Hypocorism doesn't sound endearing

I subscribed to the "Word of the day" feature of My Yahoo! and today's word is hypocorism. Without clicking on the link leading to its definition, I tried to guess what it meant...being the geeky weirdo that I am. I initially thought that it was some kind of disorder or an extreme of something. TheFreeDictionary defines it as a name of endearment; a pet name. What a waste of dictionary space! Wouldn't it be funny to see hypocorism in an autograph book? (Name:_______ Hypocorism:________) At least we all learned something today.

Becoming money wise

I'm very bad with money! Fortunately, my husband is very conscious of our finances which is why we've decided to calculate the amount of money we should save and spend each month. Luckily, my sister-in-law was an avid reader of Good Housekeeping Magazine (Philippines) and I came across a free booklet entitled "Get Money Wise! The Best Advice from Good Housekeeping," which was included in one of the 2005 issues. I would like to share my favorite money-wise move from the booklet, entitled Know your options, which introduced me to the various bank services I could use in order to maximize my savings.

Know Your Options

If you had only P50,000 to start a savings fund, what are your options? Where's the best place to stash your cash? One of your surest bets is to place your money in a bank. Deposits are insured by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) for a maximum of P100,000 per depositor (right now, it's at P250,000 according to gsr_mj of GirlTalk...thanks, by the way!). And gone are the days when your only option is with brick-and-mortar banks. Now there's the convenience of Internet, phone, and mobile banking, on top of the accessibility provided by automated teller machines (ATMs) and local branches.

According to Allan Hizon, corporate products marketing officer of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), here are some things to consider when opening an account:

• How long will I keep my money in the bank?
• Will I need to use it often and withdraw periodically?
• Do I prefer to split my money by investing in two or more accounts?

Keep in mind that the longer a bank keeps your money, the higher the interest rate it applies. Another reminder: Interest rates fluctuate, often on a daily basis, so it is best to make direct inquiries with the banks concerned to get the real numbers; the rates provided on the next few pages are just a rough guide. Here are a number of options:

Treasury Bills (T-Bills)

Banks offer government securities, which are essentially debt instruments issued by the National Treasury to finance public expenditures. These include T-bills, short-term debt instruments that are risk-free since these are direct obligations of the Philippine government. Investment term is from 30 days to one year, depending on availability. Investments are subject to a final 20 percent withholding tax on the interest, confirmation of sale certificate, official receipt, or debit advice. Chinabank offers T-bills for a minimum investment of P50,000, while Banco de Oro requires a minimum of P10,000.

Treasury Notes (T-Notes)

In contrast to T-bills, treasury notes are long-term, low-risk, high-yielding debt instruments. Investment term is from two to 25 years. The yield to maturity is based on net present value, and you can enjoy coupon interest payments, where interest is based on principal, rate, time (PRT), minus the applicable withholding tax. As with the T-bill, you are issued the same documents, and the interest income is also levied a 20 percent final tax. Chinabank offers t-notes for a minimum placement of P50, 000. Banco de Oro offers five-year fixed-rate Progress Bonds for a minimum investment of P25,000, and four-year Retail Treasury Bonds for a minimum investment of P5,000.

*If you actually understood T-bills and T-notes, then go ahead and put your money there. As for me, when I read those two items, I was like, wat da heck?!?

Trust Funds

It doesn't take millions to invest in trust funds, you just have to be resourceful in finding something that fits your budget. This is how trust funds work: Banks' investment managers place your money in a diversified portfolio of government securities, loans, commercial papers, and other securities. You then get a share in the portfolio's gains together with other individual investors. The yields are very competitive, and you can even maintain financial flexibility since there are available placements for a minimum holding period of 30 days. Banks also offer a common trust fund designed for small investors seeking a high-yielding liquid portfolio. Funds are pooled and placed in diversified fixed-income securities.

Equitable PCI Bank offers the Small Investors Risk Free Fund for P5,000, with a minimum holding period of 90 days. Banco de Oro has a Smart Money Fund with a P10,000 minimum investment. Tip: Make your transaction in the morning as banks have a cut-off for trust funds, usually around noon. The prevailing market rates or unit priced change daily. If you go after cut-off, the next banking day's rates apply.

*Trust funds..nah, I don't think so..too complicated..

Time Deposits

If you want to save for the future, yet want to start small, then time deposits (TD) are the way to go. Your money is kept in the bank for at least 30 days, and you can get the interest when it matures. Interest rates are based on prevailing market rates, which may range from 2.3 percent to 3.5 percent. They are subject to documentary stamps (about 30 centavos fr every P200) and a 20 percent withholding tax. Check with the bank if they offer automatic rollover, so you won't need to go to the branch every single time io reinvest when your deposit matures.

