tolitz.com

So you’re someone who doesn’t speak ANY word of Tagalog, and you’re embarrassed to speak with Filipinos…  maybe you are a non-Filipino who is friends with/is dating/is married to a Filipino, and you would like to understand them more… or maybe you are visiting the Philippines and you want to impress them with your knowledge of basic Tagalog words… well, here’s a short list of all common (and not so common) Tagalog words that can be used in everyday speech… learn them well, and take them to heart… it is guaranteed that anyone who understands Tagalog will look at you in a whole new light once you say these everyday words in Tagalog…

These are common colloquial Tagalog words, not the formal meanings.  So don’t worry if some of them sound weird… Good luck!

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Technorati: colloquial, common, joke, tagalog, translation

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90% Geek

I guess that means I have a life 10% of the time…

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25

Bring it on, midgets!

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62%

Hopefully I won’t have to find out…

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$4090.00The Cadaver Calculator – Find out how much your body is worth.

Hmmm, I guess that means I’m cheap?

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36%

Hmmm, I wouldn’t want to be the only one alive, would I?

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52%

Mmmm…. brrrainssss…

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133,262 People

Wow… uh, sorry?

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Technorati: apocalypse, born, cadaver, calculator, day, death, died, eat, fight, friends, geek, human, oneplusyou.com, people, report, shield, starving, trapped, zombie

Yeah, yeah… dropped off the face of the blogosphere yet again.  But this time it’s not for the old reasons I had (i.e. running out of ideas, becoming too busy, obsessed with a new game/video/hobby/girl, etc).  This time, it was intentional…

So what was the reason?  I just had to take a break… what, too vague for ya?  It’s just that – a one-week break.

Anyway, what happened so far since I stopped posting blog entries?  Nothing much… just work, music, social gatherings and the occasional video game or DVD.  What I really want to put on this particular blog entry is what to expect for the remainder of this year… so that you can call me out when I appear to be slipping on those particular “things” I need done.  Not that you would mind much, anyway.  I mean, who really reads these things anyway?  (Well, except for those who actually like the daily Tagalog words I put up here.)  But if you are one of those people who like what I write, I invite you to read some more.  To steal a popular phrase from Stephen King, I encourage you, Constant Reader, to keep reading and see what bogeymen are running around in this disturbing liquid container I call a brain…

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New Year’s Eve in New York

I’m gonna be spending the last few days of 2009 (and the first couple of days of 2010) in the Big Apple.  It’s my first time going there.  Ever.  I’ve been in the United States for almost 13 years non-stop, and I haven’t even been anywhere east of Michigan (which is really kinda silly since the state that is directly east of Michigan IS New York).  So yeah, my first time in the Big Apple, and my first time being outside California on New Year’s Eve.

So what’s the occasion, you might ask?  I mean, aside from it being New Year’s Eve?  Well, I’ll be visiting my youngest brother, Rodell, and reuniting with my other brother, Rommel, who will be travelling south from Montreal, Canada with his daughter.  The last time us three brothers have been together (much less celebrate a holiday together) was in 2002.  So it’ll be a real treat for us to be celebrating the holidays again.  And of course, my mother would be ecstatic about it.

Aside from that, the other reason is to watch and listen to my brother sing opera.  Sure, sure, those who know me are probably asking “hey, haven’t you watched your brother perform opera enough times already?”  Well actually, you’re right.  There’s only enough you can stand listening to arias in German, Russian, French and of course, Italian – especially when you had to listen to them for years coming from the room beside yours.  But this one is a bit different – my brother just debuted at the famed Metropolitan Opera House in New York.  Yep, that’s right, he’s only the second Filipino to be performing there (after Evelyn Mandac, who did it way back in 1975, which was ironically his birth year), and the first male Filipino opera singer to actually perform there.  Ever.

(Why this isn’t up there with Manny Pacquiao and Arnel Pineda is beyond me…  damn pop culture…)

Anyway, we’ll be watching him perform in the opera Les Contes D’Hoffman, and it’ll surely be a treat.  If you are an avid opera lover, and you’re in the east coast, and you are anywhere near the tri-state area, check out the performances at the Met – and make sure to look up Rodell Aure Rosel.  You can check his website if you’re interested in knowing more about my overly talented little brother…

Maybe I’ll see you there this New Year

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The End of P90X… for now?

