My mom just told me this morning, "Bry, why don't we cut off our cable subscription?". Aside from our heavy cost-cutting measures nowadays, it would also be really practical to cut off our cable subscription since nobody's really watching anything everyday. My sister usually watches Star Movies during the weekend only. The rest of us, if we have time, only watch local television channels (like ABS-CBN). So we're actually paying for something we're not using.
And tada! Here comes Mr. Satellite TV. Why are we not transferring to using satellite TV? I'm not really sure where to find satellite TV providers here in Cebu, hihi. But one high school classmate really uses this kind of TV. I see a satellite dish outside their home every time I walk home from school. But I don't think so we'd have something like a Direct TV and Dish Network at home. Not really practical for us.
Since I'm not really into the TV anymore, I don't care if our cable TV gets cut off. Or maybe I will care later but now, I have other priorities and interests. Watching ABS-CBN is already cool for me.
Phew, whatta short update. :)
Last May 16, 2009, the Cebu Bloggers Society got to have a first-hand experience of Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort in Mactan Island, Cebu. With the warm welcome that the staff of Maribago Bluewater Cebu gave us, we made positive first impressions of the resort, the amenities and the service. I made a longer review about how Maribago Bluewater Resort promotes tourism and also about our experience in the resort. Here is a link to my post:
Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort Promotes Tourism, Invites Bloggers. There is also an available video which can be found here: Maribago Bluewater Video.
Here are some photos I took of the place when we went there last summer. These photos are taken by me and more of them are found here in my Flickr set.
A Jump to the Island of Sumilon!
After the great Maribago Bluewater Resort experience, we are now once invited by the Bluewater management to have a fun-filled day tour in one of their properties, Sumilon Bluewater Island Resort. Sumilon Bluewater Island Resort is located on tranquil Sumilon Island. The Island remains as one of Cebu's best kept secrets and is found on the southeastern tip of the mainland. I cannot wait for our day tour at Sumilon to come! Visit the Sumilon Bluewater Blog for more details.
Photo from pinoyworld.org
Oh yes, I am about to get 20 but I still don't know how to drive. Loser much? We have a car but I still don't (or probably don't want to) know how to drive.
Yesterday, while going home, a friend Catherine and I talked about how easy it would be just to take a cab home and not walk far to get to the terminal and ride three public vehicles. But that would be costly. The highest benefit would be convenience though. But then she said, it'd be better if you have your own car (and probably own driver?) to drive. Practically with that, anywhere is possible.
But let's just do some day-dreaming here. What IF I know how to drive? Would I just be driving some old and cranky car? I don't think so. How would I impress girls with such car? I'd probably be bringing it on with the newest and hottest car models zooming in and out of the suburban traffic.
Nissan 370Z
A sports car. Practically, a straightforward sports car with features like a wedge-like body style, two front seats, modest cargo area, and a 3.7-liter V-6 that pumps out 332 horsepower. Let the pictures do the talking. I'll talk after the pictures. :P
There's a silver version of the car but the blue one is uber-cool and hip and just right enough for someone my age. Thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/brokenpixels/ for the images. I imagine how many girls would stick to me after seeing me ride that car??
Ferrari
Here's another sports car but from the world-famous Ferrari line. Ferrari 430, termed 'exotic', is powered by a 4.3-liter V-8 developing 383 horsepower and equipped with a six-speed manual transmission. F1 variants use a race-style "clutchless" manual transmission which uses computer controls to engage and disengage the clutch. There are much more style and function features on the Ferrari 430, some of which my non-driver mind couldn't grasp well. Check out these Ferrari photos:
Uh, I'm drooling over those Ferrari's. The red looks hot but is ordinary. Yellow one's cool. Photos from http://www.flickr.com/photos/mart1n/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/erdero/.
Ford Fusion
With a blend of sharp edges and contoured surfaces, who would not want the Ford Fusion. After the line of sports cars above, here comes a car for luxury and power. Ford Fusion looks like a car for the likes of Brad Pitt or Oprah or Michael Jackson. The availability of "optional dual chrome exhaust tips (standard on SE V-6 and SEL V-6)," as well as an "optional sports appearance package: 18-inch alloy wheels, unique black chrome grill and rear-lip spoiler" distinguishes the Ford Fusion from previous models.
The Ford Fusion, even though sleek and huge for a family to fit in, is not really my type compared to the sports cars above. The Ford Fusion looks good as a family car. Well, for my family, that's why I wanted it too. Thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/38059972@N04/ for the pictures.