Special Savings

These require a higher minimum balance than regular saving accounts but earn higher interest rates, which may be from two to 2.6 percent. Banks offer passbook-based or ATM-based accounts, with some having slightly higher interest rates for the ATM-based. Some people prefer passbooks to discourage withdrawals, but ATM cards offer convenience and accessibility (think emergencies in the middle of the night, and no branch to run to.)

"At BPI, you can either open a multi-earner savings account (which gives a higher interest rate if you make no withdrawals for the month) or platinum savings account (ATM-based) for P25,000," says Hizon. "Passbook-based platinum savings will require P50,000 minimum monthly average daily balance (ADB). Interest rates are tiered, you can withdraw two times a month, and the platinum savings comes with a free accident insurance."

Other banks have similar special savings schemes:

• Equitable PCI Bank offers Optimum with a minimum daily balance of P20,000. You can access your account with a passbook and ATM card, and withdraw up to three times a month.
• Chinabank offers MoneyPlus Savings, with a minimum monthly ADB of P20,000. Interest rates are tiered, a passbook is issued, and the maximum number of withdrawals is twice amonth to earn premium interest.
• Unionbank has Unionbank Premium Deposit, where you can enjoy time deposit interest rates for maintaining only P10,000 in monthly ADB, plus you can withdraw up to two times a month.

Regular Savings

If you need to get money periodically and want to split your options, then open a regular savings account. Having a savings account is so much better than keeping your money at home. This earns interest and you can easily withdraw whenever the need arises.

To extend one's name

I attended my graduation march the day before yesterday and it wasn't incredibly special. In fact, I didn't need to go because grad students have that option. I would have to agree with my father when he said that graduation isn't really for students but for parents/ guardians/ relatives. Parents feel a sense of accomplishment when they see their son/ daughter go up the stage and receive his/ her diploma...maybe I'll experience that same feeling when my 3-month old son graduates from college in, what, I dunno, 20 years?

So this is how having a comma and a few letters added to my name feels. Nothing. No spectacular feeling of self-admiration. It actually feels burdensome, because I now feel that I am compelled, pressured....mandated (I had to borrow that word from Frasier even when it's inappropriate!) to acquire a PhD, which will eventually lead to the never-ending pursuit of all the possible letters that I can include in my name. That's the academe. Anyway, this...this angle of my vanity is reversible. I've been praying for humility and selflessness...I guess I haven't been praying that hard. My husband and I already have a son and I'm sure we'll have a few more children in the future. It's no longer about me...it's about them. If every letter added to my name increases my children's chances of becoming happy and contented in their adulthood, then I'd be more than willing to be on the rack.

Frustration with Publication

I finally received the editor's letter regarding a paper I submitted for publication. My heart was thumping really fast when I was opening it and suddenly, a hollow, icy feeling crept over me...the journal thought that my paper in its present form was weak in scope, method, and discussion. Oh well. I didn't go through a stage of defensiveness or anything like that, but I wanted to know exactly why it was rejected. After all, it wasn't something I just did for fun or for a week. It was a very laborious study (for me). I called up the journal's office so that I could clarify some things...then, after a couple of minutes of conversation with the polite staff member who attended my call (he tried very hard to nicely say that the reviewers thought my study sucked), I finally accepted the situation. At least, according to the letter, the editor-in-chief was willing to discuss my publication options in the future and suggested that I submit another paper. Maybe I'll set an appointment with the EIC, but not anytime soon...I'm still in mourning. Anyway, I jotted down a couple of possible studies I had in mind and maybe I'll be more thorough next time. All in all, It was a very good learning experience.

Keeping the Faith

I'll be returning to the academe this coming semester and I never thought I'd be this excited. I discovered a new passion for website creation so I made a relatively bare site for a subject that I'm sure I would be teaching. I'll make a link when it's complete.
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The Da Vinci Code movie will be showing soon and the Catholic Church in the country is now readying itself from attacks. Personally, I've never read the book because I was warned that it contained things contrary to Catholic dogma. I am fully aware that questioning or doubting on matters regarding the faith is already a sin...and I didn't want to take that risk (knowing how inquisitive my mind is). After coming across this article, I now think it would be a good idea to read the novel...at least, this novel compels Christians to enrich their faith through debate.

It is necessary to arm one's self to Da Vinci Code fanatics by clarifying certain inaccuracies in the novel (including the question of Jesus' divinity and his marriage to Mary Magdalene). It's very unfortunate that many people who have read the book consider it as fact and believe without question. What about the Holy Bible? It's still difficult to convince lay people to read it... Check out http://www.davinciantidote.com/involved.asp.

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As a scientist, I know I should be governed by logic and reasoning but I am a Christian through and through. I'm not convinced that everything exists because of some spontaneous event. There's just so much order in existence that the only plausible thing for me is if there was a supreme mover, a divine cause that led to the effect that is being. I once read a poem in Communications class that likened knowledge to salt, which God adds little by little until the full flavor of Truth can be achieved.

