The day I turned 32. 8/11/11
8:42 AM at 8:42 AM Filed under: Author:
Aug 12, 2011
32.
In terms of age, it is said that when one turns 32 he or she is already beyond the calendar since the most number of days for certain months is only 31. As such, the term is "lampas na sa kalendaryo". Thus, many who go beyond 31 do not already reveal their age.
In my case, I am proud and happy to say and share that last August 11, 2011 I turned 32. I believe that age is only a number and the years ideally show and reveal that we become more experienced, more mature, more ready to face bigger challenges and more willing to grab great opportunities. What remains the same is the celebration of my birthday with and for others.
Since 2008, I have celebrated my birthday with kids and families. It is my way of sharing my blessings and celebrating my special day with those who will appreciate it the most. My twin annual birthday special projects are called the Kasadyahan Pangkabataan ni LEX yr 4 and the Pabunyag sa Syudad ni LEX Tupas yr 4. For this year, the beneficiaries of the Jollibee kids party are the special children and their parents with the help of CSWDO. More or less we served smiles, laughter, games, food and drinks to 100 people. The feeling is priceless to see children smile and laugh as we gave importance to these children as well as the parents and day care workers who find the time, courage and wisdom to take care of them well. In the afternoon of my birthday, we were able to help baptize 32 indigent babies and kids at the Alta Tierra Parish. The babies and kids were accompanied by their parents and God parents. These new God sons and daughters of mine add to the more than 100 God Children that I have as a result of the mass baptism. After the baptism officiated by Msgr. Jamuyot, we treated the parents, God parents and other guests who were more or less 450 people to a reception, unlimited drinks and shakes, gift balloons and diapers, and many more.
What was different this time is that I celebrated my birthday on the day itself. For the past 3 years, I celebrated it on the day of my age but since 32 goes beyond the days of August I decided to do it on the day itself. What stayed the same is the support of generous individuals and groups who want to help in these noble endeavors and this time many more offered help in making the celebrations bigger. I would like to thank my wife, Dr. Candice Tupas who made sure these projects continued and were made bigger, to my Nanay (fmr Mayor Myrna Causing Tupas) and Tatay (fmr Governor Niel Tupas) who always support me in my endeavors, to my parents in law for the strong support, to Cong. Jerry Trenas and Mayor Jed Mabilog who supported the projects, to Fruit Magic for the unlimited shakes served, to Jollibee UPV Branch for the support, to PEPSI, to Aldente and Steps of Rome, to Bayani Cafe, to Zip-O purified drinking water, to my staff, to Glicaz that even on a short notice accepted the job of catering the event, to my media partner for this project ABS CBN Iloilo and also to GMA Iloilo for featuring the event, to my friends from the media, to Randy, to the Alta Tierrra Parish that has been the home for this project for 4 years already, to the people who would like to stay anonymous and just would like to support this endeavor, to my leaders, friends, relatives and supporters and to everyone, the gratitude will always be present.
LEX ACP Year 4
8:29 AM at 8:29 AM Filed under: Author:
July 31, 2011
Another special project of the Office of City Councilor LEX Tupas is the LEX ACP or the Labor Employment eXperience Alternative Career Program, now on its 4th year.
It all started in year 2008 as a joint project of my office and DepEd Iloilo City Schools Division. I thought of this project as a way of guiding young students particularly graduating 4th year high school students and graduating college students to choose the right and best fit course in college and career after their schooling. In short, it was a career guidance program. Who would be best to guide them I felt were those already enjoying and thriving in their chosen alternative careers. These are jobs that are not confined to the 8am-5pm regular working schedule.
For this year's LEX ACP yr 4, it was held in the Socials Hall of DepED Iloilo City Schools Division Compound last July 25. Even if it is already on its fourth year so many firsts for the project happened. It was the first time we held the project just barely a month from the start of the new school year. Usually, it was held before the graduation season. The reason why we started it early this year is because we wanted the students to have ample time to decide well and properly for their future. Another first was that the venue was standing room as the ground level and upper level of the socials hall were jam packed and full of about a thousand students in just one time for one event from the various public schools and some from private schools. For the past years, we had about four hundred to five hundred students per year but this time it was double the number. Furthermore, we limited the number of alternative careers and resource speakers to make sure that we had more time for the speakers and for a more fruitful seminar. The topics were about working in Theater by Mr. Kevin Piamonte, Business in the Information Technology Communication industry by Mr. Francis of Acclaim Internet Cafe and Broadcast Journalism by Carol Velagio of GMA TV Iloilo (also the media partner since LEX ACP started). Moreover, it was the very first time we had a lot of snacks, raffle and prizes for our guests and students courtesy of Mayor Jed Mabilog, Acclaim Internet Cafe, Deocampos Barquillos, Zip-O, Fruit Magic, AMA Computer College Jaro Branch and Tibia Fish Spa SM City Branch.
