the philippine pre-colonial past i know is already history :)

The journey that is QMS.

For the uninitiated QMS stands for Quality Management Systems. It is business speak, Industrial Engineering speak :)

I was given the privilege by Mapua to design and develop a learning session content on the aforementioned. I've been at it for a little over two months now. I'm on the "coding" side of it already. Putting on the complementary powerpoint presentation. And from this, the accompanying handout.

To add to my practical knowledge on the topic, I challenged myself to dig a bit. The plan was to present the topic in a fresh way. Ironically, to do that, my journey brought me back in time :)

In my research on QMS, the Japanese keep on popping up. Their influence can not be ignored. It's like the Beatles or U2. Their imprints are everywhere if you wanted to form your own rock band :)

The Japanese spirit is right in the middle of it. And it is in this fork that my shock began :)

Following the practice of doctors, in finding out why we are where we are, I asked questions. This is where my time traveling began and I was re-acquainted with the fact that, in Asia, the Philippines was only 2nd to Japan after the World War II. But right around the time of the Korean War, the Japanese economic climb accelerated and they have not looked back ever since. We currently hear about the emergence of China and of India. Japan was on this economic pace in the early to mid-50s.

It was always during this time when the economic divide between Philippines and Japan widened.

I caught myself asking, why? How come?

I mean, Japan and the Philippines belonged to the top 3 most devastated countries after World War II. The third one being Germany.

But how come, we were left behind when we were neck in neck, economically, in the 50s?

What gives? What changed?

The usual media friendly, or should I say spin doctor written answer, is the quality of leadership since the 50s to the 80s. I know that that fact has its own contribution. It definitely did not help but is that it?

So, I went back further in time. As in further back in time like pre-colonial Philippines. Like, even before Lapu-Lapu was born. No. This is even before the great, great, great, great, great grandfather of Lapu-Lapu was born :)

Wikipedia told me the following facts:

Before Magellan arrived, Negrito tribes roamed the isles, but they were later supplanted by Austronesians. These groups then stratified into: hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior-societies, petty plutocracies and maritime oriented harbor principalities which eventually grew into kingdoms, rajahnates, principalities, confederations and sultanates. States such as the Indianized Rajahnate of Butuan and Cebu, the dynasty of Tondo, the august kingdoms of Maysapan and Maynila, the Confederation of Madyaas, the sinified Country of Mai, as well as the Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao. These small states flourished from as early as the 10th century AD, Despite these kingdoms attaining complex political and social orders, as well as enjoying trade with areas now called China, India, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, none encompassed the whole archipelago which was to become the unified Philippines of the twentieth century. The remainder of the settlements were independent Barangays allied with one of the larger nations.

And I was surprised. Shocked.

One must really update oneself with his country's history :)

The pre-colonial history I know when I was in Grade 6 in the 80s was not like that. Or maybe I was really a bad student of Philippine history :)

From the context I have while my eyes was gliding over those written words, I was surprised to know that before the Europeans came, nine (9) as in NINE political autonomous governments lived side by side with one another and shared the geographic space we now call the Philippines.

Wow! While the Europeans was busy outdoing one another with colonizing the world and going to war with one another, the "Indios" had the sophistication to live in peace with nine different cultures. Fascinating :)

Do not get me wrong if you sense a bit of anger. There was a time my response was tinged with anger. But I have moved beyond that. I realize everything happens for a reason. And who in the world was not colonized, except maybe for Japan and Thailand? :)

This QMS journey is something else.

This preparation is taking me longer than planned but it is fascinating. I hope the participants, if the QMS learning session would push through as scheduled, can catch the fire that was further inflamed while I was preparing :)

"... why think like mere men?"

Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield

I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined
I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

I break tradition, sometimes my tries, are outside the lines
We've been conditioned to not make mistakes, but I can't live that way

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten :)

a serendiptious insight from a Ethiopian brother

I run. In a week, three times. I spend, at least, 35 minutes running on a relax pace. Once, I ran in a 10K race. I made it in 1 hour and 7 minutes. But there was this instance, timing myself, I ran the same distance under 1 hour. Doctors say that if a guy like me, at my age, ran 10 kilometer under 1 hour, that is good.

