The Dubai Chronicles: Rebirth

about dxb chronicles

The saga of Jeff living in the City of Gold. Presently living in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, unravel his journey throughout the city with memoirs and everyday life stories.

even in this place, the fuel price increases

according to the newspapers, starting from midnight tonight the prices of petrol will increase from dhs4.75 to 6.25 per gallon. diesel will go up also from dhs6.30 to 7.70. it's been years since the price of fuel changed.

rent soared, basic commodity increased, even the shawarma increased their price before. it will hurt less from western expats and other high-earners but it will affect more from the middle class people like ours and torment further the poor and people who are doing blue-collar jobs.

the only thing that doesn't increase nowadays is the salary...

discoursed by jeff @ 1:47 PM | 1 comment(s) | permalink

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

playstation and auh

finally, we got our playstation 2! last night, i bought this from a friend at a very cheap price. actually, it's not second hand, the only defective thing is the box ripped through the sides. i checked the merchandise and everything is good. now, the only problem i'm having is i have to convert it to ntsc because right now its on pal / secam mode.

today was a very hectic day for us. we had a meeting in abu dhabi and finalizing some projects. the drive from dubai to abu dhabi, if you're driving a car, is around one and a half hours. if you're goin' on a public transport, it will take you two hours. the distance is around 160 kilometers (according to the road signs). while on the road, i've taken some shots (will posted later) and talk about everything to my colleague just to keep him awake. i've noticed also the speed radars. if you're in dubai, the speed radars are targeting you on the front but when you reached the borders of abu dhabi, they're "shooting" you at the back. either way, you are required to reduce speed below or up to 120kph. it's kinda bumpy...160kph then abruptly slow down to 120 then back to 160.

as soon we reached the city center, we grabbed some lunch at i-forgot-the-name resto. we had mixed tikka and a pepsi. it had two beef kababs, muttons and chicken tikka plus fries (chips to some). quite spicy (mild to them they say) but tolerable. after lunch, we headed to the meeting...

...unfortunately we got lost. good thing they called up their office and got there. my colleagues who've been there forgot the place. i've been to abu dhabi once but i remember the location in no sweat if i ever go back (maybe this sunday).

i've met the people behind the emails and phone conversations thru this project. i was the youngest among them. about the meeting, i don't wanna bore you... just same ol' this and that but they say it's better than the first one. a lot of things were clarified...

...and there are a lot of things to be done on my part. next week there are lot of deadlines and if don't finish it on time...

...dead meat.

discoursed by jeff @ 8:04 PM | 2 comment(s) | permalink

Monday, August 29, 2005

jacko in dxb

source: gulfnews

and so the rumors are true, jacko is here in dubai and having a vacation tour. for the past week he's been sight-seeing around the city and stayed a little longer. maybe he's having a little bit of relaxation from the stress (harassment) he had during the trials.

despite the physical makeover and accusations, i admire his talent in singing and his moves. when i was a kid, i aped his struts and "awww" screams. i even got scared on his mtv "thriller" that time.

i'm neutral in his accusations, if someone ask. maybe they're after the lumpsums of riches he had or maybe he's a true child molester. i don't know.

anyway, here's the article from gulfnews.

discoursed by jeff @ 4:56 PM | 2 comment(s) | permalink

Sunday, August 28, 2005

this guy is in love with you, pare

i got a message from friendster and it keeps bugging me. here it is:

Saturday, August 27, 2005 16:48:00

hi ,, u look hot ,, i love to get to know u .. im local
27 old live alon in dubai ,, im 180 .. 80.. 7 inches
cut nice shap c**k .. round fit a**.. very emotional
and love long fun..like to please the other person
100% pleasure.. i wish to meet u and talk to
u ..plz call me or txt me at 050-***3001
My name is **i whats your number?

wow, i didn't know i'm too hot for this guy. at first, i thought it was a spam. then he sent messages twice already. right now, i have my "i am the way" profile image where my hair's flowing down, pointing my hand on the side. as my personal profile on friendster says, i'm married and male. i even have pictures of my wife and kids in the photos...

maybe this guy is blind or just gay and i don't give a sh*t about the size of his schlong because i have that one also...

wank it somewhere, dude.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:50 AM | 7 comment(s) | permalink

Friday, August 26, 2005

lan party 2

this post has been updated

and the score is...

how did that happen?

teamwork (or let's say cheating..hehehe) in progress

a sequel to lan party last two weeks ago, this time with more players (hehe... only one added) and a new game. we played overnight from thursday up to whole friday off.

