April 30

As I've predicted, I've been preoccupied all month with my Mango project. So preoccupied I don't have time to put conditioner in my hair. I've been spending a lo-ot of time working with Arbortext, discussing developments with my editors, and setting up Webex meetings with Sweden once a week. Aside from that, my days are filled with meetings, conference calls, and heated-but-controlled arguments with the SMEs (disguised as mere "discussions"). My trainers had to put their sessions with me on hold because this project is being bundled with Windows Vista, and the time plan is inhuman. So I've mostly been self-studying and applying what I learn on an actual documentation project. And a high-profile project at that. Needless to say, I've been tired and busy.

But it hasn't been the only thing keeping me preoccupied. (Nope, this is not about a new guy. Life hasn't been that kind.)

Anyway, it's just that lately, I've started to realize that my savings account has now reached quite a substantial level. Before I moved to Lawson I've been able to save some money from my old company, and I've been using this money since I resigned two months ago. I've estimated being able to go on like this for a few more months. Meanwhile, I haven't touched a single centavo from my Lawson salary account since the first payday. Pretty cool, huh.

So one afternoon, while these thoughts were lurking at the back of my head, Moira dropped by my cubicle and handed me a leaflet for a pre-selling condo in The Fort. Apparently, I'm exactly the kind of person these condos are calling out to (i.e., stuck with some amount of money but not rich enough for "real" estate).

And maybe I was. That same day, I called up the number printed on the leaflet and requested for a sample computation for a corner studio unit. I did brace myself for what the compuation would look like, but man, it was really, really expensive. So expensive that my savings shrinked into nothingness. But I guess that's a price I have to pay.

And speaking of the price I have to pay, it has a no-downpayment, 0% interest payment scheme, which makes me think I can manage it. All I have to do is set aside some money to pay for the lumpsum once a year for 4 years. That seems like a heavy sacrifice, but that's nothing when I realize that by the time I'm 27 I'll be able to live on my own, in my very own house!

I can also have it rented out for the same amount as my amortization, or maybe even more. This means after 4 years I don't really have to pay for anything anymore because the tenant will be subsidizing the amortization. A couple of more years, then I can start getting the payback for the money I've initally shelled out.

And we haven't even gotten to the best part--after around 10 years I'll be able to earn rental income. For life. It's a lot better than a pension, it's like free money!

Ever since that day, boom! I've been staying up all night doing my accounts in a little blue battered noteb. I've also alloted the last 2 hours of every day to research on other viable condos. In the end though, I came back to the first I've seen, the one located in the super-ultra-posh village of McKinley Hill (from the developers of Corinthian Hills).

Last week, me and my dad went to McKinley Hill to view the construction site. He was really impressed with the grandiosity of the village too, which totally helped make up my mind 100%. Tomorrow (thank you, Labor Day) I'm visiting the showroom and if all goes well....

I'M BUYING A CONDO IN THE FORT!