Which brings me to this mind boggling fact, Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia ran a marathon, all 42 kilometers, in 2 hours: 03 minutes: 59 seconds. This is the world record he established in 28 Septemeber 2008 at the Berlin Marathon.

If we convert this impressive feat to how much distance Mr. Gebrselassie covers in one (1) measly second, that will be 5.65 meters/second. If we want that in English terms, that will be 18.52 feet/second. What makes this even more out of this world impressive is the fact that The Emperor, as he is known among his peers, is 5 feet and 5 inches tall.

How is that even possible?

A friend who is into marathons once told me that, The Emperor trains by having himself chased by a hungry lion. He is joking of course.

This 18.52 feet/second pace was something I couldn't comprehend until early this week when an Ethiopian brother gave an insight.

He said that the reason why his countryman, his brother, runs that fast is primarily due to his talent but also because Ethiopia has geographic quirk. An advantage :) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital city, the place where most of their athletes come from and train is about 2,000 meters above sea level. At that height, air is thin and the presence of oxygen is scarcer compared to places on sea level.

Because of this, people who were born there have adapted to this challenging conditions. Their heart and lungs can function normally in these oxygen-scarce conditions. That when they compete on marathons, ran on sea level, they actually, effectively, do not get tired nor winded. Because on this sea-level conditions, their heart and lungs are actually having a much easier time, running, than training in Addis Ababa because of an "overwhelming presence" of oxygen :)

With that explanation, 18.52 feet/second started to become possible. But I am not aiming for that. I am content in running 10 kilometers under one hour :)

Besides, I am called to do other things :)

Which reminded me of a truth - the environment that we live in, the one that we see, know and accept that exists, shapes us. Molds us.

Blessed is the man who lives and understand this thin air and oxygen-scarce truth - that knowing God and walking with Him is more than sufficient.

Have a personally meaningful Lent!

"... why think like mere men?"

a student called Minimum Effort

I got a student.

This student always asks, "Sir, pwede bang ganito...?", every time after I described the end term project.

Nothing wrong with the literal question.

But with over a decade of hearing questions, definitely over 10,000 hours of them, I have come to "hear" what the student was actually saying via the question. Simply put, the student wants to know the minimum requirement, the acceptable borderline quality, so that the student can proceed doing just that. That's it.

Categorically, there's is also nothing wrong with that.

But if I may use an example as to why that drove me to write, I will liken it to a person, let's call this person - Person :)

Person was required to tell a story about Person's dream vacation destination. To make it more interesting, Person's manager put out a reward. The quality of the story is the only criteria whether Person will receive the reward or not. And the reward is something Person truly wants and desire all Person's life.

Person's manager gave Person two means to enable Person to tell the story: [1] watch a video of this dream vacation destination or [2] actually go to this dream vacation destination, all expense paid and no strings attached.

Guess what alternative Person chose?

Person chose alternative 1.

Stop. Full Stop. Breathe. Stop again.

Now you understand why I had to write.

I hope Person knows that the Indians take advance class before their 7AM class. I hope Person knows that the Chinese goes to sleep reading on advance calculus book. I hope Person knows that the reason why the Koreans are in the Philippines is because they want to know what it's like to constantly speak in English at least for most of the day.

Person's Asian counterparts wants to samba with the Asian century. But Person chose to be seated and act cool :)

It won't be long, Person's name will become Lost Opportunities :)

"... why think like mere men?"

expectation

"Life is not about winning. Life is about not quitting..."

... why think like mere men?

going to Lent

"Are we in the Land of the Living going to the Land of the Dead? Or are we in the Land of the Dead going to the Land of the Living?

the times of the three screens

It crept in. And now we are hooked. Addicted.

Just in case you still do not know, we are always looking at one of the three screens. Just right now you are looking at one of it, the computer screen. Or maybe, you are holding it's little friend called the mobile phone screen. And maybe on Sunday, you will watch the NBA Playoffs in it's bigger friend, the TV screen :)

I bet there were times you probably were using all of them at the same time :)

But I am not here to tease. I'm just want to share a good and noble deed by our government watch dogs, the NTC, that most probably went unnoticed to a typical undergraduate student of Strategic Planning and Management.