Semana Santa....Holy Week

Holy Week is a time of reflection and atonement. Thus, it is appropriate that I post one of my father's talks, which is a good aid in meditation for this Lenten season...

What shall I do to inherit eternal life?

Let us begin with the scene depicted in the Gospel. A lawyer approached Jesus and asked him: What shall I do to inherit eternal life? (Luke 10:25-37) It is a question that we can repeat and ask ourselves. What am I here on earth for? Where am I going and how should I get there? What are my goals in life and what must I do to accomplish them? How shall I live my life?

These are questions that we need to particularly confront as we go through the last weeks of the Season of Lent. Pope Benedict XVI in his message for Lent says: “Lent is a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the fount of mercy. It is a pilgrimage in which He Himself accompanies us through the desert of our poverty, sustaining us on our way towards the intense joy of Easter.” Our life then is a pilgrimage, a journey of faith, a way of living that moves us forward and toward an eternal union with God, who is the fountain of love and mercy. The goal of our life is to live in such a way as to merit eternal life. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16).

Our life is a journey of faith, of faith in God. The fundamental command of living is to make God present in our life. Let me repeat: Make God present in our life (Ratzinger, The Yes of Jesus
Christ). There is only one kind of life that we must live, the right kind of life. It is a life of union with God. Our life is a life of relationship with God and a life of relationship with our neighbors, our fellowmen. How do we live this life? The following command summarizes the law and the teachings of the prophets: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with
all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself” (Luke 10:27).

“We mustn’t just believe in some theoretical way that God exists: we must consider him to be the most important and real thing in our life. As Scripture says, he must penetrate every layer of our life and fill it completely: our heart must know about him and let itself be moved by him; our soul; the power of our will and decision; our intelligence. He must be everywhere” (Ratzinger, The Yes of Jesus Christ). “Living with God,” says St. Josemaria, “is a risky business, for he will not
share things. He wants everything” (Christ is Passing By, 58).

Don’t live for yourself alone. Live in the sight of God. Live in such a way that God will be pleased with you and welcome you in heaven and there to dwell forever in the company of all the
angels and saints. There is a key attitude that we need to have, to make God present in our life and in all our relations. It is the fundamental attitude of love. For love to grow within us and to overflow in our life, we must practice thinking with God, feeling with God, acting with God. God is love. When God is with us, his love is with us. When this happens, we experience true peace and joy.

Pope Benedict XVI’s first encyclical precisely dwells on the theme of love, Deus Caritas Est, God is love. The encyclical starts with a passage from the First Letter of John: “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16). And what is this love? The Pope tackles the concept of “eros” and the concept of “agape.” The word “eros”, from which
the word “erotic” is derived, is associated with sensual love, sex or pleasure of the senses. The person pursues “eros” for the pleasure it gives him or her. “Agape” focuses on the giving or sharing of oneself to another. Eros takes; agape gives. Eros is natural; agape is supernatural.
Jesus Christ says: “I give you a new commandment: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” (Jn 13”34) And in another passage, Jesus Christ says: “If you love me, keep my commandments.” (Jn 14:15). In another passage, Jesus says: “Whoever
loves me will keep my word” (Jn 14: 23). To paraphrase these Gospel passages, Jesus Christ is telling us that we must love one another, love our neighbor, in the same manner that he is loving us. This love is one of self-giving and self-sacrifice. And how do we love Jesus in return? Keep his commandments. Thus, as the encyclical points out, God's way of loving becomes the measure of human love. Eros is therefore to be manifested in accordance with our faith.

Jesus commands us: Come with me; take up your cross; follow me (cf Mt 16:24). For whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me (cf 10:38). In the Gospel of St. Luke, Jesus says: “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me annot be my disciple” (Lk 14:27). The cross in our lives takes many forms: problems of various kinds, contradictions,
failures, weaknesses, shortcomings. Jesus commands us to take up these crosses, to carry them, to embrace them as a sign of our love for him. Many times we go wayward, we fall, we commit sins, we do what is evil in the sight of God. During these times, let us not be discouraged.

The message of Pope Benedict for Lent bears repeating: God is the fount of mercy. God does not allow darkness to prevail. Echoing the words of Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict reminds us that there is a divine limit imposed upon evil, namely, mercy. God’s inexhaustible mercy will drown out evil. Relevant is another Gospel scene recorded by St. Matthew: “Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity.” (Mt 9:35-36) Jesus looks at the crowd and was moved with pity. We are part of the crowd. He is looking at us now, his gaze focused directly at us. He is looking at us deeply. His gaze is a gaze of love. He wants to dwell in our hearts. His is a gaze of compassion. He shares in our struggles and difficulties. His is a gaze of pity. He knows our shortcomings, our weaknesses, our many failures, our sins. His is a gaze of mercy. In spite of all our sins, Jesus offers us his merciful heart. He wants us to atone for our sins and to follow him. He offers us a gift, the gift of his self. He offers us the gift of his love.