tet stayed for few hours bringing his laptop and a medal of honor: allied assault game and played till midnight.

another relaxed weekender for us even we slept less.

more pics from penovate.

discoursed by jeff @ 10:52 PM | 8 comment(s) | permalink

Thursday, August 25, 2005

super push up

effects of too much gym... check out our latest video (dial-up users, i'm so sorry but it's quite big).

note: thanks sofia for the link of youtube :)

discoursed by jeff @ 12:48 PM | 4 comment(s) | permalink

Wednesday, August 24, 2005

rant-o-rama

i don't usually post my job-related rants and i shouldn't post this but they've crossed the borders of my patience. it became a free-for-all mudslinging of words and gestures.

since last week, it's been a hell for me. i had enough of pointing fingers on who's who to blame, doing some other things than what you supposed to be, doing the right job when suddenly someone told you you're not doing it right.. wtf.

it's more jungle out here than the real scenario, preying someone who's weak to uphold their stature on a secured environment. survival to the fittest as some other people call it.

i won't naming names because i may be right or not but i'll distinguish by their characteristics...

the great pretender
he thinks nothing has happened, whether he got caught red-handed. he's docile and no harm but we don't know the potential he holds. silence is his weapon.

a** licker
i distaste this kind of person. he will do anything for his superior just to be seen as a nice one.

two-faced
a schizophrenic personality. he's nice when you're in front of him but when you turn your back... watch out.

newsfeed
gets every events on the way, good or bad. from salaries to who's gettin' whacked, this is the firsthand source.

the mafia
they mind their own business... and it's just business. buzz off if you're in their way.

fortune teller
tomorrow... tomorrow... in'shalla.

how to survive this urban jungle, there are some tips that you can overcome these problems.

1. t-noby (trust no one but yourself), is the only way you can rely upon. why? other trusted colleagues are hard to come by and maybe later, it will shapeshift into somethin' i mentioned above.

2. keep yourself well documented. List all the things that you've done and seen and by the time of the pointing-fingers-attack came, you're prepared.

3. c.o.v.e.r. (confirm or verify else reprimand) before you do something out-of-the line like favors and out of schedule works. that way they will go back to the system of doin' it right.

4. watch your back, literally. they may be hounding behind you and telling some tell-tales of what you're doin', misinterpreted or otherwise.

5. just do your job...

...and that's i'm going to do...

discoursed by jeff @ 4:03 PM | 10 comment(s) | permalink

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

2 + 2 = ?

happy anniversary!

what's with the math? actually we've been married for four years, two years in civil marriage and two years in church.

our church wedding was a memorable one. in fact, it's a double wedding. it was also my brother-in-law's knot-tying with his girlfriend. not only that, we got married for free including reception and ceremony rites! But of course we spend little for clothing, pictorial and house parties...

how did it happened?

my mother-in-law insisted on gettin' us married on the church. it was a good timing since it's a town fiesta and a church group which my mother was a member, organized a free mass wedding. unfortunately, my wife was not yet ready for it. she wanted a more proper and grand one. i told her that if she doesn't want it, that will be fine with me but she must tell her plea to her mother... and as always, she did not.

instead we found a getaway few days before (since we need to attend seminars) the big event. my highschool friend, peter, and his officemate, robert, wanted to go for a vacation. i told him that i cannot go since no one's gonna take care of my kids and i'm having financial troubles. he took care of it by let us bring along our little rascals and covering our all of our expenses in exchange of being a guide. i agreed.

where to?

we went to the so-called "boracay of the north" in ilocos for a day then spent an evening in baguio city. it's a ten-hour drive leaving manila around 1am and arriving in laoag at 8am for breakfast. afterwards we headed for a two-hour drive to pagudpud. we spent in the beach till afternoon then slept in baguio in the evening. a shortened version of a vacation. the next day we toured around the summer capital and went back home in the evening.

what's the rush?

she changed her mind and finally agreed to get married. i wished i could give her a better church wedding, maybe on silver anniversary? it's good because we exchanged vows to the eyes of God...

and because i really love her.

hunnie, happy anniversary. we celebrated here and i ate kfc thigh and legs for you! hehehe.

*mwah*

discoursed by jeff @ 10:08 AM | 8 comment(s) | permalink

Monday, August 22, 2005

job opportunities?

i got this message from friendster this morning:

From: rose
Date: Sunday, August 21, 2005 21:05:00
Subject: rose
Message: Hotel Canadia,
I am Mr Rose Grand from canada, I am the
manager of canada hotels,Hotel need men and
women, who can work and live in hotel canadia .