Early this January, some business mavens wanted to put a cap on the amount of data a user taps or downloads over the web in a day. Seems harmless until we compute the amount of data we call everyday. Think - how long do we spend connected on the web either through a desktop, laptop or a handheld device? How much data do we "consume" in a day?

And the telcos wanted to put a cap on that.

One of the reasons given was to dissuade a number of people who are on a residential plan but downloads 24/7. These people must be on a business plan. Shame on them:)

This seems fair until, of course, one realizes and reasons why should everybody be punished by the acts of a few enterprising people? :)

But why suggest a cap? Does it follow that the telcos wanted to put a premium on top of the cap?

Well, no use on discussing that now because NTC ditched the cap proposal. Kudos to them :)

I wonder if the telcos' business model need to be reconfigured...

"... why think like mere men?"

challenged to be world-class

The 4th term race is on. I have four preparations on my plate. Two of which are new ones. But that's my lot in life :)

Anyway, I feel stronger every time I learn a new thing. And I'm excitedly, like a boy, so looking forward to what becomes of an idea that dawned on me a few nights back.

To be allowed to be alone with one's thoughts while sipping a hot cup of joe is a dangerously good place to be in :)

When I grow tired of reading (and watching) real but depressing local news, one of the things I do to bring balance is to go to a site called "goodnewspilipinas.com". There, I immerse myself with everything that's beautiful about the Philippines and the Filipinos. It was there where I "met" Ronald Ventura.

Before 05 April, to me at least, he is an unknown. But now, his name will forever be tied and linked to Sotheby's, $ 1.1 million and Grayground :) Apparently, this "unknown" painter set a world record sale for Contemporary Southeast Asian Painting at Sotheby's, a renowned Hong Kong auction house.

I was thinking, or better yet, asking myself - did Mr Ventura know that he was that good before Sotheby's? It must have been a surreal experience knowing that there were 15 bidders who badly wants your work. All bidders willing to pay very good money and to top it all, it took 50 furious bids before the auction came to a close.

When the personal "buzz" subsided, I found myself with this quandary on my lap - how does one know he is world-class? Yung, hindi lang pang-barangay. Does one need a confirmation? Or is it enough to put everything you have on canvas?

So, I left my run in with Mr Ventura at that and decided to work on something else. And after some few hours, slept.

But the seed was planted :)

So, when I met my class this morning - I planted the usual end term project on Grayground and asked my students to come up with a 10-minute documentary version of the report they will develop. On top of that, I required them to upload it on youtube and open themselves to the "criticism" and "praise" of the whole world. I said, Mapua envisions itself to be a global player - so, why not open our work for to the discriminating and culturally diverse taste and opinion of the world?

Why wait until after graduation to personally confirm whether you are ready for the world when the technology, which we often take for granted, to know whether we are is in our hands? Wouldn't it be better to know now so that we have more time to twitch ourselves before prime-time?

I am looking forward to the end of the term :)

Let's see what happens.

"... why think like mere men?"

a line from a song :)

Everyone will die.
But not everyone can claim they have lived.

a teacher's burden

"And here we go..."

A new term has begun for us in Mapua. It is the 4th. Once again I was reminded of the burden that is called teaching.

For those who make a living out of teaching, I pray that we all burn completely. For it is when we are burning completely that our light, borrowed it may seem, is the brightest.

For us to give the brigthest light, we first - burn.

Lord, pangunahan Ninyo po ako...

a great nation :)

Got this from CNN :)

A tsunami that followed a massive earthquake last month may have destroyed some of Japan's structures, but police say the honest practice of turning in lost items, especially cash, remains intact.

Residents have turned in lost cash across the tsunami zone at a much higher rate than usual, the Miyagi Prefectural Police Department tells CNN.

A police spokesman, who asked not to be identified, citing department policy, said he could not specify how much cash has been turned in to lost-and-found offices at police stations. But, he said, of the 24 police stations across Miyagi Prefecture, nine of them are on the Pacific coastline.

