techie person. I do not hold a computer science degree and the only programming class I took was logo programming when I was in fourth grade (and I remember nothing about it!). So my sob story is - a couple of tech blogger friends made fun of me when I was just starting out to blog. I am never shy to ask questions or help when I need it, so I was quite surprised that my friends made fun of me because I was asking questions about IT personalities they knew. Sorry, but my interests are different.

I meet a lot of people, from very techie to geeky to technologically-challenged people and I had the chance to get feedback how these people learn the ropes. For those who try to learn on their own they said they read blogs and ask questions too, but have experienced getting laughed at (like me). Sad noh?

After some careful thought and a couple of rounds of iced tea (yeah, iced tea) with my friends one night in Davao we thought of coming up with a blog for non-techies. They urged me to go make one, but I realized that I cannot do it alone and that I have so much more to learn so I bugged them to join (we're still looking for a blogger from the Visayas region).

So, You Got Tech is a tech blog for non-techies. Expect topics to range from gadgets, new media marketing, tech for business, mobile, IT education, vlogging, photography and whatever we think is interesting. We also want to learn to, and have fun in the process, so expect kinks and funny stuff to show up as we all go through the journey of learning about technology (ahhh you might just one day see us with a You Got Tech dance, all in the name of having fun hehehe... abangan).

Here are some episodes and posts we've put together in the past seven weeks:

Episode 1: Fuji Camera
Episode 2: 02 XDA
Episode 3: iPod Touch
Episode 4: Kodak Easyshare V603 (my secret vlogging sauce)
Episode 5: Getting Inspired to Vlog (from the vlogging expert Cokskiblue)
Episode 6: AJ of BaklaAko.com Talks about his Mobile Phone TV

We also have bits and pieces of introductions here and there, some talk about living the mobile life, losing a PC, and how to maintian your PC. Keep in mind the blog is forever going to be a work-in-progress.

For questions and what-nots and whatever, email us at info @ yougottech.com.

Sige na! Haba na ng intro ko, bisita ka na! And don't forget to add us up in your list of reads.

An Apple a Day on Blog-o-Rama

Something to be giddy about...

I'm the featured blogger on Annalyn Jusay's Blog-o-Rama column today (February 25,2008), so go grab a copy of Manila Bulletin. Aside from the usual "why do you blog" questions I also answered an interesting, unique query on "Should you date a blogger?" (LOL)... well, should you?


I'll scan and upload a copy later today when my Mom finishes sweeping copies up from all the nearby suking tindahans.

Thanks to Sweetie for fixing up my header. That was a candid shot while I was blogging and he just surprised me with a new header a week after, sure beats the madre look I had in the previous one.

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Managed to swipe a copy from my Mom. My Dad said he'll post a copy in the bulletin board in his office... arrrgggh! You can view the article here or here.

My Favorite Pinoy Pasalubong (Delicacy)

It goes without saying that I will gain weight whenever I step out of Metro Manila. Who wouldn't? I have quite a number of posts at Lakwatsera Ako featuring all the sumptuous food I've been gorging on whenever I get to travel.

Here's a list of my favorite pasalubongs:

1. Vigan - longganisa

2. Baguio - ube, chocolate krispies, kornik

3. Pampanga - tocino

4. Bulacan - pastillas

5. Lucban - longganisa, broas, apas, galletas

6. Bicol - anything made of pili nut, and I love the mar'kina of Moderna Bakery

7. Kalibo - suman

8. Bacolod - napoleones, piaya

9. Cebu - mango, dried mango, dried fish

10. Cagayan de Oro - Vjandep pastel

11. Davao - durian candy, suha

12. GenSan - tuna (good for sushi!)

What about you? What's your favorite Pinoy delicacy? Craving for some but out of the country? Head on over to Pinoy Delikasi and I bet you when you meet it's owner, Jovel Cipriano, he'll tell you to order some fresh mangoes (he always mentions that whenever I see him during Digitalfilipino club eyeballs).

