Lately, aside from being deep in thought about what our future holds for us, I have been thinking about investments. There was a time when I would have made investments if I had the resources and I can’t help but think that it was a good thing that I didn’t especially with the current economic crisis.

Recently, I came across someone who has been investing in gold. He started his investment when he decided to buy gold coins. It seems that among the numerous investment products in the market, gold is one of the most important and solid choice. According to him, gold is a pretty safe investment even during economic crises like what is currently being experienced almost everywhere. Aside from having high returns, it’s value is not likely to decrease with time. I can’t help but think that buying gold jewelry for my wife might be a good investment after all.

Being out of the usual busy routine before the start of classes, I’m feeling a bit sluggish and weird. I haven’t had to stay home for this long since I was in high school. Now my daily routine consists basically of cleaning chores (giving Aria a bath, hosing and brushing the garage, washing the dishes and the clothes, etc.) In between, I make blog posts, write articles, and play with the now-super-mischievous mateo.

It’s a far cry from what I used to do when I’m in school. I don’t go up and down the library anymore, nor do I walk around the whole school inspecting the classroom and the laboratory, talking to the teachers, consulting the principal, and preparing materials for my lessons.

The worst part about it is that now that I’m home, I can’t stop eating. Yes, it is true that I do a lot of menial work (except for the article writing and blogging), but I also take a lot of breaks and quick bites. Pretty soon I’ll look more pregnant than my wife and then I’d really be in trouble. I know I should exercise more control but I can’t help it. It’s either I introduce a more rigorous exercise in my routine or I start surfing for the best weight loss pill I can find. Either way, I have to do something or I’m bound to be horizontally challenged.

It’s been a really crazy summer with so many unexpected twists and turns. Before we knew it, here we are packing our things away and deciding which ones to let go first as we prepare for moving back to Novaliches.

It started with a message on Facebook. A friend of mine from another country told me to give her my resume. I did. I told myself it wouldn’t hurt to try. A few days after she told me to prepare for an interview and that a person from their school’s HR department would call the following day. I received the call, answered the other guy’s questions and then exchanged thanks. Before a week has passed, my friend told me I was in. Their school was already processing my papers and getting ready to draft my contract.

In less than two weeks, our lives have changed. I didn’t know what to do at first because the change was just too huge to take in all at once. I struggled with the idea of leaving everything we’ve worked for for 7 years, but as I saw my son, and my very pregnant wife, I couldn’t help but feel that I was being too selfish.

I wanted to stay because I wanted to look and see if the kids I handled would turn out alright. I wanted to stay because I love the people I work with. I wanted to stay because it was where I felt comfortable. I wanted to stay for my own personal reasons.

It was difficult accepting the idea that I was being selfish, but I did. What my friend did was to provide us with an opportunity to experience a new chance of security. I have a family of my own to take care of. And for them I would do anything.

No it’s not about being able to buy lots of modern furnitures, or gadgets, or even a car. It’s about ensuring the future of my family and sacrificing so that we may be able to live with less worries. I’m saying farewell for now to my life for 7 years so that we may all have a better life to look forward to.

The economy all over the world can be very volatile nowadays. The recent economic crisis has made many investor wary of making additional investments. One of the more solid investments one can make during this difficult economic time is to invest in gold.

Many people choose to buy gold coins because unlike other investment products, the price of gold is relatively unaffected by the economic crisis. Even a quick look at the history of gold investments will show that gold preserves its value over time. When you invest in gold, you don’t get a paper saying that it has this much value. What you get is your actual investment. Also gold is recognized to be valuable regardless of which country you are in. So lately whenever I think about investing I might just buy gold instead.

One thing about working from home is that you become totally dependent on the internet. So much so, in fact, that when connections are lost, everything seems to go awry.

Yes, it is only 10 in the morning and yet me, andrea, and mateo are already at a local cafe (with free wifi) ordering nachos (so we can go online) because our Globelines broadband connection is once again acting up. We lost all signal, even the dial tone, at around 1 in the morning and we’ve already contacted the Globelines hotline to report the case. Unfortunately, we have to wait till tomorrow for an onsite visit.

With articles to submit and files to transcribe, we become temporarily crippled whenever these things happen. Fortunately for us, we’re moving back to Novaliches next month. We could try other internet providers there. Anyone with suggestions?

What gift can you give to people you don’t really want to leave behind? Coffee mugs? Macanudo cigars? Smiles? Promises?

It is surprisingly hard to think of the perfect parting gift for them. First, the thought of leaving does not really seem so real to me yet. Don’t exactly know if this is denial or if my EQ is just lagging significantly behind. Second, I want to go back so I don’t want to leave anything behind to provide a sense of finality to my departure.

I want to give them something but at the same time, I don’t know what! I never imagined parting gifts are this hard to think of.

It is not so difficult to tell teachers apart from other people. They have peculiar concerns and a twisted kind of priority. Take a look at us for example.

In our conversations about which things to bring and which things to sell, andrea and I would find it easier to sell a washing machine than to sell textbooks. In fact, in our short list of things to bring to Brunei, books occupy one of the closest spots to the top (next to clothes and followed by kitchenwares).

Teachers prefer red ballpoint pens over any other colored pen, because they check more than what they write. While other people shy away from attention, teachers take the limelight everyday, standing in front of a class at least twenty hours a week. They like light colored tops because they don’t make too much contrast with chalk and are a lot cooler to wear.

In other words, they’re practical, to the point that they sometimes stand out. I, for one, am proud to be a teacher!

You never know how effective teaching is in burning fat until you’ve stopped. You see, since April (my first summer vacation), I haven’t had any formal teaching, nor prepared any lessons, nor climbed up and down the library for books and reservations. I haven’t had basketball breaks either. Now, I’m 3-5 pounds heavier.

And with the kind of work that andrea and I are now doing, transcription and article writing, I doubt I’ll be getting any slimmer, which makes me kinda worried about the next few months. Because as far as I can see it, it’s either I find some major exercise routine in between writing or I start taking Lipovox before flying to Brunei.

After all, it’s not so easy starting in another country with a major fat issue on your shoulders.

Ever since we’ve decided to try our luck somewhere else, andrea and I have been looking for many ways to fill the financial gap I made from quitting work. We’ve taken on a lot of online work and have been forced to stay up really late for the past month.

Since Anika is due this July or August, we can not stop earning now. We have to find means to earn back everything I’ve lost because of our decision. That’s why we’re taking on transcription work and article writing on top of blogging. We’ve been working for many nights staying up sometime till 4 or 5 in the morning to finish tasks.Never mind if we have to deal with the best acne treatment ever to address the acne we get from the lack of sleep. Waiting for my January departure without work is not an option.

We still need to save enough for Anika’s delivery and some pocket money for January. I just hope we don’t get sick from all the late night work.

I’ve been putting off blogging for a while because I have no idea how to put into words what’s been going on for the past month. Yup, past month, no longer than that and no shorter either.

To put it flamboyantly, we’re about the undergo change – a drastic turn from the life we knew and lived for the past 7 years – SEVEN LONG YEARS. It doesn’t seem too long for some, I know. However, if you think about it, I’ve never stuck to anything, any routine, for such a long time. Grade school lasted for only 6 years. High school took 4. College had 4 as well. And teaching in Hedcen had already been my life since a few since a months after graduation.

All that’s about to change now. I’m taking a leave from work for a while. For the sake of my family and my family’s future, I’m braving another place. I just hope everything works out well for everybody.