I am very thankful, blessed and happy of everyone's growing support for the project. We hope we have guided our young generation in making well thought of and well informed decisions that is critical in their success in school, career and their lives. We look forward to having thousands and thousands more of students next year as we continue this annual special project and it will be LEX ACP yr 5.
I would like to end with my usual spiel, para sa padayun nga kauswagan sang atun nga mga kabataan kag sang Syudad sang Iloilo, UGYON Kabataang Ilonggo, UGYON Iloilo. Ilonggos are worth working and fighting for. LEX Talk again next time.
Happy Anniversary NewsExpress
7:04 AM at 7:04 AM Filed under: Author:July 22, 2011
23.
23.
The following are some of the interesting facts with the number 23 based on Wikipedia:
In Mathematics, "in the list of fortunate numbers, 23 occurs twice, since adding 23 to either the fifth or eighth primorial gives a prime number (namely 2333 and 9699713). Moreover, based on the birthday paradox, in a group of 23 or more randomly chosen people, the probability is more than 50% that some pair of them will have the same birthday".
In Science, "normal human sex cells have 23 chromosomes.Other human cells have 46 chromosomes, arranged in 23 pairs".
In Sports, "23 has been worn by and sometimes retired for a number of few prominent athletes". Everybody knows that Michael Jordan wore number 23 when he played professional basketball with the Chicago Bulls and, later, the Washington Wizards. "Australian cricketer Shane Warne wore the number 23 during his career; Don Mattingly of the New York Yankees wore number 23; the New York Yankees retired the number in 1997. Ryne Sandberg, of the Chicago Cubs, wore number 23, which was retired on August 28, 2005. Bob Nystrom of the New York Islanders wore number 23 and has had the number retired in his honour. Upon signing for Real Madrid from Manchester United in 2003 David Beckham found the number 7 shirt that he had always worn at Manchester and while on England duty occupied by Madrid hero Raúl. He declined the offer of the number 4 shirt recently vacated by departing captain Fernando Hierro and instead picked the number 23 in deference to Michael Jordan.When he then moved to MLS team Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007, he again chose to wear the number 23 jersey".
In Music, "The Church's 2009 studio album is called "Untitled 23" and interestingly, Blink-182's hit song, What's My Age Again? claims that, "nobody likes you when you're 23" ".
In Film and Television, "The Number 23 is a 2007 film starring Jim Carrey and In The Matrix Reloaded, the Architect tells Neo it is of utmost importance to choose 23 people to repopulate Zion".
Today, another interesting and important 23 has come and this is the 23rd anniversary of The Best Alternative, News Express.
The News Express has been bringing much needed information, ideas, interesting opinions and great features not only to Iloilo City but to the whole Region of Western Visayas for over two decades already and to be exact 23 long years. It is not easy for any media outlet, business endeavor or establishment to have a lasting and staying power but News Express was able to do it with the support of Region VI most especially its loyal readers. It has even recently expanded its reach by having its own website, newsexpressiloilo.net. With such, Ilonggos all over the world can be updated of what's happening in the region wherever they are in the world at a click of a finger.
News Express is also known not only for its high quality reporting and journalism but also for its exquisite look and printing. It is also one of the papers known for its awesome features and lifestyle pages. For coffee lovers, it has served as a companion and guide. For those who love showbiz and entertainment, it has made its readers part of the mentioned names in its updates of interesting news.
News Express is headed by our very capable, able and dynamic editor, Mr. Reming Castor and assisted by hardworking and very competent staff.
Congratulations to NEWSEXPRESS on its 23rd Anniversary and we look forward to more years and decades of public service through continued high caliber newspaper reporting and journalism.
Being Debt Free
4:39 PM at 4:39 PM Filed under: Author:
July 12, 2011
Wikipedia defines Debt as "that which is owed; usually assets owed, but the term can also cover moral obligations and other interactions not requiring money. In finance, debt is a means of using anticipated future purchasing power in the present before it has actually been earned. A debt is created when a creditor agrees to lend a sum of assets to a debtor. In modern society, debt is usually granted with expected repayment; in most cases, plus interest".
Debt or commonly termed as "utang" in our country is literally so common that it is hard to find people who do not have debt at all in one way or another. There are some who incur debt to have capital for their business endeavor, to buy a car or a house, to go to school, to have extra funds for other purposes and some just use their credit cards or take loans to buy wants that they might not be able to afford without the loan.