Hmmm... thinking about all that food made me hungry.

Blogger Made Me Blush!

It was such a huge surprise to be mentioned at Blogger Buzz and I thought I should make a welcome note for all those who discovered my blog through the post. I would like to say MARAMING, MARAMING SALAMAT PETE and ERIC for being such great friends. You just don't know how kilig I get when I get notes from you (I'm a fan! I'm a fan!).

And for those who’ve landed here at An Apple a Day, a warm welcome and MABUHAY to you! I hope you enjoy your visit and keep coming back! You’ve landed though in my maskipaps, halo-halo personal blog and may want to visit my saner blogs: Stitching (work), Lakwatsera Ako (travel), Twisted Wedding Planner (wedding stuff which is being fed to Kasal.com), Tales of the Moonless Sky (ghost stories) and my baby vlog You Got Tech.

For my kababayans, we do have a very active blogging community in our country and I've made friends with quite a number from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. I would like to make a couple of suggestions on where you can find more Filipino bloggers -

iBlog
Pinoy Bloggers Society
Top 10 Emerging Influential Blogs of 2007
Mindanao Bloggers
Philippine Blog Awards

We had a great blogger year last year with so many parties (like Taste Asia) and I think Karlo gave a great year-end recap on what happened in the Pinoy blogosphere last year. There's loads of upcoming blogger events and rumor has it there's going to be a bash at Taste Asia again!

Thanks for dropping by!

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Translations
maraming, maraming salamat - many, many thanks
mabuhay - long live
kilig - giggly
maskipaps - whichever way
halo-halo - all mixed up (not the local delicacy! ha-ha)

MYMP and an Engagement

I was clueless about how we were going to celebrate V-day (a belated one). All I knew was we were going to Megamall to meet a friend and drop by an expo. By Friday night I was already going crazy over the surprise (OC ako eh!) and was trying to wheedle it out of Sweetie all night, to no avail. So, I had to wait!

After the meet-up, surprising Richard Poon (I bet he never expected us to show up in that event), and hyperventilating at the expo (thank God for the huge electric fan at the Megatrade Hall), I was whisked away to the Metrowalk area, still clueless about where we were going. I was just told we had to eat dinner and then we had to go and "claim" the gift.

I was then given an envelop and in it were 2 tickets to MYMP's "A Valentine... So Perfect" concert at the Meralco Theater. I did not realize immediately that the concert was about to start in 30 minutes and that Meralco Theater was just a stone's throw away. I had to ask, "Kelan ang Feb 16?". Me, the dodo. I finished my dinner in no time.

I love OPM. I've said that time and time again and I just cannot help but feel starstruck whenever I meet an artist and I don't think I will move past being a fan. Anyway, I couldn't help but giggle last night when we arrived at the Meralco Theater. Why? Because the whole place was filled with lovers! Mag-jowa! Magkasintahan! Good thing I have Sweetie because if I didn't and attended that concert I would've ended up depressed over the lovey-dovey feeling in the whole place.

Juris and Thor

The last time I watched MYMP was back in 2006 at the Araneta Coliseum with my friend Mabel (and we sat at the bleachers!) and I truly enjoyed watching them. Juris gave a heartfelt rendition of "Bukas na lang Kita Mamahalin" and Chin gave a powerful performance of "Kisapmata". They also introduced what I'd say would be the Philippines' version of "Rod Stewart" - Tata (hope I got that right). Thor also graced the occasion and did a duet with Juris, "Be My Number Two" (check out his album "Soul Obsessions" it's really good).

I've heard of surprise proposals - done in concerts, with famous authors, or even as scavenger hunts - but I've never witnessed one (planned some yeah, but not I have not witnessed one). Juris announced that they were going to name someone "couple of the night" and while she was singing, photos of different couples were flashed in the screen. The couple in the final photo was called down to the stage and were given some flowers and gifts.

