A Granny on the Grammy

My sister was called me up yesterday and told me in a very elated tone that the Dixie Chicks bagged five Grammy Awards.

“Dixie who?” I haven’t really spent that much time on MTV lately. The only female group that I’m familiar with is the Spice Girls. Ok, ok, so I may have mistakenly used the word “lately.” I haven’t been able to update my Grammy list since 1995.

Maybe I’m just getting old. There used to be a time when MTV was a staple. Nowadays, I just content myself at browsing through the music channels without actually watching it even for just a few minutes.

I really need to catch up on the latest events happening around the country, including those in the entertainment industry. Although it might be moot already, I’m planning to conduct a background check on the Grammy winners so that I could impress my sister and my niece when they come over here next week.

Suspicious-looking Roommate

Have I already told you about a friend of mine who went to our office to ask for legal assistance on a possible case against her landlord?

She was recently evicted from her place for being suspected of subletting a portion of her apartment to a third party. However, that third party was actually her niece who just stayed with her for a couple of weeks until she could fine a suitable place near NYU.

Well, that friend of mine has already found a new apartment, and a better one if I may add. She now wants to ask her niece to move in with her again. She was able to go to her dorm near the university a few days ago. However, she wasn’t able to talk to her niece because she was out. She was able to have a small chat with her roommate, though.

My friend’s first impression on her niece’s roommate was not good. She’s now asking me to conduct a background check on that person in order to know if her niece is in good hands or otherwise. I hope I won’t find anything negative about her.

Barbarians at the Gate

The administrator of the building where our office is situated has recently hired four new security guards to man the entrance. I don’t know why they hired additional personnel for security. I think the security department is already overstaffed. It’s not as if the building houses the Department of Defense or something.

The new guards are polite. However, my first encounter with them was not very pleasant. I brought along an old desktop of mine to the office last Friday. I was going to give it to an officemate of mine whose computer recently konked out. Apparently the guards at the entrance didn’t know me yet, so they asked me to open the box. So much for the careful packaging and heavy sealing that I’ve made on it.

I have nothing against the security enhancement of our building. In fact, I feel safer now when I’m in the office. However, I hope that the administrator would device some way or process wherein the search or check would be done in a very expeditious manner. Sometimes, I even feel like they’re conducting a background check on every person who enters the building.

The Queen

Before The Princess Diaries went out on the big screen a few years ago, many young moviegoers had no idea who Julie Andrews was. For those who grew up watching Mary Poppins or the Sound of Music, that’s definitely unthinkable.

Thanks to her role as the queen of Genovia in The Princess Diaries, many young audiences came to know about the screen veteran. She also tried to reach the pre-teen group by lending her voice to the queen in Shrek 2.

The space in my blog is not big enough to show or publish Andrews’ comprehensive profile as an actress. However, doing a background search on her is an effortless task. I’m sure that you’ll get thousands of search results when you type her name on any search engine.

The multi-awarded actress has recently received the Screen Actors Guild’s lifetime achievement award. It’s a remarkable icing to her wonderful career that started more than 50 years ago.

In Time for Spring

I was taking an early evening walk in our village last night when I noticed an old woman tending to the garden of the Williams family. I guess they already dropped their initial idea of stripping their lawn with plants. Their garden looked more like a small jungle a few months ago when their previous helper suddenly decided not to show up anymore during weekends.

I bet Gregg Williams was able to breathe easily or sighed loudly in relief when that old lady knocked at their door and offered her services to clean their lawn. I’m not even sure if he had conducted a background check on her. Maybe he didn’t. He sounded a little desperate last week when he asked me if I know anybody who could provide him with a maid.

I’m sure Greg’s garden would already look wonderful come spring time. The grass still needs a little cutting, though.

Forever Young?

Is it in her genes? Or in the diet she follows?

Emma Faust Tillman became the oldest living person to date after Emiliano Mercado del Toro, the previous holder of such a distinction, died last Wednesday.