I hear a lot of people who couldn't wait to receive their salaries because they need to pay debts or say that they have a very small take home pay due to automatic debt payment deductions. I have also heard about people burying themselves in loads and loads of debt some due to wanting so many things in life that might not be needed at all or due to their gambling activities.
Sometimes, a lot of people don't notice that they are just paying for the interest for the loan and not yet the loaned amount itself. This leads them to years and even decades of being in debt.
Who doesn't want to be debt free? Who wants a stress free life? There are suggestions on how to manage debt and be debt free. According to wikihow, there are five main steps to make this happen or possible. First, one should assess his problems. How much money do you owe and to who or whom? What ways can one pay for it just like the need to get another job or to sell some of his or her things. Second, one might need to change his behavior. If debt is due to overspending or deficit spending, one should do some budget planning. Furthermore, a good suggestion was to bring a frugal friend when shopping to give good advice. Third, it is best to itemize one's highest interest debts. Start with credit cards since they usually have 3 percent and above per month interest rate then car payment next mortgage, etc. Moreover, it is advisable to pay off the one with the biggest interest rate and to pay off the loan with the smallest balance left. Fourth, if priority debt is payed off, the amount used for it on a specific time basis can be used to pay off the next prioritized debt. Fifth and final step, try to prevent having debt. Every pay check or profit sharing, put aside some money for necessities, bills payment and savings. Also, put aside money for non-necessities so that one can buy a want without incurring debt. If one uses his credit card, it would be good to pay it off in full every month so as not to incur finance charges.
According to wikihow, "Most people try to live beyond their means to temporarily improve their quality of life. This only makes things infinitely more difficult in the future, and impossible to overcome in older age". There is nothing wrong with enjoying life and living the good life but this might get complicated if we put ourselves in debt that leads to stress and years of struggle. Lastly, there is nothing wrong with taking loans most especially if it is due to an emergency or a need for (additional) capital to be more productive so as to earn more.
July 6, 2011
Wikipedia defines bullying as "abusive treatment, the use of force or coercion to affect others, particularly when habitual and involving an imbalance of power. It may involve verbal harassment, physical assault or coercion and may be directed persistently towards particular victims, perhaps on grounds of race, religion, sex or ability. The "imbalance of power" may be social power and/or physical power. The victim of bullying is sometimes referred to as a "target." Bullying consists of three basic types of abuse – emotional, verbal and physical. It typically involves subtle methods of coercion such as intimidation. Bullying ranges from simple one-on-one bullying to more complex bullying in which the bully may have one or more 'lieutenants' who may seem to be willing to assist the primary bully in his bullying activities. Bullying in school and the workplace is also referred to as peer abuse. Robert W. Fuller has analyzed bullying in the context of rankism. Bullying can occur in any context in which human beings interact with each other. This includes school, church, family, the workplace, home and neighborhoods. It is even a common push factor in migration. Bullying can exist between social groups, social classes and even between countries".
Most of us have probably experienced dealing with people who feel superior than us and would not only stop in acting superior but would even do things such as bullying to show their perceived strength and authority over us. Thus, it becomes disrespectful. Bullying as what was mentioned in the previous paragraph can happen anywhere, at any time and to anyone. Bullying can result to one being afraid, paranoid, intimidated, controlled, abused, exploited, disrespected and put down. Apparently, bullying is an act of exerting power over someone.
I feel for the student being tripped on, the so called "misfits", the unique and different people, the small people, the underprivileged, the faceless, the voiceless, the less influential people who are going through or have gone through bullying and all those who allow themselves to be bullied. The fear in their eyes every time they see the bully and the paranoia they experience after getting bullied are things that we get to notice from them. Some cry, some shiver, some relocate, some change careers, some decide to just stay home, some become distant and some become afraid for the rest of their lives.
Bullying will only happen and will continue to do so if one allows it to. From the onset, we should not allow anyone to be disrespectful and to show force, use threat or intimidation to get their way especially if it is irrational and senseless. If we allow it once, it will just mean that we are giving them the go signal for it to be done to us. Thus, it becomes a habit and a norm for that person to do such an unacceptable act to us. Let us not tolerate it. We should know and learn when and how to stand up for ourselves.
Bullying does not have any place and space in this world, in our country, in our city and in our communities. If one wants to get his or her way, it should not be through bullying but rather through diplomacy and persuasion instead. Let us work well with other people and let us treat each other with respect regardless of age, social status, position, level of influence and power and the like.
I would like to end with my usual spiel, ini liwat ang inyo amigo, abyan, primo kag sulugu-on sa Syudad sang Iloilo, Iloilo City Councilor LEX Tupas, gasiling para sa padayun nga kauswagan kag pagsulong sang Syudad sang Iloilo, Ugyon Iloilo. Ilonggos are worth working and fighting for. LEX Talk again next time.