Juris asked the girl to give a message and she just said, "Thanks sa treat, happy valentine's and... I love you." The crowd cheered! Sino ba naman di kikiligin nun? Then the microphone was passed on to the guy and he was quite formal at first, greeted Juris and Chin, the audience and then he said, "Juris I hope you don't mind if I say a few words." The audience suddenly became silent. And then the guy said, "Hon I spoke with your brother 3 nights ago..., " the audience started going wild here, "and I told him `ang kapatid mo ay mahal na mahal ko at siya lang ang mamahalin ko buong buhay' and then I told him that I want to take care of you," then the guy kneels down , "Hon, will you marry me?"

Of course the girl said "Yes" and after the guy placed the ring on her finger she started pounding his chest (and was probably crying already). And then Juris sang "Love Moves in Mysterious Ways". Awww...



Check out photos of the concert at the MYMP Band Multiply account.

It was a great day. I definitely made the right choice =)

The Rubberman: Mark David Cerezo

So, I'm laying off the love and relationship posts for now. I'm probably freaking out a lot of people (most especially my friends from other countries) already. Hehehe... sorry.

Anyway, in the past couple of months I've met soooo many people. Interesting, funny, unique and even weird people, and persons who I think would really go a long way. I've chatted with some of them and I'll be posting about them from time to time.

Mark David Cerezo

Some of you might have seen him on TV already coz he's been featured several times on shows like Unang Hirit because of his very interesting and unique hobby - making costumes out of rubber.

Yup rubber.

I met Mark backstage during one event and I got to chat with him and found out that he just accidentally learned how to make these costumes. He was just asked to watch over another guy who was giving lessons on costume making using rubber. He found out that he enjoyed playing around with making things out of scrap rubber. Made some costumes, joined some cosplay gatherings, joined contests and won. He is set to compete in other countries in the coming months and is being sponsored by the Marikina City Government for that (but he needs more sponsors!!!).

I was quite happy over meeting Mark because he's got so much passion in him. Very unassuming, humble and open to anything. Congratulations Mark and good luck in the contests you'll be joining! (I'll send you some tips on how to cost-out your stuff, I promised!).

Mark accepts orders for costumes. If you're interested, please email me privately and I can hook you up with him.

Photos from Mark (copied with permission!).

Single Awareness Day

This day last year I was a singleton celebrating Valentine's Day... in an airplane. Arrived in Manila at around 10 in the evening and waited for the printer to deliver some materials I had printed. I was also rushing about since I had to be early the next day to do ingress for an exhibit. Little did I know that the person I had a belated Valentine's merienda with (well not really to celebrate Valentine's) would become my Sweetie!

I couldn't stop laughing over my dear friend Sorsi's recount of how her family and friends in the US have been trying to set her up with someone, anyone actually. Head over to That Girl Was Me and check out her latest adventures. I know I'm the one to blame for some of the horrors she went through recently and I try my best to cheer her up and motivate her to hang-on and aim to get the best. Hey, I waited years before I got found by the right one and here's how I managed to hang-on:

1. I read books! I went through Joshua Harris' "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" and "Boy Meets Girl", Greg Bernhardt's "He's Just Not Into You", "The Rules" (forgot who the author is sorry), and the best was Bo Sanchez' "How to Find Your One True Love".

2. I met boys! At some point I really didn't want to date anymore. I made a mandate not to date anyone for a whole year after my last relationship. Why? To prevent rebound since it was a 7-year long relationship. I only actually started dating 2 years after only to get frustrated since I didn't realize that even friends would be such boleros. After reading Kuya Bo's book, I kept myself busy and did my homework of meeting 5 single guys every week.

3. I made friends! I will not be a hypocrite and say I did not start falling for some of them, but hey I'm a girl and it's quite easy for girls to fall. I knew though when to stop and did not give my heart to any of them. I also made it a point to keep the boys I met as friends (save for a couple who became Mr. Hyde after a while). I also managed to make a lot of new friends last year from all over the country (and the world).

4. I made peace with my past! It's kinda strange but I always felt that I would only find the right one once I made peace and put closure to my past. It was kinda weird but each one of them just showed up one by one early last year and the last one just popped up just before new year.

