Lessons from a Pizza Delivery Man

It’s in the news.

Ken Karpmann is a former CEO who receives an annual salary of a staggering 750,000 USD. But due to their misplaced financial conservativeness and dare I say, carefree spendings, their monetary woes spiraled out of control with unpaid mortgages and a failed hedge fund business venture leaving them bankrupt. The present economic crisis has not been kind either with companies readily refusing his job inquiries.

Now he has done one of the most unorthodox way any former big-bucked CEO would do to save his family's finances from total collapse – deliver pizza for 7.29 USD an hour.

Really? Yup, you can google his name and read his full story.

If you go on reading about him, you will come to admire at least 3 persons in story.

First is the pizza owner who literally gave Ken a humbling yet decent job. It was risky in terms of management (I imagine the restaurant manager hesitatingly giving delivery order to a person with higher education and better management experience than he is).

Second is his wife. I am sure they have fought and quarreled a lot of times during the time their savings were dwindling down to keep her husband’s hedge fund business afloat. Losing your dream house and wealth-related prestige is not a good topic to cuddle and discussed during bedtime. But, she stood by her man – even if he is now just a pizza delivery guy. Commitment personified is she.

Third is Ken himself. I have never heard of a bankrupt CEO who would humble himself and turn to blue collar jobs. Not only did he do that, but he was totally honest about his failed financial status that he wrote in his application form his 750,000 annual salary and high education thus adding the risk of being rejected with such high-qualifications. And from what I have seen in the short video clip about him, he is enjoying it as well. When asked why he is doing it, his straightforward reply was, “To keep food on our table.” Now that is undeniably love for family over pride.

Ken Karpmann is included in the rare breed and endangered specie of man. I am sure he will find other financially rewarding job soon but for now he is the man of the pizza delivery men.

To My One and Only True Love

On this day, the single most important yet humble, gorgeous yet simple, sweet yet strong, hardworking yet casual, fun yet serious, friendly yet reserved lady of my life was born some thirty-yish something ago (it’s a grave sin to tell the age of a woman from what I always overhear in their girl-talk :D)

And so, as a loving gift to her, here are some 5 x 5 never before heard stuffs, serious and curious alike, that I would like to honor her with:

Five amusing things about her:
1. She dislikes small bills and coins that she always discharges them first every chance she has. It is not rare that we find ourselves in a spot because we have a big bill for a small amount of payment to make (try imagining holding a 500 hundred peso bill to pay for your jeepney fare :D)
2. When she is in a laughing mood, she can never finish her joke because she keeps on laughing while narrating it.
3. She likes to highlight our children’s positive strengths and wonder from whom they “inherited” such amazing traits before looking straight beyond me as if my genes are not superior ha ha :D)
4. She’s a legitimate member of the shopaholic club and can almost always find the lowest price and best-buys available in the malls.
5. She has that cutey smile after being able to buy something she wanted for a long time while waiting for the discount sale to happen.


Five topics that make her sad:
1. Remembering our Maia’s untimely demise.
2. Her father who passed away when she was just about 5 years old.
3. Her mother in the US who migrated while she was also still young.
4. Some unfortunate experiences in her growing years
5. Family and friend’s misfortunes


Five dreams she often wishes:
1. To be able to spend time with her mom
2. To travel and visit the Holy Land, USA and Europe
3. To be a member of a synchronized swimming team
4. To be a figure skater.
5. To have a successful business


Five traits I really admire about her:
1. Her dedication to be the best mother and wife.
2. Her growing personal relationship with God.
3. Her prayer life.
4. Her patience (especially to my idiosyncrasies and temper-tantrums).
5. Her strong personality.

Five reasons why I will always be by her side:
1. I am married to her (not as an obligation but as a lifetime choice of commitment we solemnized before God)
2. She is the mother of my best bud (hopefully some more future best buddies for us :) )
3. She loves me despite all my warts, blackheads, pimples, receding hairline, bedtime snoring and a lot more “unlovables” in me
4. I couldn’t see my life with somebody else
5. I love her forever.

Happy Birthday to you honey!

May the Lord grant you your heart’s desire and wishes in accordance to His plan.
Zek and I love you. Ditto from our little angel in heaven.

Rocks Vs Plants

Question 1: Which one is stronger than the other - rocks or plants?
Answer: Both.

Question 2: Why both?
Answer: It all depends on time.

Having spent my college days within the confines of the well-renowned, highly fortified Manila fortress called Intramuros (spanish for "within" (intra), "walls" (muros) ), I have always marveled at the strength and endurance of those piles of square-shaped carved stones through the centuries. History has it that, having been built by the Spaniards during the 16th century, it was the bastion of the colonizers during their time until it was totally destroyed during world war II. Decades after its rebuilt, it now stands as one of the acclaimed and recommended places to visit in Manila for its rich history.

But if you would look a lot closer at each stone slab, one can clearly see how trees, plants and grasses grows out through some cracks and crevices. Well, one can argue that the cracks came before the plants and nothing to suggest that its was the plants own doing that lead to the cracks. I will subscribe to that partially, because this I also know for a fact - that plants are living and alive. And being alive means they have to grow no matter how slow and hard. It is its nature to persevere despite the "rocks" blocking its path. It will still grow, maybe around the rock, or even through the rock if it has to.

Therefore, a rock is stronger in mass-weight in its present form, until it starts to crack and weakened but plants are stronger in time and perseverance.

Thinking further about it, the key for the plant's survival and success is to be properly rooted and nourished with sunlight and water.

Question: Are we deeply rooted in God to persevere to be good in life despite the "rocks" around us.
Answer 1: If Yes, then praise God.
Answer 2: If No, then it is never too late to change ourselves.

Let us all seek God in all our thinking and ways.

God bless.