this Blog is not updated March 31, 2009

You are currently using the OLD blog.. you need to go to http://www.tropicalpenpals.com for the blog which is used daily aswell as the fact there is over 500 articles about the Philippines already compiled there.

CebuAdvertiser.com February 11, 2009

Ive spent a lot of time in the Philippines and especially around Cebu. One thing that you find is almost everything keeps a value. When your in the UK you cant give away old PCs or things that youve had for years. But here there is always someone willing to take anything, even the plastic bottles are collected by the poor to sell for money. Virtually nothing is wasted. Getting back to my point there is a large market for selling second hand goods and one thing I noticed is the setup on most of the sites selling second hand items is pretty poor. Nothing against the developers at the end of the day “free ads” are exactly that its not big business and no doubt it took them a long time to recoup costs. But anyway I decided to spent a bit of money on software and a domain for the use of selling second hand goods with a difference. Currently im trying to gain another $200 from advertising on the adsense to add shops into the site for small business owners to develop a small enterprise and giving them an online presence. I wont get rich out of it to be honest for the amount of time ive spent on it even if I stopped already it would owe me several 100 hours in lost labour time i spent developing the project. But anyway if your looking to buy and sell things in Cebu this will soon be the number one site as I am spending some money on promotion aswell as the fact everything is free on it. If you get time drop by and visit us!

Making the most out of a little lot January 9, 2009

I have been toying with an idea especially after a lot of people complain you cant run a profitable piggery and a few other businesses. The truth is time management. This idea is something I no doubt will do myself in the future. Imagine you have a small lot of around 400 – 800sqm. You build a main house and 2 – 3 apartments to the side. You grow your own vegetables and a lot of fruit. Maybe a bit of room for a few catfish or other fish production on a small scale. But either way you should be looking at something that keeps you busy if your semi-retired. Biggest killer in the Philippines for many is boredom going out gets expensive so making money while not having to leave the house seems a good idea. Well here is the concept :-

The 3 x apartments you rent out for around P10,000 a month each = P30,000

You grow your own fruit and veg where possible and although may not be sellable you have reduced your costs on your food budget.

You attach a small piggery with 20 – 30 pigs. Revenue is low but its an hour or two a day to keep you busy and you “should” gain around P2,000 a month with a good breed. But be aware the feeds are where you get robbed. Overpricing is more than common. But also the fact you have a product that is marketable to your partners relatives and friends. As well as the fact it reduces your meat costs over the year why pay P140 to P160 a kg when you can be producing for less than P100 small gains but its all profit or cost reduction.

You then add a small Sari-Sari (corner store) which is open lunchtimes and evenings (When home). Your sat watching TV selling products through a grilled window at the side of the house. The profits aren’t huge but it will at worst cover electrical bills and a bit extra for the house. The key to everything is maximising your budget and reducing your costs. With a bit of time you should be seeing your income around P40k to P50k every month regular as well as the fact you have fresh meat from pigs/fish and fresh fruit and vegetables all produced on your own land. This keeps you fit and occupied.

Its a small scale idea but its a basic one you can expand from. e.g. the tenants of your apartments need collecting from the Airport, Visa runs, imported foods/wine etc. It could be a small gold mine you haven’t yet discovered but a year of practice you can see the idea come together but the main thing is that you have other incomes to start. Don’t bleed the business dry before its had chance to mature into a bigger venture. A Sari-Sari store in the wrong location may only need beer and cigarettes etc because there is no need for anything else. But its all on the person in each location to develop things. You could have a deep well add a purification kit and suddenly you can provide clean drinking water. The ideas could be pretty much endless. I would love some feedback on people already doing this sort of thing or people who are giving it a try for the first time.

Secrets to doing business in the Philippines January 9, 2009

I’ve spent nearly 2 years on forums about the Philippines both for Pinoy (Filipinos) and for expats and there is complete opposites of information due to the expats sites primarily negative feed on the Philippines and the Pinoy sites posting everything is great. So what is the truth? Somewhere in the middle. I’ve heard a lot of horror stories ranging from people forced out of hotels and resorts in the middle of the nights running for they’re life to businesses that are just unsuccessful. But your probably wondering why I have put nothing positive? Well the truth is the people doing well don’t like to admit the fact. They also aren’t heavy forum users but one thing is for sure there is a lot of them here making money everyday and living a good life. There are complications here like anywhere else in the world. Firstly corruption is a major issue having a restaurant may get you constant visits from local police for example. But its not just the Philippines operating in the UK with a business I had previously local council officials tried to blackmail me after I had gained several contracts from them. So be aware its just business the key to business anywhere in the world is contacts you can take the same basics from anywhere on the planet and its all pretty simple. Supply and demand, good relationships with officials, good business contacts and most importantly good business sense. Many of the failed businesses I’ve come across seem to fall into 2 categories the first is relying on someone else to do all the work. Basically the foreigner invested money in a family venture and just hoping for a good return. You wouldn’t do it in the West so don’t start doing it here.. Second category is the value of the Dollar.. here working in Pesos is the key.. a guy will work for between P150 – P300 a day and that’s the going rate. If you can make a profit above that each day then you are running a business. But if your expecting to make $500 a week from a venture your already making a mistake your in the wrong currency and your not looking at what the local market can sustain. There is big money opportunities available but for the majority its unreachable not only because of finances but also the networking issues. Importing goods could become a headache for example if you haven’t got friends within the Import/Export zones etc. But one business that can thrive is purely exporting back to your home country. I’m not going to list products because its pointless.. the truth is each region has something unique to offer. If it hasn’t maybe you have an idea that you can utilise the local skilled labour for. Either way it is possible to not only be a Millionaire in the Philippines but a $,£ or Euro Millionaire but the key to success is down to trial and error and a lot of hard work.