5. I kept busy! My work kept me sane since I was always doing one thing and another. I also tried out doing new things, bugged old and new friends. I remember Kuya Bo's book had a list of suggestions on what you could do as a singleton.

I did give up and thought I'd remain single forever. Good thing the Daddy and son tandem I had as seatmates in the airplane kept me sane. I made up my mind then that my life would just be about my family, work, some interests and perhaps study for a doctoral degree, but maybe, maybe because I was closer to heaven when I was saying my prayer, God heard my last plea and granted my prayer.


Here's a funny video that's quite appropriate for Valentine's day -

Valentine's: What a Girl Wants

I was quite surprised to see my blog's traffic shoot up the past few weeks. Why? Because of Valentine's! Funny, but I get traffic from keyword searches about love and relationships. LOL. I'm no "Dear Abby" or "Ate Helen" (but I do have a lot of experience)! Maybe I should niche on that? Hmmm... And a post about "What to give your crush on Valentine's day" has garnered a bit of interest.

Valentine's is about 11 hours away and I'm pretty sure a lot of guys are scrambling around for last minute gift purchases and planning. Baffled on what to do? To give? Here are a few friendly tips to wow your girl:

1. Surprise her - you don't need to spend a lot of money (or anything at all) to make a surprise. I'm very lucky with Sweetie because he's very creative and he manages to create excitement even with the smallest things. Try greeting her differently this year by creating a card, a coded message (ala Da Vinci Code), wrap a small gift with a huge box, let her discover things on her own, or kidnap her and bring her somewhere special.

2. The bouquet - I am honestly going crazy over Sweetie's plans for Valentine's. I've been getting a rose every single day since the start of February and he's been dropping a lot of clues about THE V-day. I was quite tomboyish when I was a kid (I climbed trees, went over da bakod etc.) and my crush back then had his friend ask me if I wanted flowers. I said no. I was putting up a brave front then, siyempre pakipot. His loss, he should've just given them. You don't actually need to buy flowers. Be creative. Why not create a lollipop bouquet? Sketch flowers on a card. Make paper flowers. The possibilities are endless.

3. Sweets for my sweet - my parents have been married for almost 50 years now and my Dad never fails to give my Mom chocolates during Valentine's and year-in, year-out she's still very kilig about my Dad's gesture (lately I'm the one buying it since he doesn't really like going to the mall). It doesn't have to be expensive either. A pack of Chocnut costs less than PhP30, Chocolate Crunchies' less than PhP50? A chocolate basket perhaps?

Don't have a Valentine? I always had Miguel as my Valentine since he was born and my best friend who I force to give me flowers haha. There's always your Mom, your sister, a girl best friend who you could make happy this Valentine's.

I wonder what Sweetie's up to hmmm...

P.S. Check out my Valentine Revelation at the Twisted Wedding Planner.

Filipinovela: The Never Ending Political Drama

So, we are in the midst of another drama where we find ourselves glued to the news, listening to the radio, or following Manolo's twits (I prefer following Manolo's twits, it's less stressful and distracting than watching TV). We've been through this countless of times already, but no one really sees the end of it. Why? Because no one really gets imprisoned from these things. The trials just go on and on until the public forgets about it... until the next drama special.

I care very much for our country and would rather do what I can than really speak out (or blog about it). I am a political scientist, but I never practiced it because I learned early on that if you want change to happen then just shut up and do something that you can actually do. Back in college I was the angry Filipino, some would say aktibista, I immersed myself, attended a couple of rallies, wrote really good political papers (that's what my professors said), and a lot thought I was going to end up being a politician. But I disappointed all my political science and legal management professors by turning myself into a corporate slave.

Why? Because I got tired of being angry and reality was biting on my heels even before graduation. I had Miguel and my primary responsibility then was to earn as much as I could. I did that and got myself a masters degree to better our lives. When my Mom and I went into the export business I got to handle about 10 blue-collar workers who were literally living hand-to-mouth. We tried the best we could to given them stable jobs, housing and whatever help we could, but at some point we had to give up because the market for the product we were producing dwindled.

