That Time of the Year (Again)

 Do not allow yourself
to be pressured nor stressed
by what's on socmed
or what your friends/relatives say.

Accept invits
with the intention to reconnect,
recall happy times
and save on your meals. 

Be sure however
that you are happy doing so
coz if not,
better stay at home.

Now,
also make sure that
you still have more than enough
by January.

It is not good to start the year
with no supplies on the cupboard,
no bigbills on your wallet
or no funds in your e-accounts.

Agree?

pambangunan --> development [re-entry 2009]

My classmate told us recently that in Indonesia, 'development' is near-term to 'pagbangunan'. I can't help but notice that it has a similarity to our tagalog term 'pagbangon' which means 'to arise'...hmmm, then it must be how development is best viewed: to become better than before, to be more 'coz you are able to do more for more.

However, economic development does not dwell only in the quantitative aspects but on the other non-measurable aspects as well. Economic development is both a policy objective and a means to achieving other policy goals, such as full employment, poverty alleviation, egalitarianism, and social progress.

When asked by Dr. Loanzon to give our own views of development, my usual way is to somehow understand what it is not. I always insist that economic development, though closely related to, is not identical with economic growth. Growth in real GDP is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for development. An economy may show a sound growth rate but may still fall well short of development. Neither is a high per capita income an important indicator of development. There are Muslim kingdoms with a remarkably high per capita income but still lack in the prerequisites of development.

Moreover, I can not equate development with a term for 'equal-footing'. Narrowed gap between ‘have’ and ‘have-nots’ is both a component of the development process and its goal. It was possible for underdevelopment and egalitarianism to co-exist as in the case of primitive societies. Meanwhile, a highly developed economy may have gross inequalities, take US with a Gini of 40+.

What is economic development then? Economic development is growth in GDP accompanied by relevant social and institutional changes where growth can be sustained too. These changes include reduction in absolute poverty (or whatever it is you want to call it), a better quality of life (you know what I mean), development of physical and commercial infrastructure (even as it not sky-high), higher savings, increase in employment opportunities, high literacy level (the true one), improved productivity of labor and other factors of production, somewhat-sophisticated techniques of production, a more positive attitude towards life and work, and (please, please)a stable political system.

Now ain't that sounding very profound? Real question is: Can we...? Will we...? Are we...?

i am tired! give me rest! [re-entry 2011]

as it was, this heart should be broken

as it goes, it has played all the mendin'

as it is, broken pieces no offendin'

as the heart, all its pride a-stolen

"should" shall i use, of no use

"should" shall i say, i to choose

the heart he had chose have been cruel

the heart she had chose is no-duel

the hearts they had hurt is a fuel

to the fire in both hearts...

whose heart was it again?

whose heart is the villain?

this heart should have had its rest

this heart have had all hell's best

whatabout, i say, the unfinished test?

i am tired, i am tired, give me rest!

DEAR... would you please D(rop) E(verything) A(nd)... R(ead) :)

i am human too. [re-entry 2010]

i get hurt.
i get irritated.
i get offended.
i feel sad when i'm betrayed.
i feel angry when i'm disrespected in any way.
yes, i try to follow desiderata.
i try to be good if i could.
but i am human too.
i am human too.
so f*ck off!

sayang! : of trade-offs and opportunity costs [reentry 2009]

students find economics so boring... i did too. did is the operative word, i repeat. but when i was asked to teach it, only then i realized that it's nothing but plain life disguised in specialized (technical) terms. since then too, it has become a challenge for me to deliver it in a manner so unlike the way it was delivered to me (double wink here).

one of my favorites is the kingdom of TANSTAAFL. students who have been here would just smile and say: yeah right! 'coz really, truly, in this world "there aint no such thing as a free lunch". nothing comes for free. everything has a trade-off. who doesn't understand trade-off? everyone knows what is is. everyone (save for a very chosen lucky few) knows how it feels of wanting but not having without something (or someone-dear me, or some time-that's more like it) in return.

defined by most economists as 'the highest valued benefit that must be sacrificed as a result of choosing an alternative', it tells us nothing but a trade-off...what have you given up the most in order to get what you wanted (or because you have decided to do something else). okay, if you are reading this blog now and it's taking you about an hour to digest this, bang! you just lost 25 pesos ($.50) if you have used the time working as a bus boy/girl in a fast food chain. see? that easy. but of course, there are many ways to make that harder. you have to read books, consult your teacher and do decent scholarly surfing for that.

one of the most important opportunity costs involves time---when used for one activity cannot be used for other activities. your time used for reading, net-surfing, studying, working, or shopping will not be available for other uses. here, your allocation of time is viewed like any decision you make---choose your use of time smartly! say, to meet your needs, to achieve your goals, and/or to satisfy personal values.

here's one i might need to remind myself...opportunity costs relate to health too. lack of sleep, poor eating habits, lack or avoiding physical exercise may result in illness, time away from productive activities like school and work, higher health care costs, and lower economic (eg. financial) security. hence, your personal resources (time, energy, health, abilities, knowledge) require careful management too or else you'd say 'sayang!' (what a waste!).

since we are a major player of the society (economy too) and we are the ones who constantly make choices among so many decisions, we must consider the opportunity costs all the time. for example, when it comes to money it's knowing that increases in an amount of money may be a result of interest earned so saving or investing instead of spending it today results in a future amount greater than the original money that you have. every time we spend, save, invest, or borrow money, we consider the time value of that money as an opportunity cost.

now, give it a try... what have you given up the most? that may be your opportunity cost. is it worth it?

my playful good god always provides [re entry 2009]

growing up in a complicated bad-good-better-worse-worst-good-better-best-good-bad-and-on-and-on world somehow made me a well-adjusted individual. i can blend and/or stand out depending on my need and 'trip' for the time...one constant thing however during the 'down and lacking' episodes is the fact that i never fail to talk to my good-old-playful friend 'upstairs', and what's more is that he-provides! oh, he really does, at all times! once, i had nothing to eat for the week, i just tried laughing it out and voila! someone from abroad just handed me canned goods, rice and noodles (jokingly just enough for a week). that incident and others more makes me laugh sometimes but it also makes me trust Him more than ever. Lately, i had this fund-mishap, making me poor by 850, 1200 and 1000 (all philippine peso) in just 2 days. I brushed it off as one of those 'grrr-moments' but on the 3rd day, the personnel officer gave me a plaque, supposed to be a 'service award'--- i was thankful...and...hahaha, it was coupled with 3000 (php). do the math, my ever-playful god owes me 50! :)