Volkswagen Takes Over Toyota’s Largest Automaker Title

Be careful of what you wish for, it may come true… I love Volkswagen bugs and I wish I can have one of the late-model. I also wish that all vehicles around the world are made of cutie buggies. How it never occurred to me that one day, these bugs will really take the lead in the world of auto making. Just recently, while most auto makers are cost cutting to the bone, Volkswagen is busy making millions of little buggies!

Little buggies are going to rake every street and road around the world as the automaker takes over Porsche. Still, the two companies’ combined numbers is 400,000 beyond that of Toyota. Earlier this year though, the Japanese automaker stripped half its normal production and closed all production plants. On top of that, the European Cash For Clunkers program also benefited the sales of Volkswagen. That explains the 4.4 million built cars of Volkswagen-Porsche to date.

A good question is up to when will VW rule the statistics? It is apparent that the world economy is trying to pick up, away from the gloom of recession. Before the global economic crises, Toyota Motors is already producing ten million cars a year. The catch is that it is going to make only 70% of its capacity. Even with that figure, Volkswagen reign in auto making may not be actually permanent. If they have already made 4.4 mil to date, already a combination of the two merged companies and just a month away from the end of the year, that will threaten the new acquired title.

As of publishing, Toyota is ranked behind Volkswagen and General Motors.

 

Manny Pacquiao for the Welterweight?

November 14 is a date! People from all over the world will meet in vice city’s MGM Grand to witness Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto fight for the latter’s Welterweight belt. The Pacman is a sure -$350 favorite while Cotto is +270 underdog at betting houses. Both are optimistic; Cotto to keep his championship and Pacquiao to take his seventh world championship title.

On Monday, team Pacquiao has already arrived at The Hotel of Monday where they are expected to stay all through out their stay in the Nevada gambling capital. It is also expected that Cotto’s team will also just the same. By Tuesday, Pacquiao will make his arrival to MGM Grand official around noon and Cotto will do the same after an hour. Tomorrow, they will be both present for the final press conference. The next day, both fighters will be given the chance to train for the last time. By Friday, they will be weighed in for the bout on Saturday.

To Pacquiao, if he wins, this is going to be his seventh world championship title. Cotto, on the other hand, all pressures are turned to him. If he loses, his championship belt will be taken away and probably retire early just like the other early protagonists of Pacquiao.

Manny Pacquiao, in his surprising fast ascend to fame has already won six world championships and sent greatest boxing personalities to early retirements. Among his crowns are the flyweight (WBC), super bantamweight (IBF), featherweight (linear, Ring), super featherweight (WBC), lightweight (WBC) and light welterweight (linear, Ring and IBO) divisions.

 

A Candle for My Papa (my bro and lola)

‘Visit your dead loved ones or they come and visit you’. Of course it is a joke. For someone who really has a close relative for a ‘dead loved one’ like me, it’s eerie. You see, one of my numerous worries is ghosts or just anything that is supernatural. But I have too many financial obligations to spend a couple of thousands or more for my fare. Still, I asked my mom who have always been so encouraging and kind in her more than 60 years in this life. Oh, she has to know because our dead loved one is my father. That should explain my anxiousness.

Not wanting my mom to worry about me, I omitted the real reason for my indecision. As if nature is on my side, an approaching storm will hit region where my point of business is located. That made a very persuading reason. There is no doubt too that my mom will agree even if I don’t have any valid reason. She is just the best mom in the world; she will still stick with her kids even if I had the worst sickness in the world. In short, I did not go home and is now writing this thing.

In her nice, maternal voice, my mom just asked me to attend a mass and pray. That I should not forget about sticking a candle for my deceased pop, my brother, and my granny. I was even afraid if she will also ask me to do the same with what she often called ‘Laudati’ for whatever that means but she did not. I did all that and even lighted 3 more candles at the front of our main door.

I am relieved but I found out later that I can’t keep my mind from what we should have done as a family in honoring our dead loved ones. In two weeks, I am going home to do just that.

 

Eidl Adha becomes a Long Vacation to Catholics

There’s another long weekend to look forward to at the end of November. The President has declared November 27 and 28 as National holidays in the observance of the Muslim’s Eidl Adha or the Feast of the Sacrifice, an Islamic culmination of Harirya Hajj or the pilgrimage to Makka (Mecca) of Saudi Arabia. Since the following day will be Sunday, that is going to be a great three days vacation. But wait, November 30 is also a regular holiday in celebration of the Bonifacio day. What we got, both the public and private sectors, is a clean four days of grand vacation!

The proclamation has been made after consulting the department of labor and business groups. It is expected though, that there will be some reactions to these very long vacation. In fact, since it has been announced too early, it is not far from possible retraction once the affected parties have already voiced out their objection to this new holiday proclamation. That is going to be natural because long vacations in the past have really garnered a lot of criticisms.

Of course, for employees like me, I would want it to be pushed through. I can really use some vacation before the Christmas season kicks in. These four days ahead will do me a lot of good and hopefully, everyone else. To the employers, it is going to be a real different story. Let us just hope that in the end, best decisions will be made for the best interest of everyone.

 

Welcome Pink Mio

Finally, my brother is no longer interested with illegal motor racing and got a new pink Yamaha Mio. The little ride is cool with its perfect sized seats and bigger utility box. It also has a nicer and safer foot rest where mud and water splashes had no way of dirtying riders’ feet. But it is cooler living legally. National statistics show that 49 out of a thousand participants in illegal races are injured. In 2001 alone, 49 deaths were connected to these activities. So you can just imagine our relief when my brother finally drops his interests to big, ear shattering DTs.