Hotel will pay for his ticket and his visa in his
country,Hotel needs twenty more additional
workers for immediate employmnent,but you will
take care of your visa fees.

If you are interested ,contact me back
immediatelly o.k?.
E- mail :

hotelcanada_ominicity@yahoo.com

NOTE:
only candidates that contacted us via our
E-mail address shall be answered.

E-mail=
hotelcanada_ominicity@yahoo.com

sign ,
Manager of the Hotel Canadian
Mrs Christana Rose Grand

don't get excited. if you work on a hotel as manager first and foremost, you don't broadcast your job opportunities on friendster, you post it on classifieds or job sites. surely, if so, they can pay ticket and visa but they cannot advertise jobs in a proper way? nah.

this is clearly a hoax. the way you see the composition of the letter, there are lot of typo and grammatical errors in it. The manager has identity crisis also...on the first part of the letter he/she is a "mr" then on the end part, "mrs". must be hermaphrodite...hehehe. maybe he/she doesn't know english? don't they have secretaries or english speaking employees just to proofread?

we don't know.

ok, so i searched further on google. try to type "hotel canadia" (including the quotes), presto... a spam or worse a scam.

please, be careful. there are lot of scammies out there.

discoursed by jeff @ 8:47 AM | 6 comment(s) | permalink

Sunday, August 21, 2005

timetable

this time, duke tagged me...

twenty years ago
i entered primary school (grade 1). i was assigned to the star section named malinis (clean or cleanliness) wearing skimpy khaki shorts, poloshirt, and a coconut husk haircut with a voltes five lunchbox on hand.

fifteen years ago
still in primary school (grade 5) and became a naughty bastard... always picking up a fight with fellow classmates. a prankster by stapling the polo of classmates on the chairs, exchanging places of bags from their seats and so on. it's also a circumcision year.

ten years ago
a college boy bum. took a computer engineering degree due to interest of computer hardware. got addicted to lan gaming and programming. "doom" boys has begun.

five years ago
y2k bug scare...lot of programmers earned a living. being a street smart, i got a job in a restaurant management company as an in-house web and graphic designer and later on a mis officer. one of the highest point in my career life. my wife gave birth to our eldest son.

three years ago
my wife gave birth to our baby girl. i quit my job and pursued a canteen business with my relatives inside one of the universities in manila. economy becomes worse and everything went downslope. went back to white-collar job as a web designer in a computer solutions company in quezon city.

last year
turned one staying here in dubai. my firsthand work experience overseas. shifted from one company to another due to bad management and empty promises. the dubai chronicles was born.

this year
things are goin' up again... zeroing debts for the first time plus gaining assets. i also pursued my photography seriously and met new friends.

yesterday
joined uae community blog to participate amongst other bloggers here in the uae. designed hard-to-think-of-ideas logos and interfaces.

last night
if you're reading the past posts maybe you know this... gym. trying to meet up my deadline and changing my lifestyle from drunk at night to a clean living. played one mission on red alert 2, just for practice.

today
i have tons of work pending but this meme is eating up my time...hehehe. try to finalize the logo, newsletter, two design templates, and a print invitation.

tomorrow
wake up, bath, office, an apple a day, work, blog, friendster, home, dinner, gym, work, sleep.

next year
if destiny provides it, maybe staying in new zealand or australia. if not, still stuck here but a little better and hopefully with my family.

five-ten years from now
a design studio of my own at home or abroad, suv, good education for my kids, our own house and being boss of my own.

now, it's time to pass this meme...hmmm.

watson - the love for one of the nifty applications of windows 98

airwind - a multibillionaire in the future

jl - one of the asteeg web designers of pw.

ma'm luchie - the only rose among the thorns in this meme.

discoursed by jeff @ 8:41 AM | 6 comment(s) | permalink

Saturday, August 20, 2005

the beat

i like my music loud and beatin' non-stop even at work, home or during my workout. unfortunately, i cannot bear the music they played in the gym anymore (no pun intended on other foreign music because i really don't understand the lyrics, though i like the tune) and it loses my motivation to push further.

so, i decided to take my own music instead. i commissioned once again my md player i bought from a friend and started choosing and transferring songs. yeah, ipods are cool, but i think it's kinda overkill (the fact i was suppose to buy it last month but i used the money on other expenses instead *toinks*) and so there's no need for another player, since i have one though small capacity.

i chose the tracks from my 10k plus mp3 from my hard drive and chose the fast-paced tunes. no, it's not let's get physical by olivia newton john nor pump up the jam by technotronic... i choose a little bit of hardcore.

