An idea should be like a skirt...long enough to cover the details and short enough to keep everyone's attention!

I've been working on a few projects for my websites...I have a few that I want to promote but I have yet to put up enough content to warrant a big announcement.....I found a brilliant website that I think is very innovative and I know it surely will take off.


The site uses geolocation to promote or recommend food. I have considered starting up a similar website for New Zealand.I spoke to an expert regarding this and it seems that it would cost around NZD$60,000 to build a website that incorporates geo-location using google maps and that was not including development costs for an iphone and android application. I don't have that kind of budget but my dreams are not so easily crushed...so I am pressing on trying to find investors and perhaps people who will help me get this idea off the ground. I believe that if there is anything that is to do with food and restaurants then Wellington should be the centre of it all since I have heard someone say that Wellington has more coffee shops per capita than any other country in the world. I did some research and it seems to be true "Wellington promotes itself as a culinary capital, famous for its variety of restaurants and cafés. There are more than 300 cafés throughout the city, reputedly more per capita than New York City. Wellington's renowned café culture combines great coffee, good food and people-watching. It provides an opportunity to study weird and wonderful artwork, free-flowing design ideas and the ingenuity of each individual owner."


There are more coffee shops per person in my city than in New York.....New Yooorrk! These streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you....okay back to my blog...I believe that with the correct elements a website that allows people to share opinions about food will surely be popular in New Zealand. I have yet to prove this though and I guess that I will have to prove to investors that people would be interested in sharing and discovering food.


Apart from the lightbulb in my head, there were a lot of things that have gone "undocumented" since my last few posts which I will endeavour to address in my next few posts.My self taught guitar lessons are coming along well and I have recently discovered the joy of sharing my music with my friends.


During the month of February, my flatmate and I had the privilege of  hosting 4 girls in our beloved flat...it was perhaps the craziest week of my life.I believe that if oestrogen was a visible hormone, I would have been swimming in it. There were also pre-existing tensions with the girls. It was amazing how they got along though, since they were all from different countries and cultures. "W" was from Hawaii...and I call her "Hula girl" she was a real wild one...she was beautiful and had a sweet smile...she had a companion, who was American (from Texas) as well named Jill perhaps she was looking for her "Jack" to tumble down a hill? Jill was very outgoing just like W but she was such a free spirit and she sometimes would wonder off on her own, which I was always concerned about but the other girls would reassure me that she was just being herself :P We also were with "M" who was such a hard ass (don't ask me how I know it was hard..lol ;) English woman called "M" and that stands for  "Magically CRAZY" lol she had such a crazy personality and she was fun...her head was in the clouds most of the time...she had a deeper calmness that did not expose itself until I spent some time talking to her privately..she always mentioned her home town in Yorkshire and she refers to herself as a "pudding" (I never really got that) then finally, S that stands for "snow white" but she had a beautiful light tan when I met her and she has beautiful to-die-for green eyes. She was the only local girl , from way up North in a place called Whangarei (Maori people pronounce his as "Fangaray" with an "F" sound which I believe it should be pronounced since the place was named by the early native settlers but some people still call it by the European name as "Wangaray" with the English "W" sound...this co-incidentally was the same place my ex-girlfriend is from.(I KNOW RIGHT!?) I had an instant connection to this girl "S" that I will refer to as Snow White..I immediately identified with her because she was different from the other girls. I could sense the tension brewing between her and the other girls but my good sense told me not to get involved....my craziness on the other hand,prevailed.