The parents of the 114-yeard-old woman from Connecticut were former slaves. She had 23 siblings, 4 of which lived past 100. She’s now living in a nursing home in Hartford.

I’m sure many people would want to live beyond a hundred years. However, if you’re going to ask me, I’d rather breathe until I’m 80. Many octogenarians are either already bed-ridden or suffering from numerous illnesses. I don’t want to reach an age where my body would already be very vulnerable to diseases.

Tillman is not suffering from any debilitating illness, though. She doesn’t even wear eyeglasses. For those who want to be forever young, try conducting a background check on her and see if you could find out why she’s lived this long.

Ahead of the Pack

The day has only just begun and I’m already out things to do. I brought a few office tasks at home last night. I haven’t been able to sleep early for the past few days, so I decided to make the most out of the extra waking hours that I was recently having.

Sandy sniffed that I was in a very “accommodating” mood. She asked me if I could help her in conducting background checks on 14 applicants for the secretarial position at the supplies department. I kind of hesitated to oblige at first considering that she previously shunned me away when I asked for her help on the assignment that I was then working on. But I was so bored at that time that I saw the request as a blessing.

I hope the others would not notice that I have time and energy to spare for extra work. Some of my officemates can be so opportunistic (just kidding, guys) when it comes to asking their colleagues for help on their tasks.

The Mysterious Valkyrie Peddler

I was window shopping for a good cross-training shoes last Monday when I chanced upon a Robotech figurine in near-mint condition. I asked the store owner if he was selling it, and he proudly but regretfully said that he was not.

I’ve been a Robotech (Macross) fan since I was 4. I immediately fell in love with the story and the characters. I had a difficult time watching it the first time because the dialogues were in Japanese. However, there were English subtitles.

I remember during the summer of 2004 when a guy in his mid 20s approached me in front of a toy store and offered me a Robotech figurine (the Valkyrie) for $35. Apparently he heard me asking the saleslady if they still have a Valkyrie.

We were supposed to meet the next day, but he didn’t come. The saleslady warned me about him. She said that some of his collections were allegedly stolen items. I didn’t try to find him again after that revelation by the saleslady.

Maybe I’ve judged that guy quite quickly. Maybe the saleslady was just trying to eliminate a competition. I should’ve conducted a background check on him first.

Your Soul and Your SSN

A distant cousin of mine from Niagara went to Manhattan last week to look for a job. He previously worked as a manager for a pizza parlor near my grandparents’ home. I really envied him that time because the pay was surprisingly good and he gets to take home 2 boxes of their goodies everyday.

Greg called me up upon arriving here to ask for references. I went along with him on his first day in Manhattan. We were looking for this textile company when I chanced upon his resume and application letter. The substance was good. The form was pretty decent as well.

He asked me what my job was all about, and I told him that I’m into public records. He didn’t exactly have a good idea as to what I really do. I think I gave him a 30-minute exposition on online background checks. I even said that I could easily find out everything about him if he gives me his social security number.

His first day in Manhattan was fruitless. I hope that his second and third day was not. I haven’t heard from him since that Tuesday.

Acceptable Idolatry

The new season of the American Idol has just begun, and the new aspirants are as promising as the competition's previous contestants.

Although I'm not an avid fan of the show, I still try to make it a point to watch some of its episodes in order not to be left behind with the showbiz gossip circulating around the office. No one talks about public records at the cafeteria during coffee breaks. And since nobody dares to talk at anybody's back in the department, we just train and limit our "inquisitive" minds to TV personalities.

I don't think that the support for the talent show will be waning anytime soon. It still reigns supreme on its time slot, and its audience goes beyond the American borders.

I hope that the people, especially the young ones, would check their idol's background first before they give their hearts out to him or her. The character of some of the competition's winners arent's exactly worth emulating.

Reinventing

Apple has recently launched a new gadget that could change the way we look at mobile phones.