for my warm-up sessions, i chose dance, trance and techno... it was good for a one-hour playtime:

- chemical brothers - out of control
- darude - sandstorm
- funkstar deluxe - sun is shining (bob marley's song revival)
- safri duo - played a life
- basement jaxx - red alert
- josh wink - higher state of consciousness
- black eyed peas - let's get retarded
- chemical brothers - hey boy, hey girl
- chicane - saltwater

and for the workout-pushing-and-pulling-no-pain-no-gain proper:

- nirvana - smells like teen spirit
- pearl jam - animal
- metallica - master of puppets
- rob zombie - more human than human
- disturbed - down with the sickness
- wolfgang - halik ni hudas (kiss of judas)
- razorback - giyang
- megadeath - symphony of destruction
- system of a down - chopsuey
- evanescence - going under
- korn - freak on a leash

surely, it improved my sense of pushing myself to the limit. after workout, i plugged my ears for a chill-out music for relaxation...

discoursed by jeff @ 9:28 AM | 1 comment(s) | permalink

weekend disconnection

we had another lan party last thursday night. instead of bringing our pcs, we opt to play to an internet/gaming cafe nearby. it's been months since we played together again. tet, jmerts, mondsi, me and japs (the neophyte) played for a wholesome two-hour game of counterstrike.

yesterday, friday, was prison-for-me day. i disconnected myself from the outside world by switching off my mobile (my apologies to those who were trying to call including the person i'm going to meet that day) and didn't go out. i stayed and read documents, organized my files, played spider solitaire, and cleaned the bathroom.

i did my laundry yesterday, thrice as much the volume of clothing because of the workout. gym workout is also a day-off for me, except doin' some crunches, tricep extensions and of course the laundry (it's just like goin' to the gym squeezing those denims!). gee, i'm gettin' addicted going to the gym!

i went out only in the evening, brought some toothpaste and milk before bedtime. afterwards played a few skirmishes on red alert 2 (and also practice for next week's lan party).

another not-so-interesting life for a day...

discoursed by jeff @ 8:59 AM | 3 comment(s) | permalink

Thursday, August 18, 2005

giant hairdryer

imagine you'd been blown-dry by ten or more hairdryers in your face at the same time...

...or sticking your face at the back of an airconditioning system or a running car engine...

...or having a sauna three times more the normal temperature...

i might be exaggerating but yesterday's the worst day i've experienced the weather here. temperature soared only to 47c but the winds brought a burning sensation.

discoursed by jeff @ 2:07 PM | 5 comment(s) | permalink

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

plane crashes

few weeks back, air france airbus 358 overshoots the runway of toronto international airport. the plane went to flames after it landed. good thing no one died.

days later, another aircraft, tunis air, en route to tunisia from italy, went down to the sea near palermo, italy. the accident killed almost half of the 40 passengers.

three days ago, helios airways lost their bird from possible technical problems in greece, killing 121 on board.

now a columbian jet crashed in the mountains of western venezuela with 160 passengers and crew on board, no survivors.

now i'm getting nervous. i'll be out of the country next month and my fear of flying is coming back again.

discoursed by jeff @ 12:08 PM | 12 comment(s) | permalink

boy blunder

the first incident happened in the bathroom. i was up already and headed to the bathroom to put on my contact lenses before taking the shower. then the blunder starts... the cap of my lens holder fell off right to the sinkhole (the sinkhole cap was removed for unknown reasons).

dang.

i tried to get it with my finger but it won't pull off. then i use my old toothbrush. still i can't get it. for more than ten minutes i was trying to get it and got pissed. i took a swift shower because of i'm gettin' late at this cap.

then the macgyver instinct came. i finished my shower and got some adhesive tape, stick it on to the lotion dispenser stick and went back to the sink. i used my old toothbrush as a support for the cap then stick the adhesive to the cap...slowly i pulled it off. it took me two minutes.

due to the incident, i dressed up quickly as possible and i have forgotten to iron my shirt last night.

dang.

and so i installed the ironing horse and plugged the steam iron. doin' so i tried to avoid the plastic pitcher near me. after the steam press, i folded and put it back the ironing horse to its position... accidentaly moved the pitcher and fell off to the ground.

bang.

it crashed a loud sound and broke into several parts waking other people sleeping.

i'm late for work already. i took the cab instead of a bus and drove me 10 minutes tops to our office when another blunder occurred. the coins in my pocket gushed out to the taxi floor and the ground the moment i alighted the vehicle.

dang.

