wall street: money never sleeps

I finally found time to watch Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (or Wall Street 2) which starred Michael Douglas and Shia LaBeouf and directed by Oliver Stone. The movie was released in 2010 as a sequel to the original film Wall Street in 1987.

The film was set 23 years after the sequel and revolves around the 2008 financial crisis. The plot focuses on the reformation of Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas (a reprise of his role from the original movie), with him being more of an antihero rather than a villain. He was shown publishing books and warning people and Wall Street of its impending market crash as well as trying to repair his relationship with his estranged daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan) with the help of her fiancé Jacob "Jake" Moore (Shia LaBeouf), a proprietary trader for an investment bank. In return for Jake's help, Gordon helps Jake get revenge on the person he blames responsible for the death of his mentor.

The cast portrayed their roles well and one of the things that stuck to my mind was a picture of how greed for money can change everything. When money becomes the reason for being, it can bring out the monster within a person. Aside from that, I learned a lot from what could be happening on Wall Street and stock markets in general. Now, I know what principles to consider when investing in our financial industry.

one life lived right

How have you lived your life?

Sometimes we forget that we are not here forever. Oftentimes, we are not conscious that we only have limited time here on earth. Yesterday while preparing notes for our group discussions, I calculated the hours we have in life. All of us have 24 hours a day, each year we have about 8760 hours (without considering the leap year) and if we live up to 75 years old we have had lived 657,000 hours - that is if you live up to that age or older. If you're 25 years old now, you have spent 219,000 hours of your life leaving you with 438,000 more.

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. - Psalms 90:12 (TNIV)

I believe that when we begin to number our days, we will develop wisdom. Naturally, we would make the most of our lives. As much as possible, we would want to do things right, and fulfill the purpose we are here on earth for. May God teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

visiting foundations

I enjoyed a wonderful discussion with friends last night about truths that serve as foundations for our personal principles and convictions. It is refreshing and fulfilling to visit these core values that we believed in. Personally, it led me to reviewing my principles and re-align my convictions that were not in tune with those principles.

In the course of time, as we pursue different goals, sometimes we forget the reasons why we act or reason the way we do. Through a regular visit and review of our personal foundations and values, we will have a clearer picture of where we are and where we are headed.

iloilo city to kalibo

Kalibo is the capital of the Province of Aklan, located in the northwest portion of Panay Island. Its name come from the words "sangka libo", meaning one thousand, the number native Aetas who attended the first Catholic Mass. The town is well-known because of the the Ati-Atihan Festival it annually celebrates during the third Sunday of January. It is also a jump-off point to Boracay.

Kalibo is around 160 kilometers from Iloilo City. By bus, travelers can take the Ceres Tours at the Tagbak Terminal in Iloilo City. The travel takes around three hours and the fare is P216.

ang tanging ina - last na nga ba to?

When the entries for the Manila Film Festival were made known, my wife and I planned to watch Tanging Ina Last Na To!, the third movie in the supposed trilogy. I did not have much expectations from the movie since it was the third installment and usually movie depreciate as the sequels are done (with the exception of a few). However, when I learned that the movie garnered a number of awards including Ai Ai de las Alas, the main star of the movie, getting a Best Actress award, I got curious and really wanted to see the movie.

The laughter you get from the movie's funny scenes were not as stomach-cramping as the first movie, rather, it was both heart-warming and funny. Further, it showed the heart of most Filipino mothers - how they value their families and how they love their children. Aside from watching it this Christmas, I believe this movie is also good for Mother's Day.

A salute to our mother and all the mothers who love unconditionally and work hard to keep their family together.

how i start my year...

What do you do at the start of the year?

Most people start it with resolutions they are hoping to accomplish within the year. The most common is losing the pounds gained during the holidays. For some, they start planning for the year and set goals to be achieved. This is a good way to start the year so that you can wake up everyday with a vision to be fulfilled.

However, for us, before we plan for the year, we come to God and fast and listen to Him. Who would have the best idea for the year than Him who is Lord and Father to us all. God bless us all!

hello 2011!

A happy and prosperous new year to all. I hope you all enjoyed how you greeted the new year - feasting on delicious food on the table, wonderful fireworks, parties, and all activities that you did to welcome the new year.

In a few days the holiday fever will fade but I do hope that before you get back to work, you get to spend some time with yourself and do an assessment of your previous year (if you have not done it yet) and set a course for 2011. What do you hope to accomplish within the year? What are your your specific goals? How are you going to achieve those targets?

The great thing about setting a direction for the year is realizing how far you went at the end of the year - it brings you a sense of fulfillment. You realize that you had progress and did not stay on the same spot. I hope you all enjoy planning ahead and fulfilling those plans as the days of 2011 go. I'm sure one of it would be losing those pounds. Enjoy!