A heartache leave...I WANT!

Got this from Yahoo! News. Wouldn't it be great to have it here in the Philippines? Otherwise, I'd have to call in another sick leave to nurse my would-be broken heart...

TOKYO (Reuters) - Lovelorn staff at a Japanese marketing company can take
paid time off after a bad break-up with a partner, with more "heartache leave"
on offer as they get older.

Tokyo-based Hime & Company, which also gives staff paid time off to hit
the shops during sales season, says heartache leave allows staff to cry
themselves out and return to work refreshed.

"Not everyone needs to take maternity leave but with heartbreak, everyone
needs time off, just like when you get sick," CEO Miki Hiradate, whose company
of six women markets cosmetics and other goods targeted for women, told Reuters
by telephone.

Staff aged 24 years or younger can take one day off per year, while
those between 25 and 29 can take two days off and those older can take three
days off, the company said.

"Women in their 20s can find their next love quickly, but it's tougher
for women in their 30s, and their break-ups tend to be more serious," Hiradate
said.

Hime & Company staff can also take two mornings off twice a year as
"sales shopping leave", so they can race to stores to hunt for bargains.

"Before, women could take half-days off to go to sales, but you'd have
to hide your shopping bags in lockers by the train station," Hiradate
said.

"But with paid leave, we don't have to feel guilty about bringing our
shopping bags to work, and we can enjoy the best part about sales shopping --
talking about our purchases afterwards."
(Reporting by Chisa Fujioka)

Yahoo! News: Japanese firm offers "heartache leave" for staff

HOT

Found these while getting my weekly celeb updates from Perez Hilton.

This was taken during his latest trip to Sierra Leone as a UN Ambassador of Goodwill. Sigh... I'm such a weakling for athletic guys with a heart for the poor.

Here's what David blogged in his official website:

“I’ve just returned from visiting Sierra Leone in Africa as part of my role as
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. I was honored to be invited and though I saw many
problems and issues to tackle, I was heartened by the incredible and selfless
work UNICEF and other agencies are doing on the ground to help. I was also
humbled by the people of Sierra Leone who despite the problems they face, keep
smiling and are hopeful for the future. They made me feel extremely welcome in
their country and I will never forget the experience.One in four children die in
Sierra Leone before they reach the age of five and many of the diseases that
children suffer can be prevented. I genuinely hope that by visiting the affected
areas and spending time with some of the people there, it will draw the world’s
attention towards the problems children face not only in Sierra Leone but
similar situations across the world. If you want to make a donation to the
fantastic work that UNICEF does then please click
here.
Thank you
David”

Click here to read Perez' Any Excuse To Take His Shirt Off.
More on David Beckham.

Note/Photo credits: Sorry for the graffitis on the pics. Those were grabbed from Perez Hilton's blog.

Nicole Richie's Preggy Look

Found this while browsing through the Top Socialite. I would love to have that preggy look... but not anytime soon.

BTW, heard she and Christina just gave birth to their kids at Cedars Sinai. CONGRATULATIONS to both 'em hot mamas! XD

* * *

Nicole and Joel Madden's daughter is named Harlow Winter Kate Madden. Woo-hoo! Cheers to the lovely couple! =)

Shocking new details about Britney's meltdown

LAPD reports say...

- When the cops showed up, Britney was locked in the master bathroom with Jayden James.
- Britney refused to come out for nearly three hours. When she did, all she was wearing was panties.
- Britney was incoherent, screaming at the cops, "What the f*** are you doing in my house? I know who you are." She continued ranting, "I don't need your f***ing help." At one point Britney, whose moods swung wildly from laughter to rage to sobs, hollered, "You will do as I say."

Read more of the shocking details at Perez Hilton: Popping Pills!

Ermmm... I think she really needs help.


Update:

Here are some really scary pics of Britney from the meltdown. Makes me think she really, really needs help.

Photo credit: www.helpsavebritney.com

Britney Paparazzi: K.Fed Gets Sole Custody of Britney's Kids

Made for Britney supporters, not for her critics.

The latest scoop on Britney.

US Court awards sole custody of Britney's sons: Sean Preston and Jayden James to Kevin Federline. That's sad news but I guess it's just the right decision for now. Britney should really get some help.

As K.Fed's lawyer said, there are no winners here.

How I Finally Ditched that Yo

Just like any drama queen for a girlfriend, I called it quits with Mr. Yo for quite a million times already. And as always, all the goodbyes resulted into reconciliation. So after a day, two days, a week, a couple of weeks or a few months at the longest, Mr. Yo and I are one again.