i picked up the pieces redfaced, driver's giving me an impish smile. what a nice day to start...

discoursed by jeff @ 10:59 AM | 0 comment(s) | permalink

unblocked

friendster is back online in the uae! not only that, the controversial secret dubai diary was also unblocked few weeks before.

ah, finally the ministry of information got back to their senses. cheerio. now i can upload the latest pics to my profile again..hehehe.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:14 AM | 0 comment(s) | permalink

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

newspaper

usually when i arrive early, papers were scattered in front our office door waiting to be picked up. different kinds of arabic and english newspapers were delivered and since i don't read arabic, i get the english front page section and the free newspaper and read.

the paper quality of these papers are glossy compared to our counterparts in manila. there are also recycled class paper but they have superb quality. the odor, well, i guess is the same as a fresh piece of a4-sized paper or sometimes odorless. most of ads and pics provided were in full color. the cost of these papers are usually less than dhs3 or free and some are complete with classifieds, business section, tabloid and of course the front page.

while firing up my workstations, i scanned the front page for headlines that interest me. aside from blog and email reading, i included it as my morning ritual. the process takes only thirty minutes to one hour.

my favorite one is the free newspaper, even though there are a lot of typos, it amuses me to read... especially the opinion's page. most of the readers expressed about bad service of some company, whining about the driving or adverstisements in between cricket or football match, differences among other people's culture, and so on. just like other blogs, i can see other people's reactions about their lives here in dubai. some good, others bad.

the business section and the inside pages of the front page are read during coffee or lunch breaks just to be informed what's happening around the world.

when the first day i arrived here, i usually get the major newspapers and discarded the front and business pages for a while and scour for jobs via classifieds. after i got the job, it's the other way around. i get to read classifieds only when there's something to buy or gilid opportunities.

if you're interested, check out the online newspapers here in uae.

English:
- gulf news
- gulf today
- khaleej Times
- 7 days

Arabic:
- al bayan
- akhbar al-arab
- al khaleej

...now back to paperwork.

discoursed by jeff @ 10:55 AM | 3 comment(s) | permalink

Monday, August 15, 2005

gifts for home

bob have already decided. he's coming with us to the gym and bought his workout wardrobe: pair of sneakers, socks, shorts, and jogging pants. he such a lady when it comes to buying stuffs...taking too much time in picking and deciding.

as for me, i wasn't supposed to buy some stuffs yet since i lost that damn dhs500 (still it hurts) but as we entered at carrefour in city centre, i started picking things up. whenever i think it would be useful or remember someone back home, i get the stuffs for them, even the price is a little bit pricey. i tried to remember on who's who on the list for pasalubong(present) to my upcoming box shipping... if i missed someone, definitely that someone will be disappointed or envious. i have to be careful.

people back home and i admittedly had the same notion before that whenever someone's abroad, we expect gifts from that person. i don't know if is our tradition or a mindset issue that we buy gifts to everyone and send it to a box, with or without money. all i want to do is to make them happy and share my blessings to the best i can. whether is a bottle of lotion, a shirt or a can of peaches, i share it with them as a product of toil and sweat, hardships and achievements.

and so, i do the spree when i have an extra money. above all, i remit money first and pay my dues, buy groceries which are needed before goin' on a binge... plus of course save money at least 200usd for a month.

now, i have four months left before i go home. i'd better do my strict budgeting.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:27 AM | 4 comment(s) | permalink

Sunday, August 14, 2005

drowsiness

i've been struggling since this morning from sleepiness. i slept early (to the fact is 2am is my regular bedtime) around 12mn after made some readjustments from yesterday's loss. i was too tired from staying too long at the gym last night and blurted out my frustrations through the plates and bars.

today, i didn't take caffeine and maybe that's the cause... i don't know.

i tried to wake myself up since i have a lot of pending jobs to do and suddenly this new employee sat beside me to get used to this environment... here in web and media department? she just got hired as a sales person and yet she was placed beside me to use one of my workstations...

now things are goin' to be a lot sleepier.

i couldn't maintain my stance while she's beside me (probably she saw my head falling abruptly). good thing i played the dvd full of mp3s i got this afternoon from tet (thanks, man) and jolt my senses a bit.

after office, i still have to work... need to work harder for the lost savings.

discoursed by jeff @ 5:20 PM | 0 comment(s) | permalink

Saturday, August 13, 2005

vanishing act

our government can do it but i can't believe that my money vanished in thin air. i got my salary today but i was not happy. i lost dhs500 (php7500) bill from my total salary. i checked everywhere i go, my pockets emptied, wallet's revealed, accountant's harrassed but in vain. i tracked back my history three hours ago on where i went, what did i bought, whom i gave money.

