Office1000 Blog February Archive

Helping the Economy

By Blog Stories at 02/27/2008 13:14

2008 will be a stormy year for the global economy. There will be a slow down. That's a fact. It used to be that, in the past, it is the small boys who make mistakes but the big boys will take over to neutralize the effect. This year, however, it's the big boys making the mess. The credit crunch that happened in the housing market of the United States proved to be cancerous as it affected other major industries in that nation like banking and construction, which effectively affected the whole world.

Because it is the number one trading partner of many nations around the globe, there is actually an insightful joke that says that whenever Uncle Sam sneezes, other nations catch cold. True enough, a general slowdown is bound to occur, buoyed by strong growth in East and Southeast Asia, led by Chindia and Vietnam.

So what is the whole point? You probably are an ordinary citizen. What can you do to mitigate the effects of this global turmoil? As an ordinary consumer, you still can do something, albeit it won't be felt if you are the only one who'll do it. The key to prevent future credit crunches is to spend only what you have. That is the problem. We tend to spend more than what we have, putting ourselves in debt. This is the lesson we should all learn. We should learn how to keep track of our investments. Make a budget if you must. These little things will go a long way to help the economy survive the impending recession.

In the United States, the bubble has erupted. But it seems that we never learn. Because of the housing boom in China, subprime lending is all over. People who are not qualified to make a loan would falsify documents in order to pass. So will China be another United States in the future? Find out in the next episode a few decades later.

Ewww... Germs!

It's interesting to find out how the hatred for dirt and anything associated with microbes has evolved throughout the years.

The beginnings of proper hygiene cannot be established, for even the most ancient of all civilizations have already codes on how to maintain a clean and healthy living. This is nothing new to the people of the 20th and 21st centuries. In fact, unlike popular belief, hygiene did not fall out of practice during the Dark Ages. Even the people of these times also knew how to maintain clean living, though early Church condemned this practiced as unspiritual. I can only guess why they could think of this, and I am not about to give my arguments against it.

However, it cannot be denied that what was considered as 'proper' hygiene evolved. I won't go to the earliest trends since, as I have said, the origin of hygiene cannot be traced. But We all know that it used to be that cities before do not have their own sewerage systems that will facilitate relieving bodily functions. This is because it is not yet discovered at that time, or at least, not widely accepted, that cholera can be transmitted if water is contaminated with waste. There was also a time when perfume is used rather than water because of the belief that diseases can be easily transmitted when bathing in it.

Today is a different story. Many people are practically afraid of being in contact with microbes. That is evident with the sales of items such as antimicrobial health equipments (e.g. x-ray jackets), antimicrobial perfumes, pillows, gadgets, clothes, and even magazine covers!

With this trend, I wonder what will be afraid of next? No more touching people, perhaps?

Your Blogger is Now A Conductor

I once imagined myself as a conductor of an orchestra. No kidding. Not that I seriously considered it, but it was one of the times when I have my 'what if' thoughts. Haha.

I knew how to play the flute. Yes, it is in the past tense as I do not think I can play it anymore. I was not good at it, but I knew how to play it, nevertheless. Anyway, what did I learn to play? Well, I cannot remember any pop song today but I do remember playing Filipino folk songs that are very easy to play since they have simple melodies, not to mention the ever-popular Happy Birthday song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star (Trivia: Did you know that Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and the ABC song have the same melodies?)

Back to my original point. So there I was, in my tuxedo, walking up the platform to face the orchestra that relies on my hand motions. One wrong move and the whole performance may collapse. But I am not about to fail. I cannot.

I held up my baton above me, which I pulled out of my tuxedo. I wasn't sure if I was confident. I probably was. I probably was not. Looking at the music sheet on the music stand, I thought that this is it. I waved my first beat and the orchestra was on.

The sound of their instruments was reverberating inside the hall. It was overwhelming. The strings were leading the group. I could here it as they are a bit faster than the general tempo of the piece. The sounds coming from instruments as diverse as the triangle and the tuba are complementing. I can even put a ringing alarm clockalarm clock there and I know it will mix in. I cannot fully describe the sensation I felt, but I was having goosebumps. I must be doing a good job.

