What I miss…

I miss the tiangges. The really cheap clothes, accessories and bags. Things are so expensive here.

I miss shopping for clothes that actually fit me. I have to shop at the juniors section to buy clothes. Not only that, I have to find sizes 0-2 (Yes, at the Juniors section) . There are some ladies clothes that fit me, but it’s difficult to find them. So once I see something I like that fits me, I don’t get second thoughts. No matter how expensive they are.

I miss Burgoo Cheesecake. Lately I’ve been making cheesecakes at home, but they’re really nothing compared to Burgoo’s. Even if my officemates tell me that they’re amazing.

I miss the constantly warm weather. It’s really cold here right now. Cold weather is fine, I can manage (Plus, I have a great excuse to buy more jackets). What I don’t like about the weather here is that we have 70F today and 30F the next. As they say, “You don’t like the weather in Texas? Just wait. It will change.”

I miss my independence. I stay here at home with my parents. Suddenly you have to tell them your every move again. You have to tell them what time you’ll come home, where you’re going and with whom. Suddenly they control (I’d like to call it ‘highly encouraging/discouraging‘) what you buy and what you don’t buy. Suddenly you see them in and out of your room. If you lock the door and they want to come in, but you say “Why?” before opening the door, they’ll get angry for not letting them in first. Suddenly you notice that someone ‘checked‘ your purse (What it there to check?). Ohhh… I can go on and on about this.

I miss going out. Weekends are boring. Sometimes I go to the mall and go buy things I don’t need. Other than that, most of the time I just stay at home and watch tv.

I miss DoTA. Game, game, game!

I miss my friends. People whom I can play DoTA with. People whom I can go out with. People whom I can actually talk to. Here, other than work friends, I don’t really know anyone.

And of course, I miss my Ozzie beaw. I miss going to tiangge’s with him. I miss what he does (making a tapa-oho) when I see another distraction (i.e. tiangge). I miss eating Burgoo cheesecake with him. I miss that even in the warm weather, Ozzie and I will still shnuggle up. I miss that Ozzie and I are always together. No need to tell him where I am, what time I’ll go home and with whom. Because most of the time, I’m with him. I miss ‘consulting‘ him what to buy (actually I base 50% of my decisions on his). I miss being with him in our apartment. Ozzie, Joee and I just hanging around. I miss weekends with him. Sometimes there’s nothing much. Just a lazy Saturday/Sunday. We just go to the mall, watch some movie and eat outside. Other weekends plan on a trip somewhere. Other weekends we go crazy and go on road trips. I miss playing DoTA with him! It wouldn’t be the ‘lightning osos‘ if there were only one of us, wouldn’t it? I miss going out with Ozzie and our friends too. I miss talking to him. I miss arguing with him. I miss making pa-cute. I miss him being so pa-cute. I miss the shnuggles. I just miss everything about him.

Gobble Gobble <:>~

(Cmon! Use your imagination. That’s supposed to be a turkey emoticon, not just some random keys I pressed)

Today was the company’s pot luck feast. Boy, was it yummy. There were lots of food cooked by my officemates. Turkey and ham was provided by the office. I brought chicken menudo, cheesecake and pili tarts. The menudo and cheesecake were such great hits. I’ve had officemates who really got addicted to the menudo (they called it chicken soup). They were literally eating it the whole day. I got compliments the whole day. I got several emails telling me how good it was. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depends on how you look at it), I didn’t cook the menudo. My dad did. He’s such a great cook. To be completely honest, my dad cooks better than my Mom. Don’t get me wrong, though. I love my Mom’s cooking. I just find my dad’s cooking better.

I’m not sure if my officemates were just being polite about the cheesecake. To describe it in my officemate’s words, “It was amazing!”. I told him I personally didn’t like it. Hahahaha. I cooked it the other day (Wednesday, pot luck was Friday) and the cheesecake seemed to be a bit too soft. I should have sticked with the Cooking for Engineers recipe. Although it’s still not the Burgoo recipe. Ohhhh… I wish I had the recipe for that cheesecake. Although I can’t really tell if it’s just the raspberry sauce that’s making the cheesecake so yummy. I remember I ate it without the sauce and I didn’t like it as much.