This week will be the homestretch of my 90-day workout routine, popularly called P90X.  Ever since I lost almost 40 pounds in a span of seven weeks last July, I have been trying to add more definition to the “lanky” frame I ended up with… For those who don’t trust infomercials, or are wary of workout ads that promise the world but deliver otherwise, I can safely say that this one works as advertised.  I’ll be making a separate blog entry for that one as soon as I’m done… obviously, I’ll include pictures… and some commentary… maybe a short song as well… or if I’m drunk, I can also put a clip of Richard Simmons singing “Relax”…

On second thought, let’s not…

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Site Renovation Galore

My technical support site, Open Tech Support, once one of the major hubs in technological cyberspace and garnering a top 7,000 site ranking with Alexa a few years ago, is now just a shadow of its former self.  Currently ranked 189,000 (and still falling), it is in MAJOR need of CPR.  Hence I am now making it go back to its roots…

OTS was started as an independent tech support site for games made by Blizzard Entertainment (y’know, Diablo, WarCraft, StarCraft, etc) in 2000.  Yeah, that was nine years ago!  It has eventually progressed into a general support site concentrating on broader categories than just gaming.

But now that I have had a chance to reevaluate the site, I have decided to make it go back to its roots.  Blizzard Entertainment still makes great games (really an understatement if you consider the fact that World of WarCraft is still the biggest MMORPG in the world, and StarCraft II and Diablo III are the most anticipated titles for next year), and the only way for OTS to really get back on its feet is to re-explore its roots.  Right now I am on the last stages of content updates and planning, and hopefully I can update the site’s “philosophy” before Thanksgiving and give the site a much-needed jumpstart…

(And I hope you don’t see me crossing my fingers on the verge of cramping)

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Lovelife?

Errrr… yeah, like I’m gonna talk about that here, hahaha!  Let’s just say that the future looks very bright, but whether it’s the light at the end of the tunnel or a freight train heading my way remains to be seen

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Odds and Ends

Since I’m gonna be on holiday hiatus for the latter part of December, I’ll be queuing up some Tagalog words in advance, so that they’ll show up every day while I’m gone, without me actually having to go to a computer to write them (Wordpress iPhone app, notwithstanding).  That way, you won’t miss a Tagalog word fix while I’m freezing my ass off in sub-zero New York…

And I’ll be once again doing the P90X routine from January to March, dubbed “Phase two” … now that I am kinda lean, I’ll try to go for size, but not too much…  oh, and I’ll also try to stop smoking again…

(Yeah, you heard right… I’m gonna stop smoking once again… how long that lasts is still up in the air, but hey, you better start somewhere, right?  Even though it’s like, what, the hundredth time I tried to stop?  As they say, the hundredth time’s the charm… uh… yeah…)

Wow, a recap post for the week became a pre-end-year forecast…  Well, anything that can make me get back in the groove right?  And if you’re still reading up to this point, I’m sure I made it interesting enough for ya.

So, as always, stay tuned, and keep reading… Constant Reader

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Technorati: blizzard, met, metropolitan, new york, open, opera, p90x, recap, rodell, rosel, support, tech, tolitz

This has been posted on several blogs and social networking sites I think, and I remember seeing this once… but this is the first time I’m gonna be posting it here, coz it was just so funny – for those who can understand Tagalog, anyway

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1.  Black Hawk Down – Ibong Maitim Sa Ibaba

