Christmas Time Blues

by Francis Kong

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire… Jack Frost nibbling at the snow.

One Christmas, a parent decreed that she was no longer going to remind her children of their thank-you note duties. As a result their grandmother never received acknowledgments of the generous checks she had given. The next year things were different, however. "The children came over in person to thank me," the grandparent told a friend triumphantly. "How wonderful!" the friend exclaimed. "What do you think caused the change in behavior?" "Oh, that's easy," the grandmother replied. "This year I didn't sign the checks."

One day an old woman was on her deathbed and she gave some last minutes instructions to her long time friend. The old woman said, “Mila, I know my time is up. I want you to do everything I say. The day I die, do not bury me. Burn me. I want a cremation.” “But why?” asked Mila her old time friend. The old woman said, “Cremate me and then gather my ashes and spread it over the grounds of SM Mega Mall.” Puzzled, Mila asked. This is a very strange request. I don’t understand this.” The old woman explained. “Mila, I miss my children so much. After my cremation, gather all of my ashes and spread it all across the shopping mall. That way I can be assured that my children would at least visit once a week.”

Christmas time may be a picture of celebration and joviality but it could be pretty lonely for old folks whose relatives no longer visit. One businessman complained. He said: “Banks never seem to get totally into the holiday spirit. My bank sent me a card that said, “Have a Happy Holiday. If You Are Already Having A Happy Holiday, Please Disregard This Notice.” Christmas is a strange time of year. That’s when people celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace by buying toy rockets, submarines, artillery, and hand grenades for their children.[1] But certain people reach heights of depression when Christmas time comes. Memories. Many painful ones. You see the occasion may be important but never as important as relationships no matter what day of the year is. Take this occasion to remember your loved ones.

History teaches us lessons so we can learn. Some painful ones too. Thomas Carlyle had married his secretary, whom he dearly loved, but he was thoughtless and absorbed in his own interests and activities, treating his wife as if she were still his employee. Stricken with cancer, she was confined to bed for a long time before she died. After her funeral, Carlyle went back to his empty house. Disconsolate and grieving, he wandered around downstairs thinking about the woman he had loved. After a while he went upstairs to her room and sat down in the chair beside the bed on which she had been lying for months. He realized with painful regret that he had not sat there very often during her long illness. He noticed her diary. While she was alive, he never would have read it, but now that she was gone he felt free to pick it up and thumb through its pages. One entry caught his eye: “Yesterday he spent an hour with me. And it was like being in heaven. I love him so much.” He turned a few more pages and read, “I listened all day to hear his steps in the hallway. And now it’s late. I guess he won’t come to see me.” Carlyle read a few more entries and then threw the book on the floor and rushed out through the rain back to the cemetery. He fell on his wife’s grave in the mud, sobbing, “If only I had known … if only I had known.”[2]

Make sure you know what to spend this Christmas time. Spend time with your loved ones and not just money on gifts. Christ gave Himself for us…never forget that.

Francisco Colayco's 10 Commandments on Personal Finance

Commandment # 1: Pay Yourself First
Commandment # 2: Define your financial target at each phase
Commandment # 3: Stop spending on things that decline in value
Commandment #4: Protect your greatest asset: Yourself
Commandment #5: Grow with the economy and beat inflation
Commandment #6: Trust the power of compound interest
Commandment #7: Assess Risks and Options
Commandment #8: Make Money Work For You
Commandment #9: Invest and Diversify
Commandment #10: Use the Power of One

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COMELEC Registration Bukas

Few days before the deadline for the COMELEC registration, I'll be one of those "lucky" people who will fall in line for hours under the heat of day to register for the coming elections. Some of my friends told me that the process will take a whole day, but I still want to make sure I can vote next year. First, it's going to be the first ever computerized election. Second, I want to support Noynoy Aquino. Third, it's a right we use so seldom.

For first time voters, you may have so many questions like how to register at Comelec, what are the procedures in registration and the requirements for you to be able to vote in the 2010 National and Local elections. Below are some information that will guide you in your registration at comelec offices. Preparing the requirements beforehand can lessen the burden and problems usually encountered by new voters. Let your vote be counted, register!

REGISTRATION PROCEDURES:

1. A qualified applicant need only to appear personally at the local COMELEC office.
2. The applicant's identity and residence will be verified. (Bring a valid ID with photograph and signature.)
3. The applicant's status of registration will also be verified. (NOTE: Your registration status may also be verified here.)
4. After a successful verification, the applicant shall be given an application form to fill up (in 3 copies).
5. The applicant's biometrics will then be digitally captured.
6. An Acknowledgment Receipt will be given to the applicant afterwards.


REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS:

QUALIFICATIONS:
* at least 18 years old;
* 1 year residence in the Philippines;
* 6 months residence in the place wherein he proposes to vote

DISQUALIFICATIONS:
* sentenced by final judgment to suffer imprisonment of not less than 1 year;
* adjudged by final judgment of a competent court;
* insane or incompetent persons as declared by competent authority

IDENTIFICATION DOCUMENTS:
1. Employee’s identification card (ID) with the signature of the employer or authorized representative;
2. Postal ID;
3. Student’s ID or library card, signed by the school authority;
4. Senior Citizen’s ID;
5. Driver’s license;
6. NBI/PNP clearance;
7. Passport;
8. SSS/GSIS ID;
9. Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) ID;
10. License issued by the Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC); and
11. Any other valid ID.


REGISTRATION SCHEDULE:

As Per COMELEC Resolution No. 8514
as amended in COMELEC Resolution No. 8585 (Promulgated: February 12, 2009)


WHEN:
During office hours, from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, (Mondays - Saturdays including holidays)
beginning December 2, 2008 (Tuesday) to October 31, 2009 (Saturday)

WHERE:
at the office of the local COMELEC office where you reside
Satellite registration Schedule for NCR (Metro Manila)

HOW:
personally

COVERAGE:
All cities and municipalities, except the ARMM

source:
http://www.comelec.gov.ph