The Makiav3llian Enchantment…

As the grammar freak that I am, I purposely misspelled INVADERS to put emphasis on the word EVADE. I was walking out from the Police HQ back to the bus stop when I spot this message in one of the shops. I just had to take a picture of this since it was really interesting… So leaning on the glass means, you will be thrown embarrassment or embarrassing remarks, so you better alert. So, I think it is better to AVOID being embarressed than evading it…

Older is actually the album of George Michael released on April 15, 1996. It’s pretty old and this is what I would like to blog about today, about being older… about being mature. This is the blog about the people who have made me Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger. Actually, there are a lot of people who have had major influences aside from my parents and my wife. Some relationships I have had lasted for years, others for months and some weeks. Regardless of the time I have spent, they have molded my way of thinking and made me a better person. I’ll just highlight the four people who recently have had some ripple effect on me and people I’d like to personally thank for making me better.
JV, 38, has been my teacher during my fourth year in high school and mentor who has showed me how to bring out my introvert self through writing. His passion of teaching rubbed off and translated to creative writing skills. He also showed me another world, another point of view when we were in the Philippines. We’ve had great adventures and I believe he was trying to get me to mature in ways of thinking. My views have changed and I’ve developed gutsiness and a voice through his guidance. He really has been a teacher to me, which I begin to realize that he was a friend to begin with ever since I stepped into his class.
Rain, 35, is a happily married mother of three and a nurse. What she does at work, translates to the how she deals with people outside of work. A healer of sorts and very loving towards her friends and family. She actually taught me the word "platonic" and people can survive simply with love and compassion from friends. One of the other things I remembered was getting that “family” feeling and helping out with outreach programs to pre-occupy my mind. The first time I met Rain was one of the more meaningful ones I have had in Dubai, aside from earning a little from the part time . The word I would describe her the best is "There is no such thing as a "guilt-free" lunch!"
Lyndon, 42, is a single Dad in search for the woman of his dreams and the perfect mother for his son. I can’t help but admire him for trying hard. He’s been very active on the dating scene. One of the things he taught me was more of the man’s chauvinistic attitude which actually kind of opens my mind. It was particularly about relationships particularly when dealing with women and how to suppress any forms of affection towards them. He made me analyze and think about "Why are you looking for a commitment when you are already committed?" It could be misinterpreted but I actually understood it in the right way which basically means a lot if it is regarding infidelity issues. When dealing with women, the mindset should always be something friendly and nice, nothing more. Draw the line, set your limitation, have fun extending or flirting with the line but never ever cross it.
Finally, Ruth, 34, a mom of three kids, separated but committed to her boyfriend. Oozing with confidence, honest, intelligent and knows what she wants. Ruth is what I would call very liberated in ways of thinking but should not be mistaken as promiscuousity, actually taught me something from the "Book of Men." "Every man is polygamous there is nothing I can do about it. Screw around if you wish, it’s your nature but just make sure you never fall in love… kung hindi unfaithful ka." These words are things you would wish your partner would say because to some extent it’s a good excuse to fool around as long as "you don’t fall in love." It actually works with me because men always deny this fact. The thing that strikes me the most is how true this statement is and then the way you think and analyze a situation is different. The point is, these are the words I would like to hear but when you apply it, it becomes a subliminal warning and I think it just makes you more conscious about what you are doing.
Basically, I’m 30 now and I still see this whole adulthood thing with child like eyes. It might be just be me but being at this age, I still feel that I am dealing with over grown kids, or is it because I deal in a child-like way. I have friends who at 24 already have their own plot of land; I have friends starting up only at 28; I have friends who already have a setup system at 27. Am I in the right company? I mean when is it time to realize that you are an adult? Age, money, job security, materialistic things, achievement in work, being married, are these the basis of maturity? Regardless, I am what I make, I know my situation and I am thankful because with the older company I keep, I don’t have to go through aches and pains just to find out what my four friends have gone through, they’ve shared their stories and I’ve absorbed it and adjusted to suit my style. My word of thanks, NO, you haven’t created a monster, you just made the world a better place for one person.
Work It Harder, Make It Better, Do It Faster, Makes Us stronger. More Than Ever, Hour After, Our Work Is Never Over…

