I decided to answer this meme from Sunday Stealing.

1. How long have you been blogging?

I’ve been blogging since 3rd year HS but stopped once I started college. I just came back last August 2008.

2. What made you start?

I guess when everybody else started to have a blog, so did I.

3. Who inspired you?

No one inspired me to blog, I just wanted to blog because its a good way for me to release my feelings and stress.

4. About how many hours a week would you estimate you spend on your blog?

When I was still active I think I’d spend 7 hours (1 hour/day for a week). But now I guess it only takes me 2 hours a week or even less.

5. What kind of experience or background do you have with writing?

I have no experience or any background with writing. I just write what I’m thinking or feeling.

6. Talk about how you come up with blog topics. Where do you get your ideas?

Just random things I think about that I’d like to share.

7. What or who inspires you and your blog?

Myself and my experiences.

8. Where and/or how do your brainstorming for your blog?

I sometimes try to write during my idle time at work. I open MS Word and start from there.

9. Do you have any blogging rules or guidelines you follow?

I don’t think so.

10. Is there anything you will not blog about?

Private details.

11. Do you have any sort of a publishing schedule in terms of day of week or topic?

None.

Last Wednesday, we had our Annual Physical Exam at work. It’s a requirement for the renewal of our HMO. Our HMO policy expires every February so we take our APE by January and Payroll also asks us if we would like to retain or add more dependents. My only dependent is my Mom since she’s the only one qualified. I wanted to have my sister as my dependent as well but unfortunately she’s older than 21 years old already. She’s the one who needs a health card because she’s the one who is always sick. Just last year she was confined at Asian Hospital since she had to undergo an operation to remove a lump near her throat. Good thing the operation went well and did not damage her vocal chords. We we’re all notified by her doctor that the operation might affect her voice but good thing it didn’t since she’s studying to be a lawyer. I remembered my mom telling me that she’s planning to get a health insurance for my sister but she just can’t right now because of other expenses and debts. I volunteered to help her out with the payment just so we can give my sister a health card. I’ve been reviewing other health insurance leads but so far I’m still searching for the best and the one that can give the best value for our money. While researching, I stumbled upon this site and found out that they provide leads to agents. So agents will be informed with people like me, who is interested in getting a health insurance. They are known to be the largest provider of leads in the U.S. I think it’s a systematic way and approach in dealing with insurance. Maybe the Philippines can also adapt the same system in the future.

Sometimes I think about what it would be like to just up and leave, just find whatever I can along the way, with no care for the future.

My officemate plurked that a week ago, and I share the same sentiments. Like I said in my previous post, I am the kind of person who thinks about the future. I try as much as possible to prepare for what might happen in the future. When I am faced with an opportunity, I always weigh things and see if I’d have a future with that opportunity. I don’t want to experience a dead end, I don’t want to turn back, I always want to go forward.

But then again, not thinking of the future seems easy. Its as if you are just living in the moment, carefree. But I’m just not like that, I’m afraid to even attempt to be carefree and spontaneous. If only I could be one, but I can’t and I don’t think I’d ever be.

One afternoon a couple of my officemates and I had our PM snacks at the nearby McDonald’s. I love having discussions about the future with my officemates. I actually love just hearing their thoughts about the future, where they’d want to be a year or 5 years from now etc. Our conversation came to the point about our “future” partners. We all agreed that what we want for our partner is someone who is responsible about the future and not someone who just goes with the flow or a happy go lucky guy. We want someone who would always think about the future. We want someone who would prepare for the future.

I’d like to think that I am someone who is concerned about the future. I was probably influenced by my mother. She for sure always thinks about the future, she always prepares for the future. So I opened up a time deposit account and also purchased a life insurance last year, I’m actually contemplating if I should also get a health insurance. Since I’m interested to get a health insurance, I did some research and found a site about health insurance leads. This site is both helpful for consumers like me as well as to insurance agents. It serves as a mediator between the two (consumer and agents) since this site will be able to give out “leads” to insurance agents on consumers that is interested to get an insurance. The site is not limited to health insurance alone, but they also cater to life insurance as well.

I might get a health insurance someday, probably when my salary increases or doubles. But for now I’ll just settle with my time deposit, savings account and life insurance.

I failed to keep my promise to blog at least twice a week. I just don’t have anything worthwhile to blog about. Although, a lot has happened to me while I was MIA in blogging. Let me just share some highlights:

• I finally have a new laptop! I bought a Compaq CQ40-416AU last Saturday. I hope it turns out to be a worthwhile investment.
• Over the week, I got to think about my future. I actually had decided during the holidays that I should move on and find another company because I’ve been on bench for a very looong time, so I started applying online. An opportunity outside came up but at the same time I got accepted to work on a project starting February within my current company. I decided to stay because I wasn’t too sure that accepting the opportunity would help me in my career. Its something new and entirely different to what I am doing, although it still has a bit of Java. I really would want to focus on acquiring more skills and experience with Java development and build my career from there.
• My “game” plan for now is to get as much exposure and experience with the project that I’d be involved in and by the time I go back to being bench I’d start to apply and look for other opportunities outside. But then again, something might come up along the way that will make me to stay a little longer. We’ll see

I’m beginning to blog in bullets… that’s all for now.