After lunch everybody was sooo full. I wasn’t able to work the whole afternoon since I was so full and sleepy. I’m sure my officemates were, too.

Philipino (sic) Food: Fancy Names and Chocolate Stew…

I found them on Google the other day and tried their Caldereta. It was a bit too salty for me, but it was ok. I brought back Brazo de Mercedes that day and everybody at the office loved it! They called it ‘the rolls with a fancy name’.

They wanted to try Filipino food so we scheduled for a lunch out. C misspelled Filipino. I didn’t correct her, because probably it really made sense to spell it with a Ph, since the country is called Philippines. (Yes, I know it was Filipinas before, but why not rename the people to Philipinos? hahahaha)

We invited our team, the DBAs, some QA and the Config Manager. We were so busy today since it was a code push day, but everybody still wanted to go.

There were 2 Vietnamese, 4 Chinese, 1 Pakistani, 6 Americans and Me (Filipina).

I ordered for our table. We ordered Lumpiang Shanghai, Lumpiang prito, Bihon, Crispy Pata, Barbeque, Caldereta, Sinigang na Catfish (don’t know what it is in Filipino), Adobo, Kare-kare and Dinuguan (yes, Dinuguan!)

It was a fun, fun experience.

While ordering:
Me: blahblahblah… and 1 dinuguan …
Waitress: Are you sure?
Me: Yeah, I want them to try it [evil grin]
M: Typically I get scared when the waitress asks, “Are you sure?!?”.

On Caldereta:
M: Hua, how is it? I don’t trust Cheryl.

On Caldereta:
M: Hey Cheryl, look at that! I’ve got French fries on my stew! (Pertaining to cut french-fries-looking potatoes [not fried, though])

On Kare-kare:
M: What part is this?
Me: Stomach, I think. (To waitress:) What part is this?
Waitress: That’s the intestine.
M: That’s even worse! That’s further down the digestive chain…[laughs] But ok, I’ll try it. (Eats the tripe with a funny looking face… something like he’s grossed out but doesn’t want to show it [but it still shows])

Offering the Dinuguan (Pork Blood Stew) to the other table.
S: Do you want to try this?
C: What is it?
M: No! Don’t tell them what it is. Just tell them it’s authentic Filipino Stew. Or Chocolate stew… just don’t tell them what it is. [laughs]

While eating:
M: So Cheryl, is there any American food that you say, “They eat that?!?”.
Me: Hmmm… none that I can think of.
H: Big Mac

On Adobo (was served last):
K: What’s this?
Me: Chicken in Soy Sauce.
K: Chicken on what now?
Me: Soy sauce.
K: Oh, ok. It’s safe to eat. I better be careful. [laughs]

After Lunch:
Me: How’d you like the food?
K: I loved the food. I really liked the “Meat on Sticks” .

Sooo funny…

They said the Dinuguan was not bad. M wasn’t a big fan of the tripe (Kare-kare) though. J liked it since he said he was used to eating tripe (people say it’s a good energy booster for his motorcycling gigs).

They all said they loved the food. (Not sure if it’s true or they were just being polite)

How did I like it? It was fine. Nothing exceptional, really. It’s just like your typical carinderia. However, their Sans Rival and Brazo de Mercedes are exceptional! Yumyumyum… =P~ (They were originally a bakeshop anyway)

Will I go back? Not really. I eat Filipino food everyday at home. Maybe I’ll go back only when I’m craving for their desserts. =P~

So I got the Pearl…

Small, smart and stylish. That’s the Pearl’s slogan. I’ve been hearing that so much in the office that it was one of the factors why I chose this phone. Most people said I made a good choice.

Good thing I ordered the phone a few weeks ago (received it last week). There are new phones that looked interesting (Motorola Q and T-Mobile Dash [HTC Excalibur]). It would have taken me another month to decide!

How do I like the Pearl? Well, I can’t say I love it, but I don’t hate it either.