i just went down to grocery and bought red bull for dhs5. mike, my colleague paid me dhs20. i asked the grocery and mike, the bill was not there...

pucha talaga, that money was part for my home entertainment system that i will send it home.

talk about luck...

tanginaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! jepaperts, you're such an idiot!

discoursed by jeff @ 6:20 PM | 2 comment(s) | permalink

Friday, August 12, 2005

lan party

This post has been updated

i set aside my gilid jobs for a while and spent my holiday playin' red alert 2 via lan with mondsi and japs. we've brought our desktop pcs to jap's place and spent overnight killin' each other.

we're supposed to play counterstrike when bob forgot to bring the cd with him. the only game we have here is red alert 2, where japs is new to this kind of stuff (playing each other i mean). he got carried away and we played till 5am this morning.

monsi and i are still here and waiting till gets dark... spending every minute till we get back to work tomorrow...

gee, work again.

i love computer gaming. i became hooked up with these before the family computer and super nintendo came out to the market. my dad, when he was in ksa he brought us home commodore 64 for the purpose of learning how to use the computer. instead of serving it's purpose, my brother got some floppy disks (floppy drives that time where big as half of desktop pcs of today) containing games. defender, winter games, pacman were a hit at that time.

after we had a xt computer (i think before the age of 386 and 486 generation computers), prince of persia was my favorite. before, it's just a monochrome 2d game. now, it has evolved into 3d-ish effect.

when i entered college, i experienced the lan gaming for the first time. i was devirginized by dune 2. the three houses (clans) composed of atriedes, ordos and harkkonen are struggling with each other on who will take the most harvest of spice and control of the planet arrakis.

then the warcraft saga came also into view where catapults and ballistas are the strongest overpowering the orc race. later on, starcraft and red alert 1 where the faves. we even entered a quake competition in robinson's galleria that time and won. i got the top prize competing one on one with my fellow colleague and spent the winnings on beer and pizza.

after college, counterstrike sprung like mushrooms and became the gamer's favorite. i got addicted to play with this game, usually play in a cafe at 10am and goin' home for 2am. very addictive.

when work became a necessity, i have forgotten the lan gaming. new games came like quake iii arena, warcraft iii, swat 4, splinter cell, medal of honor, command and conquer generals and others have intensive graphic, space and memory requirements to achieve the best experience in gaming. it's not bad at all, if you have the right hardware.

maybe i'm getting old for this crap, but there's still a kid in me. :)

discoursed by jeff @ 4:30 PM | 8 comment(s) | permalink

Thursday, August 11, 2005

an apple a day...

...is seven apples a week! hehe.

actually, i started my so-called diet since i wanted to reduce my weight. an apple or banana cost dh1 a piece in a local store. i replaced my morning coffee with croissant into a "clean living" foodie. whenever i get hungry during work, i ate only these succulent fruits.

no more a pack of m & m's during the afternoon break.

the only obstacle i'm facing right now is dinner. i can't stop eating rice. i reduced it a bit but i can't resist eating more. any alternative to this dilemma?

i have less than three months for my deadline...

discoursed by jeff @ 11:57 AM | 4 comment(s) | permalink

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

is it winter already?

me: how come it's still humid in here?
alter-ego: it's because of a sandstorm, you idiot.

i took these shots this morning thru my k700i phone. it's already afternoon and still the place around me is hazy.

discoursed by jeff @ 12:37 PM | 4 comment(s) | permalink

restless part iv

and they did it again. this will be another sequel of restless series. if you still didn't know the story, read parts iii, ii, and i.

i got home around 11pm from the gym and i already felt sleepy. i did some computer work then headed back to sleep... not until when the explosions and gunfire can be heard few feet away... from the television. great, two hours of pretending to be asleep and ignoring the conversation and effects of the hostage movie (bruce willis). finally, it came to an end, the lights in the room were turned off.

i slept light-headedly when suddenly a loud curse where released from the kitchen...this time it came from the outraged and whining fag. he(she) was cursing and mad about his(her) date that night because his(her) guy didn't show up and hiding from him(her).

his(her) voice were octaving once again from the angst he(she) released to our fellow roomies. then a heated debate began. this time the volume was on a full scale and it's very irritating. i got up and took the headphones once again to muffle the sounds. unfortunately, it's useless and my whole body is getting uncomfy... craving for the rest they need.

finally, someone answered my plea. the landlord was also irritated with the noise and got up to make them silent. i didn't check the time (hoping that i shouldn't be waking up in a few minutes again) and try to head back to sleep...