2.  Dead Man’s Chest – Dodo Ng Patay

3.  I Know What You Did Last Summer – Uuy….Aminin!

4.  Love, Actually – Sa Totoo Lang, Pag-ibig

5.  Million Dollar Baby – 50 Milyon Pisong Sanggol (it depends on the exchange rate of the country)

6.  The Blair Witch Project – Ang Proyekto ng Bruhang Si Blair

7.  Mary Poppins – Si Mariang May Putok

8.  Snakes On A Plane – Nag-ahasan sa Ere

9.  The Postman Always Rings Twice – Ang Kartero Kapag Dumutdot Laging Dalawang Beses

10.   Sum Of All Fears – Takot Mo , Takot Ko, Takot Nating Lahat

11.  Swordfish – Talakitok

12.  Pretty Woman – Ganda Ng Lola Mo

13.  Robin Hood, Men In Tights – Si Robin Hood At Ang Mga Bakat

14.  Four Weddings And A Funeral – Kahit 4 Na Beses Ka Pang Magpakasal, Mamamatay Ka Rin

15.  The Good, The Bad And The Ugly – Ako, Ikaw, Kayong Lahat

16.  Harry Potter – Adik Si Harry

17.  Click – Isang Pindot Ka Lang

18.  Brokeback Mountain – Bumigay Sa Bundok

19.  The Day Of The Dead – Araw Ng Mga Patay

20.  Waterworld – Basang-basa

21.  There’s Something About Mary – May Kwan Sa Ano Ni Maria

22.  Employee Of The Month – Ang Sipsip

23.  Resident Evil – Ang Biyenan

24.  Kill Bill – Kilitiin Sa Bilbil

25.  The Grudge – Lintik Lang Ang Walang Ganti

26.  Nightmare Before Christmas – Binangungot Sa Noche Buena

27.  Never Been Kissed – Pangit Kasi

28.  Gone In 60 Seconds – 1 Round Lang, Tulog

29.  The Fast And The Furious – Ang Bitin, Galit

30.  Dude, Where’s My Car – Dong, Anong Level Ulit tayo Nag-park?

31.  Beauty And The Beast – Ang Asawa Ko At Ang Biyenan

32.  The Lord Of The Rings – Ang Alahero

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Technorati: english, in, movie, never, tagalog, titles, translate

Just saw this online ad while I was surfing the Web a while ago, where a company was gonna pay up to more than $6,000 for overweight men to give them sperm samples for a clinical research…  Eight sperm samples in a six-month period… but only if you’re healthy… and overweight… with a BMI (body mass index) of 27-35… 

And I said to myself – where the FUCK was this ad six months ago?!

You’re traveling through another dimension — a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind.  A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination.  That’s a signpost up ahead…  your next stop: one hour into the past…

Sorry for paraphrasing your intro, Mister Serling, but I find this one-hour time jump every November fun.  Yep. we’re back to “normal” time once again.  Time to adjust your clocks (if they don’t adjust themselves automatically) and remove an hour from it.  And assume the placebo-like mentality of “gaining” an hour… the imaginary perception of being allowed to be one hour “late” for work… 

In the business, we always say “If you’re early, you’re on time… and if you’re on time, you’re late…”  In this case, if you’re on time, you’re early… and if you’re late, you’re exactly on time…

… that is, if you forgot to adjust your watch…

Technorati: 2009, daylight, dst, end, rollback, saving, time, travel

So I found this nifty little app that allows me to post to my weblog using my iPhone. Looks like a decent app, even though it has a tendency to crash. But I guess nothing’s perfect, eh?

Anyway, this means I can now post my disturbing thoughts anywhere, which is pretty convenient for me. Many times I had some nasty little things between my ears that I wanted to share, but they always had a tendency to fizzle by the time I get home and sit in front of my computer. Not anymore

I’m just on my way back from the bank right now… Hmm… banks… I got a shitload to say about banks, but I guess I’ll save that for a later posting…

So, does the app work? Well, I’m posting this entry from my iPhone right now, so if you can see this, you got your answer…

Technorati: app, iphone, mobile, wordpress

For the last couple of weeks, I have been winning the war with the common cold.  Just this week alone I have been sneezing like crazy every night, nose starting to clog up, snot threatening to flow like the amazon river, and my head aiming to throb like a bass amp being used by Les Claypool… but so far, when I wake up the next day, all traces are gone.  No cold, no sneezing, no congestion, no headaches.  I’ve been lucky… so far…

Might be because of the two 500mg tablets of Vitamin C that I take everyday… might also be the Iburpofen PM I swallow every night… might even be daily P90X regime I have been doing for the last two months.  In any case, the game of cat and mouse with the common cold has me the victor everytime… so far…