It was then that I appreciated that I could actually make a difference to many more businesses and (lives in the long run) by focusing on work that would help a business sector that directly deals with the grassroots Filipino worker - the exporters. So that's the job that I consciously looked for when I finished my MBA, and lo and behold, I got a job to be a product manager for an online exporters directory. Whatever I did worked and I was moved to handle a much bigger directory (for all types of businesses now) and that's when I really actively did service for entrepreneurs and exporters by giving workshops on how to market one's business (both offline and online). I always enjoyed my work because it's what I want to do and I've been so lucky because everything's been a natural progression of things.

Eventually I moved on and I think I could safely say that I am very much happy with what I am doing because I think I am making a difference in my own little way, especially for kids. I can go on and on with the things that one can do because I hope that's what I am doing. I have long ago stopped writing criticisms or what-not. One thing I learned from writing for our parish newsletter (and Riza Singson and Kuya Jomar) is inspirational writing. What's the point anyway in lambasting people/companies/events/whatever? Whenever I want to prove a point, I just do it and don't wait around much for others when I am bent on doing something. Funny, but one question that Boy Abunda asked yesterday on The Buzz was, "If you were at door of heaven and St. Peter asked you, `Why do you deserve to be in heaven?' What would your answer be?" (Sorry, I just really have this funny way to tying up the most mundane of things, LOL).

Which brings me to answer Janette's question, "What are the important issues that should be tackled during the 2010 Philippine election?" Maybe I should just make my undegrad thesis downloadable huh? Well that one tackled specifically the youth sector (Sangguniang Kabataan) hehehe, but I don't want to bore you with two volumes of our masterpiece (awarded best thesis! hmph! both my thesismates are in the private sector too).

Lemme enumerate what I think are very important issues (and just please interview my Dad `bout it hehe):

1. Education - let's bring the core back and make everything else context.

2. Food Security - why do you think prices are going up? That's because there aren't that many supply anymore (I'm sure my friends over at IRRI would agree).

3. The Environment - when I was a student I attended an environmental summit hosted by then DENR Secretary and former Senator Heherson Alvarez and the issues back then were quite a mess, what more today.

4. The Economy - what's the ratio between exports and imports now? I haven't really checked lately and I always thought that we should work on exporting more because that would create more jobs for Filipinos. We're really experiencing more brain-drain more than ever.

5. Love, I mean, moral recovery. Love your neighbor is the golden rule after all and everything else follows. When are we going to stop being selfish? You can earn millions, but at the end of your life you cannot bring this with you.

My parents always make me vote and I do choose carefully who I vote for, even to the last barangay kagawad. I also always bring Miguel with me whenever I vote because I want to show him that exercising that right is important. If you don't vote, then hello stop complaining and do something within your neighborhood to help. If each one of us did stuff in our own little way, then there's still hope after all.

I am a very positive thinker kabayan and you should too. What do you think you can do to end this drama so that our country will finally have a happily ever after?

Mabuhay!

To Post or Not to Post Everyday

Here are reasons why I don't post everyday:

1. I could write up to 5 posts in a day if I'm in the mood, but, more often than not, I'm not. My muse is very moody and when she doesn't want to write, you just can't make her.

2. If I really wanted to post everyday, I could, but after a long day's work, sometimes it's just nice to hang around doing nothing (a.k.a. doing mindless surfing).

3. I'm probably living my real life. That's what my best friend says when she doesn't find me online. A.k.a. I'm most probably hanging out with Sweetie and Miguel and having the time of my life.

4. I'm probably overwhelmed with my blog backlog. Yup, I do have a lot of posts lined up but I don't know where to start. I even have a small notebook where I write down what I'm supposed to post... like about E-Yellowpages winning the Philippine Web Awards again (hey! congrats guys!!! ako siguro balat noon noh? I think your events portal Juice.ph is kinda cute).