It will take me a while to get used to the keyboard. QWERTY is fine. I just don’t like that it has 2 letters per key. Yeah, I know it’s a tradeoff with the phone’s size.

Mail synch is good, but I really don’t like getting [work] mails on my phone anyway.

I haven’t tinkered with it much, maybe because there isn’t much to tinker anyway.

I give you this, though. It really is small and stylish. It’s so light, small and thin. Even thinner than my old phone.

2 Nseries phones, which one do I choose?

It’s been a while since I last blogged.

No, I haven’t bought a caww yet. And no, I don’t work for the company which made me take that irritating Java exam. I’m currently working for a really great company which I would not like to disclose here. I will never know what might happen in this litigated world.

This company of mine gave me an allowance of $400 for a mobile device. It’s been weeks and I still haven’t decided. I was thinking of buying either a BlackBerry Pearl or Nokia N80. But then Dan suggested the N93.

Blackberry Pearl is within budget, for Nokia N80 I have to shell out around $250, and for Nokia N93 I have to shell out around $350.  This used to be a battle between BlackBerries and Nokias. Now I have to decide from 2 Nseries phones. Sooo hard.
Which one should I buy, N80 or N93? Is $100 worth the 680×480 vid recording resolution, a .2MP upgrade and the cute ‘rubik’s cube’ (twist and turn) type look?

Help!!!

Cawws! (More smiles per gallon)

Now that I have my driver’s license, the only thing that I need to be able to get to work would be… yes, a car.

I plan to buy one of those hybrid cars. Toyota Prius (My #1 choice on hybrids, influenced by Ozzie), Honda Civic Hybrid (#2 choice on hybrids), Honda Insight (#3 choice on hybrids, but I dislike that it’s a coupe), or Honda Accord Hybrid (too expensive though). It’s time to put all those wasted braking energy to good use. (I need to save on gas and be environment-friendly too)

I also love the VW New Beetle. They’re so cute. I wish they’d make Beetle hybrids.

Which one should I buy? (Well, not that I have the money, just dreaming.:D ) For now I’m thinking of either the Prius or the Beetle (unlimited surrenders! I thought only Filipinos played this game. Apparently not!) (Could you imagine a world where open and close parentheses don’t exist? )

My first Driver’s License!

Thanks to my Ozzie, I got my drivers license today! He taught me most of the things I know about driving. Thank you! You must be soooo proud of your Yunny!
My dad taught me proper driving (like really stopping [as in full stop] when there’s a stop sign even if you’re absolutely positively sure that there’s no car approaching from the left or right).
I totally failed parallel parking. Teehee. No, don’t get me wrong. I know how to parallel park, I just botched this one when you needed it the most. I got it only on my 3rd try L-) .

I drive an automatic vehicle. I know a little about driving stick. I have to be instructed (by Ozzie) when to shift gear. Someday I’ll learn.

Ant Bully: An IMAX 3D Experience

My Brother, Dad and I went to IMAX to see the Ant Bully in 3D (yes, with my Dad. Teehee). While the screenplay is not entirely as unique or inventive as Disney or Pixar movies (think Monsters Inc, Cars, Finding Nemo), it’s still worthwile to watch (in 3D). The details and choice of colors were astonishing. Ants and bugs seem to pop out of the screen and walk on the head of the person in front of you *giggle*. Unlike Superman Returns, Ant Bully runs in 3D for the whole 1 1/2 hours. No wonder it took them 4 years to finish the movie.

How else could something so unoriginal become so much fun?

The IMAX here is as large, but not as jampacked as the IMAX at SM MoA. I think the one here has half the number of seats.

The first IMAX movie that I’ve seen was Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets. It wasn’t in 3D, but still good. The next ones were short stories like Shrek, Honey, I shrunk the audience, etc. from Disneyland and Six Flags. Then the NEC Losers watched Superman Returns at the newly built IMAX theatre in SM Mall of Asia.

Prove What?

Grrrrr. That exam was annoying. Well, I should have known. Some of the rants:
1. There were no objectives at all.
I had no idea what topics the exam included. Only after the exam did the friggin app tell me what the topics were.