The chilly winds still prevail here in California – wind chill factor is probably in the low 50s – and I have several outdoor engagements to go to.  And it’s not even November, yet… I hope the cold (or the flu) won’t conquer me at the most inopportune time this December… if there’s anything worse than spending Christmas alone this year, it is spending it alone with a cold.  So I say to the common cold, “Have at thee!  Thou shalt not striketh me down if it’s the last thing I do!”  Or is that tempting fate?  Well, if it happens, it happens.  But I’m gonna be enjoying a cold-free weekend, and these tiny viruses are not ruining the remainder of my year…

… so far…

… I hope…

Technorati: c, christmas, cold, common, fever, flu, ibuprofen, vitamin

If you haven’t, it’s like watching paint dry…  

I would like to tell you more about it, but I don’t think I can stay awake long enough to fill you in on the exciting details…  anyway, it’s the wee hours of hump day… I’m watching the second season of The West Wing on DVD while waiting for the database work to get done…  so while I’m waiting, I’m also working on a vBulletin-powered site with a CMS and article plugin, two Wordpress-driven sites with a possible vBulletin bridge, and a Joomla-powered CMS that still needs a forum bridge of its own – as soon as I figure out what forum software to use…  and that doesn’t count the gallery script I’ll probably have to renew.  

Couple that with some PSD-retooling on Photoshop and a CSS overhaul in Expression Web, and you have a taskbar that looks like the bottom of an excel spreadsheet… I’d enjoy it more if I wasn’t sneezing every few minutes… hope it doesn’t become a cold.

Ever tried uploading 25 gigs worth of data on two servers?  Well, that’s what I’m doing next… if I’m still awake, that is…

Technorati: cms, database, index, joomla, mysql, plugin, upload, vbulletin, wordpress

This was what I did, and this was what happened…

First of all, a BIG disclaimer: Do your research before you do this – this is called the Lemonade Diet or Master Cleanse system, and you can easily google it. Make sure you know the advantages and disadvantages, the pros and cons, the positive and negative feedback before you try this… what may work for me may not work for you, so please do not sue me if you suddenly experience anything you’re unhappy about… I’m sharing this because people have been asking, and I would like to make it more convenient to me and them by just linking to this note on Facebook

I’m no expert on this, and I won’t claim to be, but all I’ll do is tell you what I know about it, what I did, what I felt, and what the results were.

WHAT IT’S SUPPOSED TO DO:
Without going into all the scientific mumbo jumbo, this process is supposed to cleanse your system, by getting rid of the toxins that accumulate in your intestines through the years. A couple years ago, someone once told me that the crap in your system contributes a lot to your weight… it wasn’t until a few months ago that I realized he was inadvertently speaking literally.

The benefit of this system is that it cleanses your body, gets rid of the toxins, and makes you less susceptible to diseases and other sicknesses. And the side effect of this is, of course, losing weight. You’ll be losing 1/2 to 1 pound each day with this if you don’t cheat.

(For those in the know, treat this as kind of like Glutathione, wherein its primary purpose is to essentially make the liver healthier, and the side effect is skin whitening, haha… you know what I mean!)

WHAT IT DID FOR ME:
I did this diet when I took a two-month vacation to Santa Fe, New Mexico with my brother (June 23 to August 21). I was 210 lbs when I weighed myself on the first day of this thing (June 29), and six weeks later I was 174 lbs (August 15). So essentially I lost 36 lbs total in six weeks before I went back to normal eating.

WHO SHOULD NOT DO THIS:
If you have a heart condition, or have acid reflux disease, or pretty much have an ailment that prevents you from drastically changing your eating habits, DO NOT DO THIS. 