Jesus also desires us to be like him, to be a Christ to others. To be loving, compassionate and merciful to all the people we meet in our life. He wants us to extend a helping hand to the less
fortunate in our midst, the poor ones, the sick ones, the abandoned ones, the disabled ones. For whatever we do to the least of our brothers and sisters, we do it for Christ. Our love for God is shown in our love for others, in the charity we manifest to our spouses, our children, our friends, our colleagues in the office. The hallmark of the disciple of Christ is the love shown to others.
For Christ has said: This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (Jn 13:35)

Pope John Paul II, Dives in Misericordia: “It is precisely because sin exists in the world, which "God so loved...that he gave his only Son, that God, who is love, cannot reveal Himself otherwise than as mercy. Mercy in itself, as a perfection of the infinite God, is also infinite. Also infinite
therefore and inexhaustible is the Father's readiness to receive the prodigal children who return to His home.” We are all prodigal children. In this season of Lent, God bids us to return to him.
Whatever are sins are, mortal or venial, serious or not, God is waiting for us. He is waiting for us through his priests at the confessional. Dives in Misericordia: “No human sin can prevail over or limit God’s power of forgiveness. On the part of man only a lack of good will can limit it, a lack of
readiness to be converted and to repent, in other words persistence in obstinacy.” He is waiting for us in the sacrament of communion. The sacraments are channels of God’s divine mercy.

Lent is a call for conversion. Christ appeals to us to change our ways so as to become closer to him. Dives in Misericordia: Conversion to God always consists in discovering His mercy, that is, in discovering that love which is patient and kind as only the Creator and Father can be. God is rich in mercy. It is in this hope in the forgiveness and mercy of God that will encourage us to examine our life deeply, to find out any behavior or manner of living that does not conform to divine standards and to make resolutions to overcome them, to rise up from our falls and to begin again. In these efforts, we are not alone. Christ will be with us. He will help us every step of the way, through all our trials and struggles. There is no suffering, however cruel or violent it may be, which is not made bearable or even reduced to nothing by love, St Augustine says (Sermon 70; Fernandez, In Conversation with God, Vol. 2, 149). That is what Christ has promised to his disciples, before he ascended to heaven, the same promise he gives us: “I am with you always, until the end of the age." (Mt 20:28).

“Lent reminds us, therefore, that Christian life is a never-ending combat in which the "weapons" of prayer, fasting and penance are used. Fighting against evil, against every form of selfishness and hate, and dying to oneself to live in God is the ascetic journey that every disciple of Jesus is called to make with humility and patience, with generosity and perseverance.” (Homily, Pope Benedict XVI, Ash Wednesday, 01 March 2006) It is by dying to ourselves, taking up our crosses, and following Jesus Christ, that we will merit eternal life.

It's sweltering hot!

Summer has just begun and I can't stand it already. As opposed to many people, I'm not really a summer person but more of an advent season person when it's cooler. I can't bear the heat and the humidity during this time of the year, because after a few seconds outside I'm already very sticky! Decades of neglecting mother earth has really taken a toll on our climate. I'ts like the Greenhouse Effect x 10. According to PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, & Astronomical Services Administration) today's temperature range is from 24 to 34 degrees Celsius (75.20 to 93.20 degrees Farenheit) with 84% relative humidity (based on the BBC Weather Centre). It would be best if I stayed indoors and limit my movements. If I could take a shower every 2 hours, I would but that would be a waste of water. There's no use going to the mall to enjoy air conditioning since it will probably be as crowded as a can of sardines at this time of the day.

A moisturized me

I wasn't blessed with picture perfect skin. Although the battle with my long-time adversary--acne--is over, the scars will forever remind me of that treacherous past. Days and nights spent inside my room, constant avoidance of mirrors, walking in public with my head down, and many self-deprecating moments resulted to my irreversible low self-esteem. Yes, it was THAT horrible!

I should have used my researching skills in finding out the appropriate skin care regimen for me. Thanks to GirlTalk, I learned of VMV Hypoallergenics and I swear by it now. I religiously apply oil-free moisturizer with spf15 every morning and evening and use sun & light screen. Since I don't get to sleep that much because of my 2-month old son, I also learned to use eye cream! Of course, drinking gallons (I'm exaggerating) of water also helped in clearing my complexion (yikes, I actually used the words complexion and clear in a single sentence!) . I always thought that I had sensitive skin, but I was simply oily and dehydrated. I'm embracing a whole new me----the newly improved vanity case that I have become.