Live Life! Love Life!

by CHARLIE on AUGUST You are not the choices you’ve made. You are not the child you once were. You are not your failed marriage. You are not the setbacks of yesterday. You are not the bad things that have happened to you. You are not your past. The Past Guides Our Choices – It Doesn’t Make Our Choices For Us Your thoughts or feelings about the past don’t change it. That’s what makes it the past. Your future is not your past. Your future, right now, is a nest of possibilities. It only looks like your past if your present choices continue the inertia of the past. The past guides our choices; we have real constraints, opportunities, and experiences based off of the past. Right now, though, those constrains, opportunities, and experiences are what they are – wishing they would be different doesn’t make them different. Whatever happened, you are here. But being here doesn’t mean you have to stay here or that you will stay here. Life is but an endless chain of...

After the mass at Hyewha Church, I met with Fides and showed her my first contribution to the SAMBAYANAN, a newsletter  for the Filipino Catholic Migrants in Seoul Archdiocese. The newsletter can be read with this link below: http://www.sambayanan.org/newsletter.php?id=4 Then I proceeded to the Embassy to monitor week 2 of the 2010 OAV. I was asked by Consul Talisayon if I wrote to Inquirer, what I remember was an email I sent previous night to globalnation to encourage COMELEC in approving the Embassy's request to conduct election in different cities here in Korea. Little did I know that it was made into an article and was showed to me by Embassy staff. The article can be found here: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20100418-264961/Comelec%20asked:%20Allow%20mobile%20voting%20in%20Korea I went to the Embassy today since they have a consular service and check whether more Filipinos will be  going to vote. I learned that some Filipinos visiting ...

Let us support Yasmin Busran-LAO to win a Senate seat. Please introduce her to your family, friends and relatives abroad. Below is a piece by Ms. Elena Masilungan on Yasmin. Vote Yasmin Busran-Lao for Senator ! Yasmin Busran-LAO: Walking Her Talk by Running By Elena Masilungan MANILA — Yasmin Buran-Lao, peace activist, women’s rights advocate, community organizer, is walking her talk by running — that is, running for senator in this year’s election as a candidate of the Liberal party. The 48-year old Lao has made public service her life’s mission. She works with disadvantaged communities and the women of Muslim Mindanao, having grown up amid its violent conflicts and grinding poverty. For her efforts, she was awarded the Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Fellowship for Professional Development. The award was given by the American embassy and the Benigno S. Aquino Foundation in 2005. “Fighting for the rights of Muslim women and other marginalized groups is something personal for me. I get enough s...

As expected, there was a low turn out of the first day of the month long Overseas Absentee Voting (OAV) at the Embassy of the Philippines in Korea. When I left at 1:00 pm I could count less than 15 persons who casted their votes. It was the media people who were there to cover the event that ended up voting themselves (they are duly registered voter). Unlike the first election held in 2004 where ballots where sent by mail, this year it is personal voting where Overseas Filipinos have to go to the embassy to vote. Most of the ballots that were sent by mail returned back to the embassy since most OFW easily change their workplaces and places of domicile. The embassy is still awaiting for the COMELEC’s approval to conduct the election in major cities here in Korea. A friend from Gwangju City (3hours and 40 minutes away from Seoul) mentioned that it will be hard for them to go and vote at the embassy. So they are still hoping that they will be given a chance to exercise their ...

The first and most prominent landmark is the Grand Hyatt Hotel (GHH)on a hilly top of Itaewon where the Namsan Park/Seoul Tower is just a stone throw away. From the gate of GHH go down a bit at the Hoenamu gil where the Royal Norwegian Embassy is located. In that corner go down 30 meters and you will find at the first corner the Gabon’s Embassy, enter the street twisting to the right and few steps the gate to the Embassy. Actually there is another gate which is at the main street across Algeria’s Embassy but there’s a big notice (as of writing) for visitors to make use of the back door/gate. Fotos are provided below to help locate the place. I went to the place by subway getting off at Noksapyeong Station (Line6), used exit No.1 then crossed the street. The bus stop for Bus No.3 is across the street under a foot bridge (Warning - do not take bus No. 3 just outside/few steps from exit No.1 which is the opposite route). Map below shows general location of the place so better ...

Dear OFWs Please go out and vote! Susan Ople April 10 at 8:57am Dear Friends, Now that the period for overseas absentee voting has begun, I would like to appeal for your support in encouraging more of our OFWs to go out and vote. Sana gamitin natin ang pagkakataon na ito upang magkaroon ng pagbabago sa Senado. Mga bagong mukha, na may mga bagong panukala - kung hindi mabibigyan ng pagkakataon ay parehong Senado pa rin ang ating mamanahin. Unlike other traditional candidates, I have waged a campaign based on issues, consciously choosing the high road in this most challenging journey. Nakakalungkot kasi kung di ka gimikera, mahirap mapansin sa pambansang entablado maski gaanong katalino ka pa. Pero hindi ako susuko, hindi ako nawawalan ng pag-asa dahil may misyon ako sa pagtakbo - at iyan ay ang pagtulong sa ating mga OFWs. And so on this day, when voting precincts for political freedom have opened its doors for overseas Filipinos, I appeal for one out of 12 votes to be cast by our OFWs...