One day when I got back home I find Snow White missing her seven dwarfs and she was on our deck. It seemed like she was locked out. I had not spoken much to Snow White until then and I walked through the gate unnoticed by her...she had her ipod on (my evil mind starts scheming here) I looked at her and she was in her own little bubble so I decided to be funny (risking perhaps not even getting to know her) I walked towards her slowly, came in from the front and she didn't see me (she was looking down) I jumped on to the deck and grabbed her arms and shook her and she totally freaked out!! LOL yeah I remember thinking to myself at that very moment "yep,I'm bad" lol Michael Jackson bad....OW![crotchgrab] thank God she had a sense of humour!! she found it funny...haha but then I said "sorry I scared you" and then asked her what she was doing sitting on the deck and where all the girls were. The answer is perhaps a longer story than this post can handle but basically, she explained that she had recently broke up with her boyfriend and she had decided that this trip would help her by getting her mind off her ex boyfriend. The sad truth was, it turned out that it wasn't working out because she was still feeling so brokenhearted that the other girls may have felt that she was a bit of a drag since they were out to have fun...and so I did feel for her and I think they were being a little unfair but understandably so, I tried to be objective and take a neutral stance so over the course of their stay, I decided to stay by her side since she was the one that needed comfort but she could not find it in her friends and she tried to make amends with the other girls especially the crazy "M" but it turned out that it just was not working. Sadly the four crazy beautiful girls all had to part and each of them had made an impression on me...I felt so lucky that I had the chance to get to know them. We were like a family (including all the drama lol) I miss the hugs, I guess I was longing for a family environment again. I don't really do well on my own because I have excessive emotional needs that are perhaps unusual for a male. Go figure! lol I don't celebrate Valentine's Day, it has become so commercial, we don't need a day to express our love for someone...make it a year...make it every waking moment of your life.If I was in love with someone they would "know" it, not by flowers,chocolates,dinners or fancy cards....but by actions (not necessarily involving flowers,chocolates,dinners or cards) I don't have any problems expressing my affection for my friends and it doesn't have to be on a nominated day. This year while everyone was out romancing their lovers, I was all alone.I had to work so after a long day at work I went to the supermarket...tired and hungry, and shopping for a meal with bread in my hands. As I was walking toward the counter, I could see from a distance this beautiful blonde walking up to me, as she got closer I recognized her, JILL!! she smiled, so I smiled (Justin Bieber can sue me for that one) lol she walked up to me and wrapped her arms around me and gave me the sweetest little kiss and said "Happy Valentine's Day" I can never forget that! She had made my day and I love how she didn't care about everyone at the supermarket who were looking on to see this commotion. Hula girl also wished me "Happy Valentine's Day" and I kindly thanked them and they knew I wasn't into the whole gimmick but I was smiling all the way home...we walked along Oriental Bay and were all just talking about the time that we enjoyed together.


Sadly, their differences meant they all had to go their separate ways ,so the two Americans went to the South Island and the Yorkshire pudding and Snow White went Northward to their home town in Hamilton. This left me and my old flatmate Myth in the deepest silence...which he says was nice as he finally got a break from all the noise, as for me,I grew up in a house full of laughter and noise so I missed the girls more and it was an amazing experience to meet people who were so different. They were like family to me. We had got a new flatmate since we had to ask our old flatmate to leave.I have been considering moving but decided to stay because the old flatmate was leaving. We shall see how it goes.


I have a spanish word for today : no escrito- meaning unwritten (most of my experiences remain unwritten)


Adios! :)

Strangers have the best candy..uhm..chocolate :)

During the final weeks of December, there was a lot of commotion along the bay area close to where I live. I was walking home late one evening and I saw a group of people staring at what appeared to be a spectacular light show, so out comes my phone/camera and I start taking videos of this cool lights show.

I walked further down to where a crowd had gathered and a guy comes up to me, looking really happy and then offers me some chocolate.....alarm bells went off in my head and I looked at him suspiciously and asked, "what's the catch?" he replied, "oh there's no catch, just spreading the joy" I wondered what it was all about and because he seemed friendly,accepted the chocolate. I took a few steps and then this pretty blonde girl walks up to me, now at this point I'm REALLY suspicious :P pretty blonde girls don't generally walk up to me with a smile lol but I immediately try to disguise my nerves and my "okay,act cool" reflex kicks in so I say, hey, and she smiles and says do you want some chocolate? I did not hesitate to accept them lol..she totally disarmed me..damn I need focus! grrr...

I walked home with chocolates in my hand and joy in my heart...they certainly did spread the joy that night :)

After this event, I received many more chocolates and also these wristband thingys. Cadbury is really marketing in a very social way and I think most companies realize that advertising is not about inanimate signs and displays anymore, it is about people and emotions, because if you can invoke these emotional connections in people, you can get them to have a certain affinity to your products. I never went to business school and stuff but I know a thing or two about how to sell things. I take my hat off to you guys at Cadbury and I wish I had the budget to advertise so radically.

Here is a video that I put together of how they Cadbury home works. Basically, it activates secondary lights dependent on a noise threshold. The more you clap your hands or make noise, the brighter the lights although some of the front lights are just in a sequence and do not seem to be connected to any triggers.

Hope you enjoy the show :)

The PERFECT STRANGER :)

It was a beautiful Wellington Wednesday and I was walking along Oriental Bay....on my way to do my shopping when I saw a poster that caught my attention....

