Quaere Verum

Hmmm...what's that posted above the whiteboard? Ah yes. Well, it happens. I've been working in government for the past 12 years or so... And the experience is not the sort of thing I would wish on even my worst enemy. While government service pays pretty well, especially if you're working for one of those high-paying government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) or government financial institutions (GFIs), the sad truth of the matter is that unless you have friends in high places, opportunities for ascending the corporate ladder are few and far in between. In a perfect world, government service should be a meritocracy, that is, you are given responsibilities and compensation in relation to your capabilities..."merit and fitness" in government parlance. Sad to say, this hardly ever happens in real life. I have seen employees who do nothing but nod their heads even when presented with hair-brained orders from even more hair-brained superiors and yet they stil...

I was feeling out of the weather early this morning, so I decided to report for work at around noon. Unfortunately a convergence of circumstances forced me to abandon that plan, despite my efforts to make it. I left home, and went my normal route of going through Tandang Sora towards Pasig via Katipunan. Tandang Sora was jammed, so I backtracked and tried going via Kalayaan and Aurora. It was also packed but moving. Eventually I made my way back to Katipunan just before entering White Plains. White Plains was packed, so I took the underpass going towards Libis. For some reason it was also packed. Diverted through Green Meadows but again, it was jammed as it entered Ortigas. It was almost 1 PM. I should have been at the office 30 minutes ago. At this point I gave up and turned around. What a waste of time, effort, and fuel. Some days don't you just wish that you stayed in bed?

So, how many times has this happened to you? e-Games announces a 2x or 3x EXP event. You're looking to level up your character, so you buy a training rosary, log-in your character and start looking for a party. After what seems like hours of trying to look for a party, so finally get to join one. Unfortunately, you're only a temporary member since one of the permanent members was disconnected (which is a normal thing when it comes to playing RAN Online nowadays). After a while the disconnected player doesn't seem to be returning, so you're told that you're now a permanent member. You put on your training rosary and lure for all your worth (or cast buffs if you're a support shaman). When the the mobs have all been killed, and as the dust fades from the battlefield... You get perhaps half a percent (or some other other amount which is significantly less than you expected). Maybe a bit more, maybe a bit less. Half a percent? With a 3x/2x event? And with a trainin...

Government service can be pretty weird. And the big shots in high places...well, sometimes they just go for broke and give the word weird a whole new meaning. Take this instance for example, which supposedly happened not so long ago. There is this story going around about the head honcho of a major government owned and controlled corporation (GOCC). Let's call this head honcho "Zod", after the lead villain in the movie Superman II . The officers and employees have requested the release of a rather fat Christmas bonus, computed as a multiple of their monthly salaries. The monthly salaries of these officers and employees are already huge as far as civil servants are concerned, so the bonus is really nothing to sneeze at. During an assembly of all the officers and employees of the said GOCC, Zod allegedly required everyone to kneel before him like some god or king before he approved the release of the bonus (not that dissimilar from how Zod asked the son of Jor-El to knee...

Note: Turn off the background audio first at the bottom of the page before clicking the play button. How To Save A Life The Fray Step one you say we need to talk He walks you say sit down it's just a talk He smiles politely back at you You stare politely right on through Some sort of window to your right As he goes left and you stay right Between the lines of fear and blame You begin to wonder why you came Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life Let him know that you know best Cause after all you do know best Try to slip past his defense Without granting innocence Lay down a list of what is wrong The things you've told him all along And pray to God he hears you And pray to God he hears you Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life As he begins to raise his voice You...