Applause.

Failure and Monotony

While reading this post, are you inside your work cubicle? Have you always been there, working madly while trapped in the three walls of your cubicle? Doesn't it get boring?

Questions like these are often asked by people to themselves when assessing how much have they advanced in their careers. One will question his/her self if he/she is happy with the job he/she currently has, for anyone who is at his late 20's or 30's, the idealism that you had during your collegiate days are now slowly fading, and the restlessness of the thoughts of career failure is already haunting.

Some would say that this is all part of the trip to the top--but how long should it be? How long should one wait? How long should one bear with the boss?

I sometimes ask myself these questions, too. Right now, I am still optimistic, thinking that I would be a big success in my chosen path. I live on these thoughts. They keep me alive. They keep me persevering to be the best that I can be. But failure is always around the corner. When will it strike I do not know. The fear of it is perhaps more dreaded than fear of death. I am sure you most probably had the same thoughts as mine.

I do not want to stay inside a work cubicle forever. My energies will not allow that. But what shall we do, if that will really happen? Sometimes, it does not take only hard work to get far in this life. Sometimes, you have to have Lady Luck alongside you as well.

The fear of failure and constancy is daunting, but hen it comes, it comes. I cannot do anything about it anymore. And for the time I am inside cubicle, I might as well get it lively by putting in decoration and accessories.

Show It

When you've got it, flaunt it.

This is the mantra of many people who believes that we should all show the world what we've got. If we're good in academics, then make a mark in the academic community. If you're a prolific athlete, then go for sports fest and win the MVP award. If you think you are good looking, then dress in a way that will emphasize those good looks. For these kind of people, showing is everything.

And why not? Why shall we not utilize whatever we have as an advantage. These good things about us won't stay with us forever, so we might as well make good use of it, right? By 'good use', of course, I meant those that will not harm mankind and, instead, do some good. Well, even if it does not do any good but it does not do any bad, then I guess that's just OK.

But, of course, there will always be people whom you cannot please. There will always be there to tell something bad about what you show. Are they envious? Probably. Do they just want you to improve? Probably as well. My only advice is that you should listen to what they say. They might see something that you can still improve on. However, don't go depending your life, wishing that they'd say no more. They will, most likely, never stop.

And when it comes to products and furnitures that you have, if you have something noteworthy and envy-worthy, then put it in a showcase to, well, showcase, them and let those people fret over your treasures. Remember, however, that if you are displaying precious items, displaying them in showcases attracts not only customers and visitors, but thieves as well. So when you buy these showcases and display valuables, then it's time you invest more on security as well.Show

On Globalization and Luggage Tags

Competition is expanding. People are continuously migrating. Borders are crossed without the need for passports, and information is sent to another part of the world in the blink of an eye. Folks, this is globalization happening on this planet right now.

Hey, what exactly is globalization in the first place? Simply said, globalization is the integration of the people of the world into a single society. It's mostly associated with economic integration. Wikipedia tells us that, as opposed to internationalization, globalization treats the world as a single unit and not a society made up of different people and cultures. Since the history of globalization is not the topic of this entry, please do check out the Wikipedia article if you are really interested. More than that, we have to ask if globalization brings us more good or more evil.

On the positive side, globalization seemed to be a good tool in eradicating poverty. Since there is much influx of foreign investments, the trend will be that the nations experiencing this phenomenon will have a good economic outlook. This is especially experienced by China, which is now immensely benefiting from globalization.

However, those who are opposed to this phenomenon are worried that globalization is gradually erasing the identities of many nations. Furthermore, according to them, this phenomenon has exploited still-developing markets that are still not capable of competing with mutinational companies. Personally, while I find this to be a good point, I find (well, it is not only I) find a protectionist stand to be fatal to a growth of a nation. Isolation probably worked for Japan before--but it certainly won't work today.

Whether you like it or not, globalization is here to stay. People will constantly migrate and travel. So, *ahem* make sure that you always some form of identification for your luggage. Better wary than sorry.