Just then I had this sudden primal urge to go to the zoo. I had been wanting to go to the zoo for some time now but I never seemed to have the time, but this time I was going to forgo my shopping day for a bit of something unusual. I checked my blackberry and used google transit and found the location of the zoo and then the times and schedules of the buses. I had my headphones on so I was "in my zone" but I was pretty happy and I believe I was walking like I was on air for some reason. I think people can actually sense your happiness, judging by how many people smiled back at me that day, or perhaps it was just the contagiousness of a smile :)

I got to the bus stop and there were a few bus shelters on Courtnay Place so I paused for a moment to select one. I realized that there was someone in the second bus stop and she seemed to be staring my way but I totally ignored this as I was "in my zone" and chose to stand in the other bus stop with a smiling blonde chic. I stood there waiting for the bus but I tried to find the bus which would require the least walking. I realized that the girl that was in the bus stop moved to the bus stop I was in and I sort of looked at her to see if she was staring and what and most importantly why? I have no idea, but I just pretended not to notice her noticing me (I suck at pretending :P) I finally got my bus and decided to hop on and the blonde chic and the other girl were talking when I left them.

I get to the zoo and it was awesome!! It was quite a hike though, had to scale a hill over the hill was the zoo so I kept thinking of animals that I wouldn't otherwise see in my lifetime if I didn't make it to the zoo. I was a man on a mission that day :) I got to the zoo and they had awesome service, the receptionist had me setup for a tour and just as advertised, I got a $5 Winter Wednesday discount, which I was pretty happy about. I got into the zoo and it didn't look like much lol I think it was more of a bushwalk, the first creatures I saw were so cute though. They were tiny monkey things (yes I call them that because I didn't read the zoo signs :P) I got to the birds,sorry, I mean "Aviary" (I remember that sign lol) and just when I was there, I heard this pretty heavy American accent and then a pretty light kiwi or New Zealand accent...the voices sounded so familiar. I turned to recognize the two girls from the bus stop. Blondie and the girl who was sitting on the other bus stop. I overheard them talking about what locals say vs what they mean. They got to the topic about how locals sometimes say "TARUE!" and manage to make it sound like they understand you on a very deep level but they don't really mean it, they just say it slowly and it fools people into thinking that they are clued up about a certain topic....I then felt like I have to say hi and my curiosity about why this American woman (stay away from me-Lenny Kravitz) was staring at me and it wasn't in a bad way...it was more in a "subtle intrigue" way. I blurted out "that is so true!" (nice one dude!lol) I think that joke fell to the ground right there...but it worked and I agreed with them and we started talking and I got their names. American Woman was E and Kiwi Chic was H so we started talking about what it was like in NZ and started sharing our traveling experiences and also talked about the social order of things and of course, we looked at some interesting animals....along the way :)

We then got to see a kiwi for the first time!! I can't believe I've been in New Zealand for so long and I've never seen the iconic creature.....well, this was my change. There was a show running so we went in and sat to watch the show. The lady asked "Has anyone here NOT seen a kiwi before?" and I put my hand up along with E and we were asked where we were from. I said "Fiji" and E said "Minnesota" and then someone else in the audience said "Boston" and the presenter asked "Do you watch Boston Legal?" and I don't know why that was funny lol but I got the joke a little late...coz I wasn't paying attention. I got to see a kiwi for the first time..it wasn't that spectacular but it was cute. The kiwi is named "Tahi" which is the Maori word for "One" the little kiwi got the name because he lost his leg in a possum trap. It was such a cute little thing, I asked what sound a kiwi makes and apparently they make a high pitched squeeky squeebly sound. Not the "caw caw,caw caw" I was hoping for lol.....I had a great time checking out the creatures but I felt that it was time to go home. I turned to my two newfound buddies and H had some friends she probably planned to meet up with at the zoo. We had some formalities like the "how do you do?" little bits and pieces and then H wanted me to join them but I was more interested in hanging out with E so I had to decline and so I walked E towards the exit and she asked me if it was the right way to the exit and me being a typical smart ass, I reassured her that we were going the right way...when in fact...lol we went around in circles and I had to eventually admit my own stupidity....but of course, I did so with all graciousness lol We had a laugh and we talked about America and there were lots of comparisons. We had a walk that seemed to take forever....looking at her, I remember wondering whether she was the perfect stranger, she was adorable and smart and she laughed at my jokes (this doesn't necessarily mean that she finds them funny,just that she is willing to share a laugh with me) but I'd like to think I'm Mr. Funny Pants lol anyway she walked into my life when everything was totally messed up. I had so much on my mind, had this messy long distance relationship with a girl from another city which I happily left behind (the city,not the girl) the girl is still lingering but along comes this stranger and I was so taken by her.....I felt like we shared something special. I shall call it a "travellers buzz" because whenever you're travelling, I don't know if you've noticed, you always seem to draw these amazing individuals to you and if you go out on a limb and make an effort you will certainly meet some really amazing people! :D