5. I want to keep a secret. LOL.

If time wasn't an issue, would you post daily?

Kung Hei Fat Choi!

I hope I got the spelling right... I've been seeing so many versions of it all over town and I don't know which one is right and I'm all messed up too on how to pronounce it.

Yesterday was another dizzying, hectic day packed with loads of events and activities and this has effectively sunk me even further down my blogging backlog. I'm at least a month behind. I'm pretty excited though to share everything that transpired yesterday:

(1) Getting Over Stage Fright even further. I've never been to Aliw Theater and I never dreamed that my first time would be for a speaking engagement. My parents thought I was holding a concert! LOL. Photo by Sweetie.

Yup that's me speaking in front of a couple of thousand students.
Never in my wildest dreams believe me.

(2) Meeting Happy Slip. I always look forward to Christine's videos because it's funny and entertaining. I've influenced quite a number of friends (and students!) to watch her as well and I was glad to meet her yesterday at the Yehey.com and Department of Tourism sponsored meet-up at Mag:net cafe at Bonifacio High Street. Too bad I had to leave immediately, I had an appointment with times <28> people hehe. Special thanks to Jonas, sensya na I couldn't be of more service yesterday (I wasn't feeling well din).


(3) Fireworks at the Mall of Asia. What's new year without fireworks? Before heading to the last event of the day we dropped by MOA to grab a bite and realized that there was probably going to be a fireworks display. It was my first time too at the San Miguel Bay Walk.


(4) Guji Lorenzana. Guji is a new artist being managed by Lucas Records and he recently launched his album "Without Your Love". At his video launch last night at 19 East, Guji shared that he is a Fil-Am and before coming to the Philippines (due to a broken heart) he auditioned for American Idol 3.

Drastic Change



Without Your Love (carrier single)



Happy Chinese New Year everyone!

Parokya ni Edgar: Macho

I always look forward to watching videos of Parokya ni Edgar, they're entertaining and funny! Watch this -

Pineapples! Pineapples! and more Pineapples!

So this post isn't supposed to be here yet since I've got a long line of posts I'm supposed to make, but I'm just really excited to share about seeing so many pineapples (mountains and mountains!).

Anyway, my good friend Honey brought me to the Del Monte plantation in Bukidnon one sunny Sunday morning. I've always wanted to go there, but I've always been in a rush. Good thing I had to give up white water rafting and had to find another thing to do in Cagayan de Oro.

So, Honey picks me up at the hotel at around 10 in the morning and we proceeded to McDonald's for breakfast (one gets tired of eating hotel silogs... don't laugh but I had the longganisa meal). And then since her associate, John, couldn't make it we took a drive up the mountains of Bukidnon (which is just a few hours away from Davao!) and lo and behold, this is what I saw -


Mountains! Literally mountains of pineapples! It was a refreshing site indeed. I dunno, but I got really excited about it and had a photo taken with the largest pineapple of all.


After walking around and failing to see a ready-for-picking pineapple (Honey wanted me to steal one! I was so relieved when we didn't find any! Hehe.). So I just posed like I was trying to uproot one lol. And, of course, despite all the eating we've been doing prior to the trip, I was still up to the challenge of trying out the famous Del Monte steak at the Del Monte Golf Club. What differentiates it from all other steaks is the fact that the cows were fed with pineapples and that makes them more juicy. Yumyumyum!


Funny though... I'm allergic to pineapples! Haha.

Britney Spears and the Philippines

One of my favorite past times is watching MYX and I got fascinated watching Britney's latest MTV "Piece of Me" where she mentions our country in the song -

I'm Miss American Dream since I was 17
Don't matter if I step on the scene
Or sneak away to the Philippines
They're still gonna take pictures of my derriere in the magazine
You want a piece of me?
You want a piece of me...

I wonder why the writer pointed out the Philippines... any ideas?

P.S. I was also surprised to see that one of Britney's videos on her Youtube channel had over 20 million views! Wow!!!