Japan's cultural mores remain strong

Between March 12, the day following the earthquake and tsunami, and March 31, those nine police stations collected 10 times the amount of lost cash collected at the other 15 stations combined.

Japanese children, from a young age, are taught to turn in any lost items, including cash, to police stations. The cultural practice of returning lost items and never keeping what belongs to a stranger has meant police departments like Tokyo's Metropolitan have an entire warehouse filled with lost shoes, umbrellas and wallets.

In the tsunami zone, where personal items lie amid miles of rubble, it's meant that lost valuables have often gone directly to police, rather than the pocket of the finder.

The lost cash hasn't been easy to handle, the Miyagi Prefectural Police Department says. Money found along with some identification is being returned, but officers have been able to return only 10% of the cash.

Cash that wasn't in a wallet is left unclaimed at the police station. After three months, the person who turned in the cash is able to collect that lost money. But police say people are already waiving their rights to claim the cash when they turn it in.

Unclaimed cash will eventually be sent to the Miyagi Prefectural Government, though police say they do not know how it will be used.

Also found: Hundreds of safes that can't be opened. If the prefectural government allocates funding for opening the safes, police will start doing so.

Prefectural police believe that these safes could contain not only currency, but bank books, stocks and land deeds, which could give a huge boost to the amount of lost money.

I can only compare how we behaved during the time we were hit by Ondoy. We still have a long way to go. A very long way to go. But I am hopeful.

"...why think like mere men?"

what if?

What if, in the end, we will really succeed? How will we see the messy situation we find ourselves in?

If in the end we will really succeed, what should we do now that we find ourselves on the floor?

"... why think like mere men?"

the lent switch was turned on :)

We will all have the same ending.
Death.
True.
That it is.

What will be different is how we journeyed through life.
And that's a choice.
True.
That it is.

That is why it said, "... the journey is more important than the end..."

"... why think like mere men?"

Tet-a-te

Friend: So, how's married life?
Me : (smiling) Simpler.
Friend: (smiling) Why? How come?
Me : There's only one choice - go home to my wife :)

The paradox of choice.

If we list all the alternatives that we have, then add the choice we've made and apply the concept of "opportunity loss" to all the alternatives we've let go, it will always lead to a depressed boy. Not unless we made the wisest choice :)

That decision we've made, that choice we've embraced, will always be miniscule compared to all that alternatives we've let go. Because the summation of all opportunity loss of all the alternatives will always outnumber and outweigh the choice.

Only when we know the value and the weight of a right choice can we truly be happy. Without that knowledge, we will always be unhappy because all the choices and all the alternatives have equal weight :)

And the right choice only appears when we truly know what we want. And it is bliss if we have what we want.

Oh, I love my wife!

"... why think like mere men?"

"... with God and with eternity"

'My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer,' the boy told the alchemist one night as they looked up at the moonless sky. 'Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity.'"

~ Paulo Coelho
Brazilian Novelist, Author of 'The Alchemist'

2011 leaders

Leaders will allow you to fail but will not allow you to become a failure...

"Here today. Gone Tomorrow."

Stumbled upon this:

When you are here, you are here. When you are gone, you are gone. It isn't a problem to be gone, so long as you are really here when you're here.

~ Kent Nerburn

Are we really here? Or have we spent our days looking back. Carrying what needs to be left behind? Brooding on our mistakes and lost opportunities?

It has been a practice of mine after a 10-week learning session in my undergraduate class to ask what was the one lesson that have resonated with them. One young man wrote: "... when you said that our bodies are designed to move forward. That life must be lived forward."

Upon the course of this particular class I found that this young man just had his first rough term. A term that made him question himself. To him I say, it is better that you are asking these important questions now that you are still young. That's a gift. That you are asking the important questions while you are young. While your responsibilities are contained only to yourself.

It is gift when we are found out. Most specially by ourselves:) Because it is there where we ask the important questions :)

"... why think like mere men?"

"Forward, Young Man! Always forward!"

Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours.

~ Ayn Rand

Are we the "hero" in our own story? Or have we delegated that role to someone else?

heart's day :)

Spoken by a very wise man,

"The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart..."

Where does your heart lie?