Is this hell or Paradise? January 6, 2009

A friend of mine arrived in the last few days and one of the comments he made was regarding there are a lot of people posting the Philippines as a Paradise location. Well its all locations and definitions Cebu itself has a lot of beauty and also a lot of poverty. The way Paradise comes about is many people will many ideals. I will give you a few….

Imagine your a person reaching you upper years and living in a studio apartment your kids all have families and have moved away from the area. Most of your friends over the years are no longer around or have moved away or suffering with ill health. You get a few phonecalls every week from people but hardly anyone visits you. You travel out each day and in cities of millions you might aswell be sat alone.. your unnoticed and no longer respected by the people that surround you.. Many people suffered with this in Western society.

 Arriving in the Philippines to find… People want to know where you came from,what your doing, about your life. Want to be your friend the opportunity to have a wife is suddenly more available than it would be in most Western countries infact not only that your respected by most people due to you age. You wake each morning to the warmth of the sun and living on a lot less than you would in the West. Your not struggling with groceries and getting to the local malls but you may even have a live in maid who does it all for you.. You find a community of friends who have all had a new lease of life given to them in a land that wants them here.. That is the Paradise many are talking of.

But what about the younger generations? Well I can only talk from my experiences in the West im a Surveyor paid well and enjoy my job. I pay over 40% of my salary in taxes, I have high housing costs,fuel costs,a biast government thats in favour of the lazy and uncontrolled migration. Im punished for working, having 3 or 4 kids upwards pretty much guarantees a free house,reduced taxes and as a bonus you wont need to even get a job. The reason that people will travel literally thousands of miles to get there. Im not against immigration,migration and im definitly not a racist but i do expect an even playing field for all.. Im punished for working hard my whole life and most of the people in the same sort of situation as myself feel exactly the same. Im not bitter or twisted about this but will that and a system that is very pro feminist which has caused an imbalance to the point even if someone was divorced the guy pretty much knows already he will likely lose the house, car and half his income until the children are of working age regardless of the status of the person or family. Thrown in for good measure is the difficult process that may leave the guy paying for children that he cant see due to a bitter ex and they play god with feelings and loss.. I may sound a bit bitter about the latter but its not too much with the difficulties ive faced as the relationship with my ex partner to see my daughter is most of the time amicable. But I have friends living in bedsits/studios who once had 3 – 4 bedroom houses and a life that they were happy with. An ex who suffered with depression etc. and it ends up all the guys fault. Another where a guy lost nearly everything he had including his children, over nearly a lifetime he had build a portfolio of houses for rentals a good job and a caring father. But got involved with a 4th divorcee woman that pretty much ate him alive. Coming home one day to find he had an empty house as the property and the bank balance had been cleared and legal proceedings began for divorce. He had to pay a monthly “allowance” to a woman who had never worked in theyre married life even though she had taken everything that was in the bank. In the end he had to buy his children as simply the woman only wanted money. He lost more than 50% of his houses, all his furniture etc and left a broken man. Is he still paying the allowance? Probably yes.. its no doubt been bound in one of the property rentals that still existed.. These are the reasons many are coming to the Philippines…

battle scarred from past relationships and most are 30+ they have pretty much had enough of western society so many come here and suddenly find a woman that is the complete opposite of what defines a Western woman. A woman who is in most cases unselfish, misses the guy even if he goes out for the day and looking to take care of the house while the husband is busy with work. A society thats preached in the West as sexist but the truth is everyone is happy. In the West can you really say everyone is happy? the 30+ year old is increasingly likely to be single because they want the independance but missing the whole point of a family unit. You cant have your cake and eat it.. With the increased single mothers and divorce rates (divorce rates are stalling i believe currently due to economic climate rather than anything else in the UK) who really has it right? A relationship thats going to bring children into the world in a supportive enviroment where children are the priority.. or a western society that is the land of the hoodies and the forgotten youth? I know which I would prefer my kids to be brought up in and I also know life isnt perfect but life is really what you make it. The Philippines to me is my home and Paradise, but you need to look beyond the poverty sometimes and the fact that every carrier bag for miles seems to end up in the river. But sooner or later this will eventually stop. Most malls are encouraging the use of boxes etc and the Enviromental shopping bags are starting to appear here so give it time and the rubbish will clean up. The politics are internal and not for foreigner interference so why get involved in something thats between governments and locals that could actually get you deported.