Steve Jobs presided over the unveiling of the new iPhone. He boasted that their new product could decommission many personal entertainment devices. Indeed, the new iPhone does more than just let you talk. You can browse through the Internet with the gadget or review your spreadsheets while waiting for your next stop at the subway.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not pulling a shameless plug for Apple. I just admire Jobs for reinventing devices that many thought could not be improved or redesigned anymore. Take the iPod, for example. MP3 players have long dominated the audio market before Apple introduced its seemingly similar music equipment. As we all know, the iPod has already made MP3 players obsolete or look inept.

I don’t know much about the Apple CEO. I haven’t ran a background check on him yet. The reason why I’m very interested in getting to know him more is that I’m planning to put up a business of my own in the future. I would really like to know what men like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates did or experienced which made them who they are right now.

Early Spring?

I still haven’t had the chance of using our 31-year-old snow shovel this winter. There hasn’t been much snow this season. In fact, it’s no as cold as the previous ones that we’ve had.

Many blame this year’s bland snowfall to global warming. Many news and research agencies have noticed this. CNN has recently featured the tourist drought in Aspen, Colorado. Many Americans and foreigners who want to go skiing are going elsewhere since the snow in the Aspen resorts are not thick enough to support many winter activities.

I’m not really a fan of winter. In fact, I’m more of a summer guy. However, I still miss the old days when my morning exercise routine mainly involves shoveling snow off our driveway. Maybe I’m speaking too soon. I won’t be surprised if I’ll be conducting background checks again by next month on teenagers in our village who want to earn a few bucks by shoveling out snow off driveways.

NY Subway Hero

2007 has just started, but it has already produced what could probably be the most interesting and amazing story of the year.

A construction worker saved a 19-year-old student from certain death when the latter suffered a seizure and fell onto the subway tracks. Despite the fact that a train was already on its way to the spot where Cameron Hollopeter just fell, 50-year-old Wesley Autrey didn’t think twice in jumping to the tracts and shield Hollopeter from the speeding train.

The two miraculously survived even as two coaches passed over them. Hollopeter wasn’t even sure if he was still alive when the train stopped since he asked Autrey if he was already dead.

What a story. What a selfless act. The fact that it happened in a city where many people don’t seem to care about each other anymore (I’m sure you’ve guessed it right) makes it even quite unbelievable.

I’m sure Autrey will be featured in every New York broadsheet for the next several days. I can’t wait to read more about this man. I think I’ll even conduct a background check on him to know more about this new superman.

Thank God for people like him.

Waiting for the Newbies

The applicant that my boss heavily favors didn’t show up for her finally interview. I think I already told you that our department would be getting additional help this year. Two vacancies were announced last week, and the HR department received 43 applications for the positions.

Normally, it would’ve taken the HR staff two weeks to process all 43 applications. However, Paul and I volunteered to do the initial screening which involves the verification of details written in their application forms through online background checks.

Paul and I smiled at each other when the HR staff told us that our boss is now considering the person that we like for the position. Her credentials are not as impressive as that of the number one contender, but we’re hoping that she’ll still get the job. I hope that we do get that extra help by next week since assignments are expected to pile up by then.

Pres. Gerald Ford

My boss told us to keep it light tomorrow morning since it’s a national day of mourning. I’m quite embarrassed to admit this, but I’m not that familiar with the works former Pres. Gerald Ford. The earliest president that I was able to see on TV or read in newspapers back then was Ronald Reagan.

I could hear nothing but praises for Ford in all of the features that I was able to watch these past few days. I guess there’s no need for anyone to conduct a background check on him since the media have been very generous in featuring his life before, during, and after the presidency.

There has been a renewed interest in the presidency these past few days due to the death of Ford. There’s no question that the office which Ford previously occupied wields so much power and influence, and can easily change the lives of Americans, whether it be for the better or otherwise. Let’s hope that the current and future presidents of this nation realize the great responsibility that their office has towards the people.