Ingredients for the Lemonade Diet

INGREDIENTS:

(Note: This is my daily preparation)

(2) Lemons or Limes *
(14) Tablespoon maple syrup **
(1/4) Teaspoon cayenne (red) pepper
(2) Liters water (preferably 2 1-liter bottles)

(Optional daily) ***
(2-3) Teaspoon Seasalt
(1) Liter water
(1) Glass herbal laxative tea
Adult Diaper (hehe)

* Do not use bottled or canned lemon/lime juice. Use “freshly squeezed”, as in squeeze it yourself
** Use “genuine” maple syrup, not maple-flavored sugar syrup, etc. And see if you can get Grabe B syrup – if not, it doesn’t matter
*** You can prepare this if you want the full cleanse effect (and if you can handle the taste… I couldn’t, so I didn’t do it everyday). Use Seasalt, not iodized salt, and only drink that seasalt solution when you have nothing else to do, because you’ll be making frequent trips to the toilet every 15-30 minutes. You can drink herbal laxative tea before you sleep so you won’t be interrupted by continued bowel movements. And the adult diaper? Well, this is just in case the bowel movements do not wake you up

DIRECTIONS:
1.) Mix the lemon/lime juice with 14 tbsp maple syrup and ¼ tsp cayenne (red) pepper in a large container, then pour 2 liters of water in it. Stir and mix well. If it has seeds, you can remove it.
2.) Pour the solution into 2 liters worth of bottles (i.e. 1 2-liter bottle, or 2 1-liter bottles, or 4 500-ml bottles, etc).
3.) This lemonade solution will be all you will drink for the whole day. NO SOLID FOODS, NO JUICE, NO SODA… and NO CHEATING!
4.) You are allowed to drink regular water during the day but nothing else.
5.) I found it best to prepare this the night before so you can refrigerate the lemonade solution. Do it before you sleep.
6.) It is best to drink the lemonade solution when you feel hunger pangs. Otherwise, just try your best to make the 2-liters worth of lemonade last you the entire day until you sleep… drink regular water to pace yourself.
7.) Do not watch the Food Network or Cooking shows, hehe.

WHEN AND HOW OFTEN SHOULD I DO THIS:
You will need to prepare and drink this solution during the weekdays (Mon-Fri), and eat regularly (but sensibly) during the weekends. I myself ate only chicken/turkey breast, soup and cantaloupe. And try your best to avoid eating RICE or BREAD.

The minimum time to do this is 10 days (two weeks), and the maximum is 40 days (eight weeks). I did it for six weeks and lost 36 pounds total (210 to 174). Your results may vary.

WHAT DO I DO AFTER THIS:
After you have finished this diet, you would need to eat very sensibly and watch what you eat, otherwise, the pounds you lost will come back REALLY fast. I stuck with my chicken/turkey breast, soup and cantaloupe meal for two weeks following this and I only gained back about 2 lbs before I started doing P90X.

Continue avoiding rice or bread the best you can, and stay away from soda. Consider this as a starting point, a blank slate, and what happens from here is up to you.

CAN I WORK OUT WHILE DOING THIS:
I would strongly suggest against it, especially if you want to do some strength training and rigorous cardio. This diet won’t give you enough protein, carbs, calories, etc and your body will need it when you work out. Hence, if you try working out rigorously while doing this, you might crash or your body will start eating into your muscle mass coz it can’t find anything else to eat… 

So what can you do? I walked about 2-5 miles a day when I did this… walked, not ran… 

IS THIS A STARVATION DIET OR A PLACEBO DIET:
Since you’re basically supplying your body with the needed nutrients and nothing else, it isn’t technically a starvation diet. As for being a placebo diet, you don’t need to “think” you will lose weight in order for this to work – your body will do it for you. As I said, weight loss is just a side effect, not the purpose of this diet…

IT’S TOO HARD or IT TASTES GROSS or I DON’T SEE ANY CHANGES:
Iif you begin to feel sick or it starts affecting your work or daily activities, consider STOPPING the diet. The first week will be the hardest, so if you can “survive” the first week, the rest will be easier… As for the taste, it is like sweet lemonade with a pepper aftertaste, nothing you will barf (at least, I didn’t). As for the changes, as I said, your results may vary. If you are more than 30 lbs overweight, you will see MORE changes than if you were only 10 lbs overweight.

LAST WORD:
Again, try this at your own risk. Do your research. Google it. Hell, try to contradict or debunk me, I don’t care. I know it worked for me, and I’m telling you what I did. If it works for you, congratulations. If it doesn’t, at least you tried. If you think it’s too hokey to try, then don’t. It’s a free country.

Post a comment if you have any questions or if you think I missed something. And GOOD LUCK!

Technorati: cleanse, diet, lemonade, master