As the old, familiar saying: you sow an action and reap a habit; you sow a habit and reap a character; you sow a character and reap a destiny goes, I started smoking as a mere social action. I admit--without the slightest bit of shame, that I tried smoking out of satisfying my curiosity and succumbing into peer pressure. Later on, this mere social action became a habit. It became an activity after class, during long breaks, before and after an exam, after eating and while drinking coffee and booze.

It was a costly habit. Just like most women I know, I started with West Ice, Capri and DJ Mix strawberry. Let's say that I consumed a pack a day (including the bums), at P50 a day then, it could've been enough to feed someone everyday. Since I've gone for the cheaper Winston and Marlboro Lights, every year, I spent P9,000 for cigarettes.

Because it was hard to let go of something which became a habit. I pretty much became dependent on cigarettes. Mr. Yo was my ever reliable buddy. He accompanied me on stressful days like on hell weeks when there were so many papers and exams. He was there with me on cold, lonely nights when I was faced with teenage heartbreaks. And he made the best partner-in-crime: he made gimmick and drinking nights funner than what could've been without them.

I was a Yosi Girl and it was both a character and a fate which I did not feel like changing.

You see, those informational campaigns didn't work on me (and I guess on majority of smokers). I was grossed by the chemicals present in a stick of yosi and what that stick can possibly cause to my body organs. But it did not move me to stop smoking. The dad or the uncle of who who had to live on soup and Jell-Os coz solid food just can't go through his throat did not also bother me at all.

Yes, I have been cautious. As a part of an organization which advocates against cancer (good grace, I know I've been such a hypocrite), I decided that if I cannot quit then I might as well become a responsible smoker. I only smoked in designated areas for smoking and I made sure that no non-smoker--without their consent, inhaled the fumes of my cigarette. I thought that if I sinned because I knew that I was killing myself out of the habit, I was doing less evil by sparing others from second hand smoke.

I may not have died from a smoker's disease but then came the day when I slowly started to zoom into the teeny weeny effects of smoking on my skin, breath and respiration. Yes, I hated the eeky smell that the cigarette left on my fingers and clothes. Yes, I dreaded the fact that smokers' skin age faster. Yosi became that bad for me that even my body refused another puff whenever I forced myself to smoke.

How I quit started with an act. It was an act that sprang from the will and the choice of not smoking. Soon, refusing to smoke became a habit. Then because habits make a character out of us, I was no longer among the smoker's click. Nobody in the office thought of me as Yosi Girl. Even former yosi buddies did not think of me as a smoker anymore. And because of this, I was able to reverse my destiny.

I am happy that I no longer feel the urge to smoke. I am happy that I no longer feel tempted by friends who smoke. And most of all, I am happy that I can already cope with stress, heartbreaks and other problems without the aid of Mr. Yo.

I realized that quitting is an act of self-empowerment. If you ditch that yo for good, then you stand an inch higher on your heels.

* * *
Thanks to the power of institutions to change habits. Laws and ordinances that prohibit smoking in crowded places made people smoke less. Yes, thank you Ateneo for the smockets or the SPGs (later on, wala na talaga). Thank you Mayor Binay for making Makati the first Philippine city to prohibit smoking in buildings; Davao and other cities followed.

And thanks to my daughter. Because of my pregnancy and breastfeeding days, I knew that it was indeed possible to quit. So for her, I give her the assurance that I won't leave her because of dying from a smoker's disease.

Images from viraltrivedi.wordpress.com, www.crestock.com and www.library.nhs.uk.

Britney Paparazzi

Made for Britney supporters, not for her critics.

The latest scoop on Britney.

This time, it involves the paramedics.

Britney was taken away by paramedics and police from her house in Beverly Hills after a custody fight with her former husband, Kevin Federline.

Click here to read the news.

Click here to watch the video.

Click here to view the pictures.

I think Britney really needs psychiatric help. Unlike so many people condemn her for all her attention-getting antics, I completely understand her. The divorce was hard for her. I don't see her as a bitch or as bad person. We've seen what she gave up for Kevin and her kids; for the family that she wanted to raise. As things didn't turn out the way she wanted them to be, Britney's way of coping was not as easy for other people. I'm not putting the blame on media and the paparazzi but I think it's a factor.

Britney is struggling and I believe it's a humane act for everyone to cut her some slack. It's just so sad that so many people are acting as crabs by pulling her down even more!

A twist of events: Britney chases a paparazzo.

We wouldn't know what really happened during that night but hey, it's about time that the paparazzi get a dose of their own medicine.

Click here to watch Britney's wild adventure with a paparazzo.

These are all for now, folks. Watch out for more Britney updates.