I'll Take Care of You - Richard Poon

When Sweetie said we were going to attend an album launch I was quite excited since it's been awhile since we attended one. I got more excited when I was told that Richard used to be with U-Turn (remember their hit single "It's You") and when I watched the music video "I'll Take Care of You" on Myx.

I have become a fan! (Photo by JayDJ)

I had no idea that his album would be very much different from all the other album launches I've attended. His music genre is that of the "standards". (Gulp! Standards! I thought it was my Mom who should've gone but... but... read on...). He said that he never dreamed that he would go into that genre. A lot of people actually doubted that he could pull it off. BUT! Richard who used to be a chef for their family business is a very talented singer, musical arranger and you'd know it's true when you listen to his songs. He started doing the standards (forced by his manager) for a charity event, and let's say the rest is history. Here's Richard talking about why he tried out the genre -



Richard believes and hopes that his music would bridge the gap between the young and old generation. I know the feeling because my Mom forces me to listen to her favorite singers - Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett etc. - and these are Richard's influencers for his music. I'd say I truly appreciated the way he sang old and new songs in his unique "standard" way.

Check out how Richard turned pop music into the standards (really cool!) -



You may want to check him out in some videos I took during his album launch -

I'll Take Care of You (carrier single)
Goodbye (para sa mga emo)
The Last Time (for those in love)
Way Back into Love (feel good!)
Dance with Me and Kahit Maputi ang Buhok Ko
Quando Quando (duet with his sister)
Moon River

I certainly enjoyed Richard Poon's album "I'll Take Care of You". A must buy! Bili na!

For more information about Richard poon check this out.

Life Lessons from George

I've had George for about 4 years now. I remember the day I got him with 3 guy friends. It was quite memorable because I almost had to throw buckets of water on them to stop the mounting brawl that was sure to ensue had I not stepped in to clarify what I really wanted.

You see, George is my desktop PC and I brought 3 guy friends with me the day I bought him at PC Express.

Lesson #1 - Don't bring along 3 geeky guy friends to help you buy your PC. Why? They're going to end up besting each other over the specs for your PC. My 3 guy friends weren't speaking to each other on the way home.

It took about 6 months before George stabilized for use. I had almost given up on him, but eventually my PC doctor managed to shape him up for use. The place where I bought it wasn't very helpful at all, good thing I had my long-time PC doctor help me. I vowed then never to buy from that place again.

Lesson #2 - Buy only from trusted sources and places that have good customer care. I used that principle when I was scouting for a laptop.

I diligently backed-up my files (especially photos), but I always feared that one day George will go into a coma and not wake-up. He was acting up in the last quarter of 2007 and I backed-up my files every 2 weeks or whenever I felt that I had to.

Lesson #3 - Always back-up your files and follow your instincts when you feel that you have to do back-ups.

I unfortunately did not follow my instinct to do back-up before I left last week for CDO. I also forgot to change the passwords so that my son could not use it since I felt that George was on the brink of a collapse.

George went into a coma. His registry files were corrupted and deleted (I have no idea how) and good thing Sweetie taught me how to find remedies by searching on Google. We printed out a 5-page recover document, but I had to set it aside for a couple of days since I was quite busy with work.

Lesson #4 - Do not panic. There is always a remedy for everything.

And so I went through 5-pages of support, doing things that I never imagined myself doing. The last time that I dabbled with the command prompt was about 7-years ago when I had to provide technical support to myself since our family business consisted of me, my parents and 10 workers. I was the only one who knew how to turn on the computer. The companies I worked for always had tech support and all I had to do was dial their local and they came to the rescue. I became lax, good thing Sweetie brought me up to speed on how to resuscitate George. I had to stop at some point though for fear of accidentally deleting my files.

Lesson #5 - Do not allow your skills to go rusty. Keep it and improve on it, BUT get help when you need it.

At least I'm not emo or panicking over my files. I have back-ups on CD and on Happy (for photos). My only angst is on rebuilding my iTunes. Pffftt!