...i really need to get out of this ****. i'm fed up already.

discoursed by jeff @ 12:36 PM | 0 comment(s) | permalink

Tuesday, August 09, 2005

lorem ipsum

you may have seen these phrases somewhere, usually on web templates:

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

the people in new media arts and graphic design field are quite familiar with these words. so, what these words mean?

nothing.

actually, it's just a dummy text used for typography and layouts. we usually used this for the purpose of distributing the letters in a random way instead of using "text here, text here, text here" or "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." it focuses on the typography on how it looks in a random way rather on the content itself.

find out more about lorem ipsum.

ok, so much for the short (blog) break... it's time to go back to design sites again...

discoursed by jeff @ 2:57 PM | 1 comment(s) | permalink

Monday, August 08, 2005

four ways to catch someone's attention

after reading tips for the ksp's of barenaked, i have my own version but this applies only to face-to-face talks.

if you want to catch the attention of your fave crush or a yummy babe (or dude), let say in another table of your favorite coffeeshop, school canteen or resto, do the first step...

1. make beautiful eyes

remove your shades if your outdoors and try to make tiny winkie winkies to the target person you like. add smile to make it more effective. if this doesn't work...

2. curl your hair

if you're a baldhead, forget it. use your index finger to curl few strands of hair. for girls, its effective but for boys...it's kinda gay. still, if doesn't work...

3. wet your lips

very effective when you're having a cappucino, frothe or ice cream. stick out your tongue and lick it clockwise (or counterclockwise if leftie) make it slow as possible. if this doesn't do the job...this will surely do...

4. do all the steps above at the same time

surely, not only he/she will catch your attention, other people around you as well...and perhaps calling a police or mental institution. crazy but effective..and it has been proven by me.

take my word for it.

discoursed by jeff @ 5:03 PM | 2 comment(s) | permalink

metal screaming

it has already begun. i have decided for a go and the shoes i've bought few days ago will be useless if i will not use it. japs, monsi and i went to the gym in the evening few blocks from our flats. its rather late (10pm) but the customers in the place where fewer than earlier sessions.

the gym is quite small and crowded but the machines and other exercising stuffs were almost complete. most of them are cable-type apparatus like the one you see in a saucy gyms in manila that can change the weight with a preset load. the cost of one workout per day is dhs10. if you want for a monthly fee, it costs dhs150.

i tried to remember the workout plan before when i was in manila and tried to follow them again...back to square one. a 10-minute warm up on the treadmill and stretching before the workout proper. i gasped for air after the warm up session. i have been stale for years and now i'm goin' back in an instant.

i took it lightly first by waking up the sleepin muscles of my back, biceps and abs. my self-programme will be chest-triceps-abs on the next session and finally shoulder-legs-abs. it will be a thrice a week workout. hope i can follow them.

its going to be tough also since i'm doin the office work in daytime, gilid on early evenings and finally the workout at 10pm. not only that, i'm going to cut down my food intake (diet for short), stop alcohol and sleeping before 12 midnight.

dang.

my target will be three months before i go home, hopefully with an abs to show to my wifey..hehehe. as for the following days to come, i have to scream the metal that gives torment to my body as i push to the limit...

no pain, no gain.

discoursed by jeff @ 8:30 AM | 2 comment(s) | permalink

Saturday, August 06, 2005

shopping and ostrich

time to unwind and release the tension inside of my stressed-out brain. girls can shop i know, but men can do it too! hehehe...

japs, liz and i went to deira city centre to look for stuffs that can be added to our wardrobe. we didn't know that they were having a shopping sale and so we took advantage of it.

i got a pair of reebok shoes for my upcoming gym workout (i looked like a 6-month old preggy already) for dhs130, a retro shirt for dhs30, khaki seatbelt-lookalike belt for dhs65, and a silver bling-bling (necklace) for dhs20. this was my first time shopping here in dubai for myself.

we almost scanned through every shop in the mall. i did some mental note on what to buy for home. i got a jumbo box waiting to be filled.

oh no, computers again?

after the shopping, we went to carrefour to buy some groceries. it's already late when we're inside and planned on what to eat for dinner. we stumbled upon the ostrich steak on meat section. it costs only dhs5 for two steak slices.

ostrich steak, sauteed in butter and garlic

i fried the meat first in oil then sauteed later in butter and garlic. it's my first time eating ostrich meat and the outcome was good. they say it has low fat qualities. it looks like beef but it's much more tender. you can match red wine with this...in our case, soda.