Only problem is, he had converted my Honda Wave S. It now sports street illegal mufflers. But we already had an agreement on that. He has to put everything he has replaced in that nice bike back before the holidays. That way, I can make use of it when I get home for the holiday vacation. That task will also make it safer and look better. We also agreed that he put up a garage for his motorbikes. Our little porch now looks like a showroom. Not that I don’t like it, the crowding little rides just make our little home a lot smaller!

 

Eid Al Fitr is National Non-working Holiday

September 21 is another off-work as President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo declares it an official holiday. The non-working holiday is in connection to the celebration of Eid Al Fitr or the end of Ramadan. This signifies the Islamic holy month of fasting.

Since the PGMA’s take over, more and more holidays are being declared. Although the good President meant good, it seems government service hours are becoming less. Sometimes, we can just wonder how much work they do and if they are still able to meet whatever required tasks they need to fill.

To private workers, these new holidays mean additional pays and that is good. Since it is a non-working holiday, they will receive double pays if they go to work. If they don’t, they still get paid full. But to the employers, this is another bad news. These are additional disruptions to the business and are equivalent to operation expenses and overheads.

For me, this is going to be another sleep-til-you-drop day, so it is definitely good news!

 

Reliving 9-11…for Good?

8 years ago, in a supposedly ordinary Tuesday morning, almost 3,000 lives were lost in a terrorist attack. September 11 became a significant 9/11, the mark of terrorism in the world’s most powerful country. Years and years after that, the United States of America’s government and countrymen thru the efforts of thousands and thousands of military men and women tirelessly trail terrorists around the world. To date, a huge number of the military, navy, and army are still stationed in the desserts of Iraq and Afghanistan trying to keep terrorists from the soils of Uncle Sam.

People around the world antagonize the doings of the terrorists who have hi-jacked and killed more people than you and I can ever imagine by crashing two planes on two different sites: the twin towers and the pentagon. Aside from these two key institutions, other high rise buildings affected of the fall of the twin skyscrapers also tumbled to dust. Thousands more were injured and the number of fatalities have rise. To this day, there are still a good number of missing persons linked to that act of terrorism. Maybe they will never be found. All the same, may they rest in peace.

The irony is that while the Americas is earning its respect and peace in Uncle Sam’s golden soils, those that are stationed in the Middle East are yet to live in peace. One day, they will also find their peace- when we also bid them their ‘rest in pace’ or should we say ‘rest in pieces’. 8 years may not take the hurt from the hearts and minds of Americans for that fateful act but isn’t it too long to keep the grudge? In those war zones, isn’t it a lot more hurting are being done? Or is it a way to contain the hurt in those lands and act as there had been nothing going on in the land of golden dreams?

 

Daraga Town Fiesta

I feel like a kid trapped in an adult’s body. I wanted to watch parades and collect toys. Today, I am going home because the next day after tomorrow is our town fiesta- and I wanted to be there in time for the parade! I also wanted to play in the small carrousel and Ferris wheel that will be installed for a month-long celebration. Another thing is the food- endless food that will be served at home and all the homes in our neighborhood. I will have the best days of my life once again.

I have to sleep now to wake up early tomorrow and catch my flight. I am not taking a lot, just my back pack and maybe buy a few take outs from the airport stalls. That will be enough although not necessary at all. But it will really make me feel good. I love bringing my mom, siblings, and niece and nephews goodies they love.

I will not take this laptop, not even change clothes because I have enough of that in my cabinet. My mom does not approve taking all my things with me here in my workplace. She wants some at home for ‘emergency purposes’ she says.

I’ll catch some sleep now.

 

Perseid Meteor Shower Tonight!

If the weather will permit, we will have a spectacular viewing of the annual Perseid Meteor Shower; which is expected in the wee hours of August 12, but late Tuesday and Thursday nights may also be fruitful.

August is the month for meteor showers, although Perseid is known to be already around since July 17. The Perseid is debris that came from Swift Tuttle comet as it orbits around the sun and laid bits of its outer crust on several locations. We always get a great show of these sand-like sparklings on a dark night every August since it is the month when Earth passes the same orbit Swift Tuttle leave behind.

About 200 meteors per hour are expected to burst of up to 15 minutes tonight; but the problem will be the great moonlight shine, which will surely keep us all from getting a good glimpse of the show. Somebody told me that positioning oneself where the moon will be behind a tree will help make the show visible. Well, let’s see if that will be a good tip for tonight’s grand Perseid meteor shower!

 

August 5 is Cory Day says PGMA

The President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared August 5, ex-President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino’s interment, a National non- working holiday. In a separate declaration, August 1 to 10 of the same year will be the National mourning for the passing away of the Republic’s first lady-President. These declarations have been issued while PGMA is in her state visit to the United States of America. The President is also expected to cut her visit short and pay visit to the wake of Ms. Aquino at the Manila Cathedral.

As a former president of the Republic, the Aquino family was offered to hold the wake in an appropriate place in the palace. They have declined the offer because the bereaved family holds grudge against the current president. The issue they haven’t put to rest is something about a bodyguard the current president has ordered to be take off from its duty. The family believed that this happening has something to do with their late mother’s transparency in opposing the new president’s governance. In fact, she was one of the leaders in some of the movements against the new government.

For whatever it is worth, let us just be all happy with the way PGMA is carrying all the issues against her. Her plans of visiting the wake of the former President should not even be sensationalized. It is something that any person can do in respect to the dead and the bereaved family. Besides, they have been friends and confidants in the past. Let her pay her respect to the former president and friend.