Buick Enclave
I've heard reviews of the Enclave telling it to be curvy and lean. The "voluptuous curves" and "graceful lines" are praised by the likes of Edmunds, while Road & Travel calls it "slinky". Well, probably I may call it 'sexy'. But it doesn't look sexy for me. It looks like a fusion of vintage and modern feel in a car. It looks like a dog, hehe.
The Enclave is also a family-friendly car with its wide space inside. Just read this Buick Enclave review to know more. Photos from http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetoad01/, http://www.flickr.com/photos/mileoneautomotive/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/8438327@N05/.
Those cars make it to my top 4 list. Why? Just look at the photos and they will talk to you. I'd willingly learn to drive ASAP if I were to be given any one of those. But all have to wait before I buy one and learn how to drive. For now, the pictures will just have to feed my eyes and fantasies.
Buzzz... This blog's a bit silent nowadays compared to my other blogs. Eh, I guess my studies are really sucking me in like it's one big black hole and I'm just a lowly planet trying to exist in the solar system. Doh, enough of the astronomy (I don't have such subject).
Dear Everything Online, I am sorry for neglecting you for a while. I will be back soon. Err, now. I am being sandwiched between school, work, blogging and blogging events. I feel like a tuna spread today! Aside from the blogging events that I attend together with my beloved Cebu Bloggers Family, there are also some teensy significant events at school that may well poked my interest a bit.
Number 1, my awaited yearly acquaintance party. Parteeh! And tradition says BEACH. I love beach! What I like about the acquaintance party at school is that I get to have a glimpse of the newest faces and the old unknown ones. I get to interact with them (since I don't greet strangers at school) and play games with them and get WET with them. Woohoo. This year's acquaintance party organized by our newest and very responsible (unlike last year's.. oops!) Computer Science Guild president, would be on the first of August and tentatively on Naga City, south of Cebu. I'm excited. I even wanted it to be on the 18th of July. Never mind, I'm cool with August 1 anyways.
Number 2, Computer Science Guild outreach program. I have no idea when where and how. I just know we'd be doing this voluntarily and I want to go to this event.
Number 3, Research Workshop. This has something to do with making our school a research-centered one. And this, they say, would help us graduate by injecting our idle minds with brilliant ideas for our thesis. I'm just quite fussed about the A(H1N1) scare they're bringing on.
Number 4, the yearly and biggest, grandest event in UP Cebu: COOK OUT. It's real parteeh til morning. I have complete attendance to all the Cook Out since I stepped foot in college. I will complete it! Probably my last Cook Out. Please. I am inviting everybody to be there at the Cook Out 2009 (Move UP) on August 7, 2009 at the UP Cebu Campus soccer field. Be there or be boring and bored. Heeh.
Well, those are four of some events I am looking forward to at school. See I'm no 'nobody' at school too.
In this millennium, almost all of us already have our own computers or laptops. These gadgets have been readily available to the greater public and prices have went down in the past years. But as a lot of us are getting 'online', so are the 'bad guys'. So who are they?
The more we indulge ourselves in the likes of social networking and blogging, the more we also divulge of our own personal (most often offline) lives. And did you know that no matter how boring you think you are, there will still be 'bad guys' who will want to consume your personal identity and most often, use it? The most common example would be credit card scams wherein one would accidentally give out account information and in the end find themselves paying for stuff they didn't purchase. Another example is when you are someone from the corporate world, most likely someone would try to 'break in' your hard disk to get some crucial and usable information. It might be applicable what they say in the medical world that prevention is better than cure.
Image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/matica/
But amidst the risks and possibilities, there will always be a turnaround to it. We could protect our computers and laptops! There are many free and purchasable laptop security tools that can be availed online or even offline. For example, a tracking software could be installed on your laptop to track it if it gets stolen or lost. A simple lock may be bought in local stores to bind your laptop somewhere so nobody gets to bring it anywhere you don't know. On the other hand, businesspeople may want to use hard drive encryption tools or software to protect important data/information that resides in the disk. This is to ensure that when stolen, the thief still won't be able to dive into the information kept in the hard drive. For the on-the-go people, a mobile data protection system would be a good choice. Anywhere in the world, there will always be people who will try to take advantage of what you have (i.e. the information you bring). Having an overall protection (data and gadget itself) would be a good choice when you are a person who always travels and do field work. Such protection system though won't be much of a use to home-bound persons.
Those few mentioned things are just some of the ways to protect your computer and the data that you keep in it. One should not wait for the time when you will lose it all. Now is the time to get alert and protect your computer, your data and your personal identity.