i've eaten rare delicacies such as snake, frog, lizard, dog, raw octopus, locust, and now i add this to my collection... ostrich.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:09 AM | 13 comment(s) | permalink

Friday, August 05, 2005

the session 2

This post has been updated

we had another sketching and photo session last night. the subject this time were two female friends and a pizza slice.

see the gallery.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:43 PM | 1 comment(s) | permalink

Thursday, August 04, 2005

opm - outdated pinoy music

i've been away for a long time and new faces came into opm streamline. there are very few new songs that i heard of and collected recently. if it weren't for ron allan's post of bamboo's new single (or album?) hallelujah, i'm lost. now i'm starting to download again.

can you guys help me out what's new or suggest good singles and albums?

i've been checkin' to our local radio stations there like rt, rx, and tm (nu has no charts) for some hints of opm hits...

speaking of music, timeout dubai published the 50 greatest albums of all time and the city of gold decides which are the best.

guess who's the top three? no, it's not the beatles nor michael jackson... they're in the list including rem, maroon 5, portishead, the clash, radiohead, and others.

3. pink floyd - the dark side of the moon
2. u2 - joshua tree

and the number one...

nirvana - nevermind

well done, kurt, if you haven't put the pellets in your mouth...

discoursed by jeff @ 10:37 AM | 13 comment(s) | permalink

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

disabled

as a web and graphic designer, we usually relied on the web. it's our main source of ideas and goodies like stock images, audio, and even tutorials (not to mention chatting, business or otherwise).

we've been experiencing a major slowdown of internet access since yesterday. as i read the news, the major isp here believed that a vessel ship has damaged the undersea cable between india and malaysia.

we can still surf but we can't access our pop accounts and others. a lot of people are relying on email for business purposes. a lot of money are being wasted.

i had the same analogy as my good ol' mobile (lights and sound) days....

"meralco, pag walang kuryente, walang music, walang party, walang business, walang money."

(meralco, if there's no electricity, no music, no party, no business, no money).

discoursed by jeff @ 9:20 AM | 4 comment(s) | permalink

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

the messenger

it's really hard for me to say bad news to a person. last night, i've been thinking it over and over even if i told her that she's not the one... for the job that is.

we had an applicant, a female gfx artist and we gave her a week test if she can survive the jungle we work with. yesterday was her second day for test and the manager gave the "axe" to me for the execution.

if it weren't for the phone charger she left at the office, i couldn't start any conversation to her on the phone. i would like to tell her face-to-face but the fact is that she's spending too much money going to and from the office and her place is very far. i don't want her to spend another trip for an axe she received. also, she was recommended by a friend of mine which also i recommended her to my superiors...

and she didn't meetup with my bosses' expectations.

there it goes, i told her not to finish the remaining days. if 3g technology is widespread, i might be talking in front of the camera with a blanket or hood covering my face.

that's why i don't want to be a manager. maybe i'm not mature enough to get over it.

discoursed by jeff @ 9:16 AM | 7 comment(s) | permalink

a death of a king and treat of a-ring-king-king

yesterday, saudi arabia lost their ruler, king fahd bin abdul aziz al-saud from long term battle of sickness. he is succeeded by his half-brother, king abdullah.

last night however, it was a celebration for us that two of japs paintings were sold at wafi city. we had enough of home cooked meals and so we headed to karama and dined at a pinoy resto.

we ordered the one that we never had eaten for a very long time... goto (i don't know what to call in english but i think it's rice porridge with beef tripes and ginger in it). we matched it with tokwa (soya), lumpiang sariwa (vegetable spring roll?), and pandesal (bread) with butter.

last night's dinner was the best, not to mention to add this to my homesickness list again.

*toinks*

discoursed by jeff @ 8:53 AM | 0 comment(s) | permalink

Monday, August 01, 2005

reporting for duty

i'm back and quite relieved from the break i had. i didn't report to work for two consecutive days and i think i had enough rest. now, it's time to go back in line to work.

i finished my portfolio site with just the listing of the projects/clients i had in the past. after this, my plan is to setup a domain name with hosting for that site.

if you really want to see it, just drop me an e-mail (sorry, it's quite confidential).

what happened in a past few days?

it was really boring. i just did my usual laundry, plus some booze in the evening, dvd watching, and staying at home doin' some 'business' on the computer...

...plus homesickness. i really want to go home now but i just can't. few months to go and i'm coming home, whether they like it or not.

discoursed by jeff @ 8:33 AM | 3 comment(s) | permalink

The Dubai Chronicles