Friday, February 28, 2014

My Suzuki Vitara


It is almost 9 months since I sold this Suzuki Vitara that I owned for 12 years.  It was a good car that served me well in Chicago.  The 4 wheel drive option was a great feature when there was snow or rain.  It had gotten me out of many snow banks without having to shovel.  When the weather was dry, it can be a rear wheel drive and saved me some gas.  Although the MPG was like only about 20, it was not a gas guzzler.  The SUV look made me appear "sporty".  The back seats was foldable which added space for transporting bigger items.  I did love this car but driving it to LA from Chicago was just not a wise option.  Although it was a well maintained vehicle, the fact that it was 12 years old was just asking for trouble for a long distance drive.  Also I had to pay an exorbitant amount to register it for CA.  Plus I was not sure if it would pass the stringent emission standards of CA.  So I sold it.  As I looked at my old photos tonight, I came across my old Vitara named Vesta Dorota Silverskaya.  I felt a little forklempt over it.  I missed it.  I hope it is doing well at the hands of the guy I sold it to. 

Monday, February 24, 2014

Hawk in Panorama city.

I have seen Cayote in the city of Chicago.  And recently I saw an owl perching on my fence.  It is noteworthy to mention animal sightings that I do not expect to seen in an urban setting.  In fact, just yesterday, I saw a hawk sitting by the side walk with a kill (pigeon I think) lodged between its claws.  Evidently, this hawk just caught the bird and I do not know really why it won't just fly off with its kill.  Too heavy perhaps?  Too tired and still resting?  Your guess is as good as mine.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Max meets Janet

Here I present Max, the 3 yo Maltese, I got from the pound recently playing with my dog Janet, the 4 yo Bischon.  They look so happy running around and playing.  I hope they will both be happy with each other.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Selfish idiot parking improperly

The other day I was at a strip mall in Sherman Oaks to get sushi during lunch time.  Obviously the parking lot was packed.  There was one space that barely fit my compact vehicle because the idiots on both side were park improperly.  So as I go in and made the order for my sushi, I noticed that two Asian guys were hovering around my car.  It became apparent to me that the vehicle on my right belonged to them and the driver can not get the driver side.  He could still get in via the passenger side cause they left a big space there.  So I made my way out to back my car so the driver can enter his side.  He was glaring at me angrily for parking so close to the driver's door.  Mind you I was parked properly centered between the lines of the parking space.  He was the one improperly parked.  As I got out of my vehicle after I moved it to another space the was now open, he was still looking at my angrily.  So I told him that I was park properly and that he had no right to be angry at me.  He insisted that the car on his right was parked closed to the line forcing him to park his car improperly.  I argued that if another person does not obey the rule, it does not give him an excuse not to obey the rule either.  He insisted he can cause he did not start this.  Our encounter ended with me walking away as we called each other profanities.

First his argument of parking improperly was flawed.  If person A steals my belonging, it does not give me a valid excuse to steal the belonging of person B.  Any sane intelligent person knows this.  Second, he could have still entered his car through the passenger's side.  Third, he could have still parked properly by letting his passenger exit first before entering the parking space if it was tight.  He was just being selfish without regards to another who would need the parking space on the left side.

In conclusion, he was a selfish idiot.

Friday, February 14, 2014

My take on Valentine's day.

I am not big on Valentine's Day.  It is a holiday hyped up by the card, flower, chocolate, jewelry and restaurant/bar industries to drum up more business.  Seriously, one does not have to show his/her love only on Valentine's Day.  Perhaps I am just bitter cause I do not have a honey to spend Valentine's Day with.  Hahaha.   I will just leave you guys with these sexy pics.

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Sunday, February 09, 2014

Humming bird in my backyard.

 I have been very happy with my house here in the valley.  My backyard is my sanctuary.  I bought a nectar feeder and I have been seeing humming birds feed on it.  Many even fight for the chance to get the sweet nectar in the feeder.  Here are pictures of one particular humming bird.  I have seen others with red and green coloration.

Wednesday, February 05, 2014

No to Tags

No wonder Hanes came out with tagless t-shirts, it is really annoying to wear shirts with tag.  Not only do some of those tags folds up, they are often itchy to the skin.  I specially hate those tags that are located on the bottom side of a shirt or on the inside waistline of a pants.  Those itch more than tags on the back collars.   Tags that are made of some polyester materials are the worst.  They are so stiff that they often prick your skin.  Tags on towels and sheets are less irritating but just as unsightly.  I make sure I cut them off.  


NO TO TAGS!

Saturday, February 01, 2014

Best Credit Card for costumer service.

Not all credit cards are created equal.  Of course there are important criteria such as APR rate, cash back points and annual fee that can be compared with each other objectively.  But there are also intangible things like the ease of talking to costumer service.

The past holiday season, two of my credit cards were involved in the Target security breach where card numbers were stolen.  One was my HSBC card and the other was my Chase card.  Needless to say I called the costumer service of both cards and I found HSBC to be annoyingly difficult to deal with.  Chase was a lot easier.

With HSBC card, it took forever to talk to a live person.  So many requirements before I got transferred to a live person.   And often, my call got disconnected while on wait.  Then the costumer service people were outsourced to India or the Philippines.  I had no problem understanding the Filipino english since I am Filipino but the Indian accent was really frustrating.  I had to ask them to repeat what they said often.  Also, the people I spoke with often have to keep on transferring me to the "right" representative before my needs were met.  On top of that, logging on to check the HSBC card is more difficult. 

With Chase Card, it only took 2-3 steps before I got connected to a live person.  The wait was not horrendously long.  And the people I spoke with were from the Midwest.  I had no issue understanding them at all.  If anything else, they might have to struggle understanding me.  haha  Often, my purpose for calling was resolved in no time and to my satisfaction.  Logging on to check my Chase card was done through my online banking account which is a breeze.

So in conclusion, I am no longer using my HSBC card.  I was completely vexed by them. More business for Chase card from me.