Every month, like clockwork, the telephones at my office and warehouse die. As in no dial tone. As in no one can call in and no one can call out. Sometimes they are dead for a few minutes; sometimes they are dead for a week. The point is they die at least once a month,Continue reading “My Phones Die Once a Month”
Category Archives: Aha!
Burning the Midnight Oil & the Work-Life Balance Myth
Not a very long time ago, people avoided working at night because they didn’t have enough light. But for those who did have to work at night, they had to make do with whatever source of light they had. Up to the early 20th century, people had little in the way of light after dusk. Continue reading “Burning the Midnight Oil & the Work-Life Balance Myth”
The Last Squirrel
There was a time when every early morning, I’d see a family of squirrels scamper on the treetops above our yard. The squirrels would leap from one branch to the other, from one tree to the next, searching for something to eat. The squirrels ate anything they’d find edible, from small fruits & seeds toContinue reading “The Last Squirrel”
Climate Change vs. Pollution: Collaboration Comes First
When I was in elementary school, I had an assignment to write & present a report on pollution. It was the 1970s and pollution was a global issue; politicians and the press were talking about it as a crisis that needed to be addressed. My report to the class explained what pollution was and IContinue reading “Climate Change vs. Pollution: Collaboration Comes First”
Pets Are Worth It…I Think
Having animals for pets help us stay healthy and happy. Or so we say. My family household adopted four (4) birds, ten (10) cats, and four (4) dogs. We clean the bird cages and feed the pets every early morning and late afternoon, with periods of snacks in-between. Our big dog, Lucas, always vies forContinue reading “Pets Are Worth It…I Think”
It Always Takes Longer
The workout app said my morning exercise routine won’t take more than 60 minutes. It’s right; from when I start my first weightlifting set to my last, it’s about an hour. However, if I include the time to change to & from my gym attire, setting up & putting away my equipment, and the showering,Continue reading “It Always Takes Longer”
Losing Less Time with One Step
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” -Lao Tzu We lose a lot of time every day. When we fly from one place to another, we would spend time at the airport that would often last as long as the actual flight. Flight time from Manila to Hong Kong, for example, isContinue reading “Losing Less Time with One Step”
It’s 2024, and 1984 is Not Far Off
George Orwell wrote about a dystopian future in his book, Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984). 1984 was Orwell’s last novel and it was published in the year 1949. Seventy-five (75) years later, in 2024, 1984 doesn’t seem far off. In the novel, an authoritarian government led by a character named Big Brother monitors its country’s people viaContinue reading “It’s 2024, and 1984 is Not Far Off”
Rationalising Workmanship
Executives of a dental laboratory asked a consultant fellow of mine to do time studies of their workers. The consultant and I, however, convinced the executives that we should first do an assessment of their operations. When we presented our report, we recommended that the executives change the layout of their laboratory and focus onContinue reading “Rationalising Workmanship”
The Key to Managing the Future is to Anticipate It
We do a lot to foretell the future. Organizations and individuals invest heavily in analytics and software to know what tomorrow will bring. Some offer great potential as in the case of Google’s investment in artificial intelligence for wind energy. But just as much as it may be worth it to foretell the future, itContinue reading “The Key to Managing the Future is to Anticipate It”
Ellery's Essays 