My taste in music is quiet queer. I have to admit I hate love songs and I always let people know that. It’s kind of silly to be listening to this type of music when it plays with your emotion, I basically stuff this song down the drain. The last song I heard that did play with my emotions was Lea Salonga, one of my wife’s favorite artist. I mean it’s not that I’m dissin’ them or something but it I just hate it when the heart gets dictated.
Apparently my other tastes range from pop music to the best of OPM bands. Alternative rock was always a choice, referring to my previous entries, Oasis always captured my heart but I did always find myself going back to E-Head, Parokya, True Faith and Rivermaya (of old). I just can’t seem to find the soul of the new OPM artists these days. Of course, I did make a jump to house and dance music. Bonnie Bailey screwed me bad, that’s for sure, she was like a hypnotic love song on 75BPMs. Loved the song, hated the emotion. Then came Benny Benassi and the thing is that I’ve found my home in this music genre. If you check my Friendster.com account - House, Hardstyle and Dance is my music preference. It contains no emotions just an infectious beat. - and by gosh, the rush it gives me.
On the next evolutionary chain, I moved forward and now I am hooked into Hardstyle. I am basically back in my comfort zone since I have been a lover of Techno and Trance music. Although one of my artists that have influenced my music was 2 Unlimited, the genre they were in was not Techno, I would refer to it as Pseudo-techno since it never was techno, it was dance music pretending to be techno, regardless, they have been a major contributor to my taste. Hardstyle music is quite weird for the majority, it actually is a form of club music with an underground roots, you wouldn’t like it unless you really are into sounds with high beat rates, so hip hoppers, casual dancers, beware.
Wikipedia defines it as - Hardstyle, sometimes referred to as hard bass, is a sub-genre of trance music that is closely related to nu style gabber and hard trance - In plain English, it’s type of music with hard bass beats and repeats itself over and over again. Lol! It’s pure high speed hard bass with electronic/synthetically manufactured music. It’s pretty difficult to explain but you can check out the samples from Youtube.com

Hardstyle Disco - Yoji Biomehanika
Scantraxx Rootz - Headhunterz
The Darkside - Alpha Twins

I am not a really good dancer but this style of music actually defines the type of movements I make. It’s doesn’t soothe or heal but big bass that passes through my body, it’s as if extra adrenaline is being injected up my spine. I just love it and as I embrace the Melbourne Shuffle one of my two left feet has become a right… unfortunately, it’s a right arm! Hahaha!

I just wanted to blog an entry today, thanking my lovely wife and congratulating my lovely daughter. Today is my daughter’s recognition day! As you may all know, my daughter has a little speech delay and she has made great strides in improving through the help of her teachers in SPED. Although her progress isn’t good enough yet to have Isa and Angie move back to the UAE, I am proud of what she has achieved this year. I can’t thank my wife enough for being so supportive of Isa. I love you Babe, thanks for making it happen! To my Mom, mother-in-law and the other people involved helping directly or indirectly, this day goes out to all of you as well.
I’d also like to congratulate my wife for her first salary and thank her for the treat out she “sent” us. We enjoyed it! I’d like to thank Mike for giving Angie the opportunity to work and earn as well.
Last of all, I’d like to give a big thanks to the MAN above. I know everything is done for a reason and I can’t be more thankful for the graces you have continued to bestow on me and my family. It hasn’t been easy but I’ve been able to make it this far, thanks to them!

As a requirement of due process, I was asked to present a Police Clearance to my (secret!). As you may need to present authentication of your clean records to a new employer, embassy or anyone requiring to know how clean your soul is, this is the procedure you need to know on how to obtain a Police Clearance. In the United Arab Emirates, the Police Clearance is also known as Certificate of Good Conduct, I honestly couldn’t help but chuckle on how it’s called since it looks like a school boy access pass to the bathroom.
To start of the entire process, you actually need to go to the Criminal Investigation Department located at Dubai Police Head Quarters [map] near Al Mullah Plaza going to Ghusais, there is also an existing office in Bur Dubai for those living in Satwa and the surrounding areas. The process to obtain this is actually not that complicated however, because of a slight “literary” barrier, it makes the whole thing tedious. The process is to simply inform the "desk" sergeant that you want to get a Police Clearance, once you get the application form, you are asked of three things:

1. Original Passport with Copy
2. (2) Passport Size, personal photographs
3. An Applicant must be holding at least six months old residence visa from UAE.

Aside from this, there are two sides of the form, one in English, the other in Arabic. Now this is where things get a little bit messy. If you are an Arab and write on the form both English and Arabic, they accept it. If you, particularly Asian, ask, they want you to go to the typing center and have it typed out. Unfortunately, there is no typing center in sight and the nearest one you can find is across the street… Oh let me correct myself, across the Al Itihad Street (Sharjah-Dubai Highway/Tunnel), where there is no existence of a footbridge and with the ongoing construction of the Dubai-Sharjah flyover, there most likely never will. So part of the painful process of claiming your innocence is actually getting to the typing center and you can only get to the other side by going towards the Al Mullah Plaza Roundabout and going to the Old Labor office, which is inconveniently located, where else but on the other side.
Once you actually get to the typing center, nothing special occurs, they just check your visa, copy the details and type it out. They charge you 15AED for the whole thing and you have to painstakingly walk back to the police station. After giving the paper to the sergeant, he makes a final assessment and asks you to pay up at the counter. You pay a fee of 110AED, be given the date to pick up your Good Conduct Certificate (yes I am smiling) and will be asked to go to Room 10 for a photo and finger print scan. Basically, the 110AED is payment for all the high tech equipment used to tag you and paper they use to print your certificate. Despite the latest technology of the Sagem scanner, it took me 15 minutes to complete the whole thing as sweaty palms prove to be the downfall of this device. “Pilipini problem…” grumbled the corporal. Anyways, after 15minutes of scan-error-try again-wipe-scan, it was done with. It took me 1 hour to get the walking and typing done, 25 minutes for paying and scanning. Over all, the cost of your innocence is 125AED, which is quite a big amount if you ask me… and without a typing center near by, it’s not just money you spend, you might add time as well.