Additional Help

Our boss gave us a late Christmas gift by announcing that he’ll be hiring an additional staff in our department. That’s a very welcoming news considering that my online game-playing time had been reduced to just 2 hours ever since Zal resigned 2 months ago (just kidding, boss).

A friend of mine from the HR department told me that she already received 22 applications for the position. I asked her if she’ll be able to process them before I go to Vancouver next month for a business meeting. She said that she might not be able to since she expects around 20 more applications by next week.

Paul and I offered to help her by conducting the background checks on the applicants. We even boasted that we could process all applications within a few hours since we could easily investigate on them online. She hasn’t said yes yet, but I’m sure we’ll be getting her nod once the additional application forms come in.

Misplaced Skepticism?

The winter chill is slowly disrupting my everyday routine. I usually park my car several blocks away from our office building so that I could brisk walk my way to the office. Now, I park it inside the building parking space since I can’t stand the cold winds outside.

I surfed the Web yesterday for possible solutions on how to keep electricity bills down due to extensive heater use. As you may have already noticed, I’m really not used to “refrigerator” temperatures. I think I should’ve been born in a tropical country.

I found a forum where people contributed ideas on how they managed to keep the numbers in their electricity bills down. One guy claimed that he installed an energy-saving gadget. I forgot the name of the equipment. I was really skeptical about his claims and with the gadget that that I didn’t bother to write the details of his post. I think I’m going to regret that. I should’ve conducted a background check on him first to see if most of his claims about himself are true. Maybe he’s really telling the truth. I usually pass off such posts as advertisements. I’ll try to look for that forum again tomorrow.

Counting Gifts

It’s 9 in the morning and everybody’s still snoring. Am I the only here who’s excited in opening up the presents under the tree?

Everybody in the house got more than 10 presents this Christmas. We had a gift drought last year. My sister received only 5, while I got only 4. I received a lot of fruitcakes from my officemates though, but I don’t count them as presents.

My sister (again) has the most number of gifts this year. I’m curiously shaking each box that has her name on it. Who are they from? I have many friends than her, but she always ends up having more presents than me.

If she’s still not up by 10, I’ll do a background check on each of her benefactor to know who they are and where they’re from. She’ll be in for a lot of teasing if I find out that some of her gifts are from her former boyfriends.

Am I being too childish? Maybe I should just go back to bed.

Nanny Claus

I’m sure you all know that Christmas is not just about presents and bright lights. It’s also about elves and reindeers. Just kidding.

Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of the greatest Gift that God has given to us. Of course, this occasion is best celebrated with one’s family. Unfortunately, there are some people who can’t be with their loved ones on this special day due to work-related matters.

I’m sure that it’s hard for parents to leave their children to relatives, or worse, to nannies on Christmas day. If I’ll be forced into such a situation, I’ll definitely leave my child to my parents or to my sister because I’m sure that they’ll take very good care of him or her. If this is not possible though, then I have to make sure that the nanny is a very trustworthy one.

It’s quite difficult to trust people nowadays, and I’m sure you’re very much aware of that. If you’re forced to hire a nanny to look after your child during the holidays, make sure that you thoroughly screen her first by conducting an extensive background check.

Singing to the Tune of $10

I found an interesting letter in my mailbox two days ago. It’s actually a solicitation letter from the basketball team of our parish. The players are asking if I could donate a few dollars for their uniforms next year. In exchange, they will sing 10 Christmas songs in the party that I’ll be hosting on the 23rd.

I know some of the players. I’ll gladly give a few bucks to their cause. However, I’m not sure if I’ll let them sing on my party. Half of the team can’t even get the beat of their pre-game chants right (just kidding, guys).

There’s another group who sent me a similar letter last week. I’m not sure if they’re legit, though. I’m sure many of you have already received letters asking for donations. I’m quite skeptical whenever I’m asked for donations by somebody or some organization that I’m not really familiar with. I guess I have to run a background check on them first before opening my wallet.