2. GUI !?!?! I/O ?!?!
GUI is fine, I guess. But AWT? Who still uses awt? You better port your programs or else….
I/O? Heehee. Good thing I still remember some.

*edit: Only after writing this blog did I realize I was tested for Java 1.2. Ugh. Hello. Java 6 is already on Beta 2 and your ‘latest’ exam is on Java 1.2

3. The code snippets were not aligned!
Goodness. The SCJP exam had their code samples properly aligned. The code samples in this exam were in jpg/bmp format, so you couldn’t blame the html/browser for the misalignment. Was it deliberate or they don’t know the coding standards? I managed to take some screenshots:

and

wouldn’t your eyes hurt after seeing code like those?

4. Typos, Missing Curlies (Curly Braces) and such.
There were so much typos, I couldn’t distinguish which ones were typos and which ones were deliberate. I just depended on the choices, on whether to consider it as a real typo or ‘deliberate’ typo.

5. You cannot review your answers.
When you proceed to the next question, you cannot come back to the previous ones. If there’s a question that you’re trying to remember the answer, you can’t skip it. It’s either you guess right now or take gazzillions of years trying to remember the answer. They suggested guessing the answer.

6. Questions that are incorrect/vague/weird.
This is by far the most annoying part. Here are some of the questions I managed to take snapshots of.

A. two buttons, with “Metal” and “Java” Labels
B. two overlapping buttons, the last with “Java” Label
C. two buttons, with “Java” and “Java” labels
D. only one button, with “Java” Label

* Hello. This would result in compiler error. Duh. Anyway, if you fixed the code so it would compile fine, what do you mean by “result of the code fragment”? Is it the logical result or the physical result? Basically, it still depends. Logically, it will just create 1 button with a “Java” label. However, if you simply add it into a component without setting the layout first (defaults to Border) then B is correct. If you add the components properly, then your gui should show two buttons, with “Java” and “Java” labels.

So I answered C. Okay, I might have overthought it. I think I should have answered D.

---

*question is “With the following code, is it possible to create a class A object with the title member inited to null?” (Pic got cropped)
A. Yes, but only if the default constructor were added to this class
B. No, because this class has no default constructor
C. Yes, and only if “title” is not initialized in the bodies of either the provided constructors.
D. Yes
* If this were fill in the blanks, I would have answered “No. Because it lacks a curly brace”. But then again, it’s not one of the answers. Can someone help me with this? I honestly don’t understand. Did they mean:private String title = null;What’s the issue with the default constructors, then? You can create an object of A anytime you like. Well, assuming you invoke the right constructors.A a = new A (“whatever”);
A a2 = new A(“whatever”, 0);

---

A. Prints “a and b are different” because a and b point to strings which are different for letter casing and Java is case-sensitive
B. Prints “a and b are the same” because the “==” operator is overridden in the String class
C. Prints “a and b are different”, and it should do the same with any value
D. Prints “a and b are the same”, and it should do the same with any value
* I answered C, but it should be “with any value inside the new String(“xxx”)”. a==b will result to true if String a = “John” and String b = “John”

---

* All of them. Hello. Not one of those will throw an EXCEPTION… because all of them won’t compile at all (Except the first one – it’s fine).

---

Fine, fine. I might have overthought some of the questions.It went fine, I guess. I got 35/38 == 92%. The global average of this certain exam is 68%. Not bad.* Might I say I still dislike wordpress for stripping off my line breaks? Annoying! I keep on editing the text on WYSIWYG and HTML but it keeps stripping off the line breaks!!!*

What’s better than a Sun Certification for Java? [notice the sarcasm]

Apparently, proveit.com (At least for some recruiter). One recruiter asked me to answer one of the tests on the said site.

I told her, I’m already Sun Certified. [I thought: Is there any other certification better than the maker of Java which certifies I know Java?]

Then she goes blah, blah, blah, we need to find a perfect match, blah, blah, blah. She was nice and all, but I just can’t help but to get somewhat annoyed.