I wasn't the traveller in this case but...I was happy to have met such an amazing person :)

I'm in a ratrace but I don't think it is a race since I don't seem to be running :P

I haven't been writing much since I moved to Wellington because everything has been "full on" and for those of you unfamilar with the language of the locals. In New Zealand, that means hectic or intense. I have been working intensely in order to submit an application for Permanent Residence in New Zealand. The fees are crazy expensive, NZD$1200,I could buy a used car with that amount of money here....I've been looking to get a license first lol. I have been saving up for a trip to Fiji as well...so much going on and yet I feel like I'm getting nowhere. I have had a quiet day at work so I decided to take the time to bring my creative side back to the fore,I have learned that pressure inhibits creativity. If you want to be as creative as possible, you must NOT have a deadline. Don't get me wrong, I am all for getting things done on time but if you want things done quickly,you shouldn't expect results of a higher quality, there is always a compromise somewhere.

I've been pretty busy but I want to share my second zoo experience here in Wellington.I have to get permission to write about this beautiful stranger first though....I will post this as "my wellington zooper experience" I still managed to add a second blog to my list of blogs but I haven't shared it publicly yet. I've set it up mainly to research some advanced techniques to hug people....yes HUGS :P

Anyone can access it on http://advancedhuggingtechniques.blogspot.com/

Hope you all have a great week :)

Failed Paradise has FAILED! :(

I was wanting get on to view one of my favorite blogs and it didn't show up for some reason..hmmm....so just like the tech that I am,I tried to troubleshoot the problem...trying a different browser,checking my ports. Did a whoislookup to find out where the host was and it seems like godaddy is hosting the site. I know godaddy can't be down right?? the only thing left then would be user configuration. The site is run by a good friend of mine so I posted a note on his wall about the error. I hope this is a temporary issue....error message says :

Internal Server Error

The server encountered an internal error or misconfiguration and was unable to complete your request.

Please contact the server administrator, support@supportwebsite.com and inform them of the time the error occurred, and anything you might have done that may have caused the error.

More information about this error may be available in the server error log.

---

Apache/1.3.33 Server at www.failedparadise.com Port 80

Anyway, I went to lunch with someone yesterday...it was amazing and normally Wellington is so windy but for some reason..it was dead calm yesterday.It seems like the wind stopped just for us...we sat here:

I love the sun...and I got lots of sun that day...looking forward to winter...uhm NOT! haha...I was told that the Windchill in Wellington is a killer.

Hopefully everything works out in my new city..only time will tell how well I will fit in here.

I may not have everything I want.....but I've got everything I need :)

I have moved from Lower Hutt to a lovely place in Oriental Bay..courtesy of a very generous family that I met 2 weeks ago.I am living in the attic....just like a monster should..lol I am happy up here,I get good sunlight and I get an awesome view into the harbor area.I only have to walk 15 minutes to work and to the city center along the sea front.I am in an ideal location and the family I live with have been so amazing....I have what I need now,a good family but I think I am ready to start a family of my own....I have met someone that I really like but I don't want to rush into anything just yet, experience has taught me to be more careful about who I choose to have close to me.My week has been filled with activity....I've met many more people since I moved to Wellington over 6 weeks ago...I keep saying that I've only been here for 4 weeks because that is how I feel..time sure flies when you're having fun :P
I have been working longer hours because some of my work mates are on leave.I also went out to my first bar in Wellington...I've been to a few bars and clubs in Auckland but I was eager to see what the atmosphere is like here in the Windy City (atmosphere,windy....funny how that seemed to fit in the same sentence) I went to a place called Hotel Bristol on Cuba Street.It seemed like an aged colonial style "tavern" type place...filled mostly with middle-aged,upper-class patrons.They had pool tables and a lounge upstairs and they also have sizable TV screens fitted in viewing areas around a few of their rooms. My new-found friends had taken me out on a "boys night out" to show me around and to get to know me a little better. They all had the same first name "R" and they were only distinguished by a nickname.I just let them recommend a beer.I was bought a Kilkenny which is an Irish beer.I must say there is something classy about drinking beer that has it's heritage dating back to 14th century Ireland. I had a great time with my mates and they dropped me off to my new place.