Actually, I might be just concerned that I won’t get a high score on that exam. The annoying part is that there are no objectives/topics. Gosh. FIle I/O? Networking? Uh-oh… It’s been years since I last used those. The exam just says “Java 2″. Uhmm… well… ok.
Oh well, let’s see tomorrow.

So now you decide to appear….

Grrr… a day after I ordered my stuff from Amazon, that a9 pi/2 discount appeared. I checked their FAQ and it said:

“Once you join and use A9.com for at least eight days each month you will automatically be eligible for the A9 Instant Reward.”

Hello? According to my history on a9, it’s my tenth day already. Would have saved around $2.50. Haha.
Oh yeah, before I forget, I hate you Ozzie for letting me borrow your Amazon Prime… grrr… makes me want to order a lot of stuff. Bad, bad, bad! (I need to go outside and go to the real stores you know. Teehee)

Head First into shallow waters…

I recently bought 3 books from Amazon. These books are the Servlets and JSP, EJB and Design Patterns from the Head First Series. My Ozzie introduced me to Kathy Sierra & Bert Bates’ books by letting me borrow his Sun Certified Programmer and Developer 2 [I got a great score, btw] and then the Head First books.
What I love about the Head First Series is that it introduces you to topics in a fun and entertaining way – through a conversational tone and lots of pictures.
What I dislike about the HF books is that if you’re already experienced and only trying to review on the concepts — it will take you some time to get to the point. I’ve also read the Head First Java and quite honestly, when I read it, it wasn’t that good. (Contents are great, but the structure is not that good. The Sun Certified Programmer and Developer 2 or SCJP Sun Certified Programmer for Java 5 Study Guide is better, IMHO [same authors])

Right now I’m *trying* to review for the SCWCD (using HF Servlets and JSP), but I can’t. The book somewhat annoys me. I need straight-to-the-point answers. It was great when I read it the first time, but now when I’m just trying to review concepts, I’m better off with another book.
HF books are really great for beginners. But if you’re experienced, it might annoy you, like it does to me.

There’s a new book coming out in September. So, am I going to buy it? Yep, I’m already contemplating on whether or not to preorder it.

Why? Because HF books are also great bedtime books! (Hello?!? Who doesn’t read on EJBs, Servlets & JSP and Design Patterns before they go to sleep? It’s so… exciting!)

I just wish they’d create a new one: Head First Java Security. It’s such a boring, dry topic. No, please don’t get me started.

How not to apply for a job…

I applied for a Java/J2EE Developer position from Dice.com and Monster.com. After so and so years of experience (hmmm…6-7 years in Java, but not all in the industry) recruiters wanted to hire me for mid-level to senior-level positions. I have been getting calls from a lot of recruiters. Even the ones I didn’t apply for (someone wanted to hire me for EDI — I really wanted to forget EDI… and SAP!)

The problem? I’m not ready yet. I’ve been here for roughly 2 weeks. I applied last Wednesday, expecting to get calls next week. I am so dead wrong. I got calls right after I submitted my profile. I’m still on vacation mode. ^_^ Give me another day!
It is soooo different from applying for jobs in the Philippines. Leave them a message now and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a call in a week or so.

Java developers are very in demand here, but you have to have prior experience. So far, recruiters are liking my resume. I knew SA and webteam work will come in handy. (Because you know, part-time/intern work here is also crucial)

I don’t answer the calls yet, I let them leave a message on my voicemail. I will call back on Monday. I hope the opportunities they present will still be available next week.
So there, never post your resume when you’re not ready yet.

Jet Lag is Good for Me

I arrived here in Texas Last July 6. Since then I’ve been sleeping at around 11pm-12mn and waking up at around 6-7am… without an alarm clock! I don’t do the “5 minutes” snooz anymore.

Nice.

(Well, actually it’s maybe because I look forward to chatting with my Ozzie every day. I miss him.)

Fickle-minded

Okay, I changed my mind. I’m going to blog here instead. I don’t know why, I’m happy with blogger. I just woke up and said, I’ll use wordpress instead.