I'll be back at work...talking to very interesting people :) I am also going to fly back to Auckland next month to see my sister.I'm feeling pretty content these days but I still need to get my social life up where it belongs.I work zombie shifts but I am planning to ask the great people at work to adjust my work schedule.
Keep smiling everyone and have a great day! or at least try to :P

I ♥ Wellington! :)

I made the discovery that virgin blue and pacific blue are one and the same! I'm such a coconut sometimes :P
I left Auckland last week,catching a flight further south to Wellington City...My flight was TERRIBLE! It was only my second flight and because it was a much smaller plane,I had issues with slight pressure changes descending….my ears were killing me...I was lightheaded and hanging on to the armrests on my seats for dear life! I had never experienced that before.....probably because I am not accustomed to flying….but I survived and landed was able to bear it for a few minutes out of the total 1 hour and 5 minute flight.
I flew with Virgin Blue, and did not realize until check-in that they are also known as Pacific Blue.It was the cheapest seat I could find because all the other ones were sold out.I would say Pacific Blue is a good “value” airline.On the flight, the hottie on the mic who claims her name was “Mandy”- I didn’t buy it...coz she called the other air hostesses,her friends, Sandy and Candy but I think that’s a system they have...coz the guy she called Randy,was actually named Raj..lol (I checked his name tag)…anyway Mandy was really funny on the intercom thingy, on take off she said something like: “Do not be alarmed, we are now switching off all lights to enable our flight to take off and also to enhance the appearance of our crew” crack up! Lol, made the flight more interesting…she also said something like “we offer a variety of entertainment options…..if you wish to be entertained,just look at one of our crew members” She made some other smart ass comments that were pretty funny and she had such a personality...I was truly entertained! :)
As the plane landed...the views of Wellington were unexpectedly absorbing,beautiful mountain ranges sharply descend onto a beautiful coastline in some areas...with the city on a gradual plane....facing outward into a well laid out,glistening blue harbor...I fell in love with her soon after ;)
I got in and my host, a cousin of mine,came to pick me up....got home full of excitement,I met her family and had a long chat....I’ve never met her and her family so it was a long catch up...then off I went to my interview.

I went into the building all dressed up.Met the Operations Manager and he introduced me to the Helpdesk Manager...sat down to fill a form (questionaire type thing) I hadn’t written in such a long time...my writing looked like it was written in an earthquake..hands were shaky, nervous, I guess.It was a scenario question....I think I nailed it. Second part was spelling, circle the correct ones..I think I did that :)
These guys were pretty relaxed…so I was able to talk to them about my goals (to work in the IT industry in New Zealand) shared a bit about my life and my work history. The interview ended well and so I have been asked in to see them again today.Hope that my second interview goes well..for now...adios :)

At the time of writing this draft....I left for my interview and I got back...good news, I got the job :) yay! I'm thankful to my family my friends :) I truly feel blessed!

My advice to everyone reading is...endure the worst times,coz when it gets really bad, the good times should be just around the corner :D

Here are some pics..Enjoy!Looks like I'm not the only one who ♥'s Wellington :PView of Wellington City from Tepapa Museum (I heard it is one of the world's largest museums)
A lovely place on the coast in Eastbourne.

Light at the end of the fibre optic cable

I finally got an interview with Actrix Networks, an ISP down in Wellington.My uncle came by my new home to pick me up, now I am in Te Awamutu, a small town close to Hamilton.I love the change in scenery, the concrete cityscape I am used to seeing has been replaced with beautiful hillsides and valleys....this is Waikato District! The place is full of farm land with most of New Zealand's farmers residing in the region and mostly sheep and dairy...I love the smell of green.....I am flying to Wellington from Auckland airport so I have to get up early tomorrow.

I received a message from the manager of operations in Actrix stating that attending the interview may not mean that I will get the job but I still wish to try anyway.

I am going with a positive attitude and a supersmile :D lol hoping to bring some personality to this helpdesk position and put some cash in my pocket too....I have a passion for people and computers and I just hope that those qualities will shine through tomorrow.

Thanks to all my friends and family for their support and of cos I thank God for blessing me with all my talents :)

I took a few pics on my phone today....enjoy :)

I saw this beautiful rainbow.....hadn't seen one since the one on the train...I'm sure its on a previous post.

The neighbors down the road.....they don't take time to stop and see the colors....
I loved the fact that I could still see the sun shining through the clouds...unfortunately I can't take better pics coz I sold my digital camera.
This was taken at a Vet Clinic or something like that....for animals and pets...pet shop I think...

GODZILLA IS ALIVE!!! RUNNNNNN! LOL