Paradise is where the heart is…

There is also the tourist side of things which I havent added yet. The big cities can be a mountain of fumes in rush hour and hearing a beep from a horn only a second away. Tightly packed streets and stores the size of market carts are abundant in the poorer areas but its part of the developing society that is the Philippines its caught in an industrial age that is seeing people leave the rural areas for the cities for employment and a brighter future. History dictates it will eventually lead to development of newer housing and better standards of living for all. But it doesnt happen overnight and corruption is still a major problem. Being realistic though corruption deprives a country but even those on the take,theft or manipulating things to theyre own needs will find that a developed nation offers more funds, capital and developments which would leave anything that could have been gained with corruption as small coins in the big picture.. Look at China where the worry with Hong Kong is it would be stripped of its independance and enterprise.. but in essence the opposite happened China embraced Hong Kong and its ideas.. leading to a wealthier and stronger future.

Head from the cities you will find that within an hour you are starting to hit the real Philippines still untouched as there has been little money or development spent on the rural areas. Traditional Nipa roofed buildings still exist and pretty much the home of the poorer families in the further flung locations but also those less than an hour from the cities.. The real Philippines that can offer a slower pace of life and a life as a small scale farmer etc. A paradise to another type of expat. Then you have the diving from the coasts another type of expat and another type of Paradise..

If you see it as hell its either the fact you havent found your home.. or you have yet to find that woman that changes the way you are.. One thing I would advise to anyone is experience life as you find it not as people tell.. (sounds strange from a blogger) but the truth is my Paradise may not be yours but one thing is for sure there is a lot of different Paradises here in the Philippines and I believe there is one for nearly everyone.. (as long as you dont prefer the cold!).

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A book on how to make a living in the Phililippines December 23, 2008

 Generally im not one to buy E-Books and certainly not ones from the Philippines.. why?

Because generally they are very poor quality and just a quick money making scheme. Tie that with the fact that many of the books are upto a decade out of date they are pretty useless. But I decided to start advertising this book by Bob Martin so thought I should at least buy it to see if its worth the money. As a book its no novel but it does provide exactly what it says it will and to be honest I thought before I bought it the price was a bit high but once I had read a few of the chapters a lot of it makes sense and many of the ideas are things that are very obvious but unlikely to have explored unless someone had already proven it had worked. So would I buy another book from Bob? Simple answer yes but obviously it has to be something thats interesting not only to me but of use. This book is easily part of a bigger picture and I can honestly say with a few of the ideas from the book you can easily make a living and develop a business. There are parts of the book I wish were better developed in structure but with “google” at your fingertips many of the ideas are going to work with a little research. Its worth its price tag and I will be trying most if not all the ideas in the future to prove which ones do work and which ones are difficult ( I wont say fail because quite simply I believe most businesses can prosper with the right people/connections).

Now do I get paid for you clicking the link above? Simple answer yes.. did I do this review for the money? Simple answer “No” people who know me will tell you im about as straight shooting as they come. Often people wish they hadnt asked my opinion because they get an honest reply and normally with complete breakdown of reasons. So if your serious about moving to the Philippines and starting a business then this is a good place to start even if abroad. Because there is one thing I will say about people who have yet to even visit the Philippines who assume they can just move here and start a business the majority come with the same ideas Bars,diving,farming,internet cafe aswell as a few others.. but the truth is most of these businesses either offer poor returns are over subscribed in areas or both. Either way your chances of success with a bar,diving school etc.. are a lot slimmer than with Bobs ideas. Aswell as the fact many of Bobs ideas can be started in your home country even before you start looking for your speedos for your luggage. Many of the ideas are internet based and with a few tips you can soon be on your way to a steady income.

So what is it about Minglanilla? December 23, 2008

A lot of people may wonder I live in Minglanilla over other locations within Cebu. Well there are several reasons. Firstly Aprils family are here, aunts,uncles,parents,cousins something i never had when i grew up due to my parents moving around the world with the British army. So its nice that April has that here and I wouldnt want to take April to an area where she would be too far from relatives. But there are many other reasons that make Minglanilla home. The town is literally 5 minutes from the house by tricycle or car. We have a swimming pool nearby that we can use on a resort. The beach is 5 minutes from the house although its not the best in the area.. but then again I dont like sand on my feet so suits me..(its full of stones). Main thing is though you are central its about as quiet as a province can get within a stones throw of the city. Yes there is the road dust in the morning and evening rush hours but thats about it. There is no constant flow of heavy traffic just general. But the other thing that really makes Minglanilla a great place to live is the fact as soon as you head off the main southern coastal road and head inland within 5 minutes you are literally in a sea of green.. most of the land is either minor developed or untouched. A touch of the real Philippines with the access to all the major facilities within a 20 minute radius of travel you cant really beat that.

A few things you will find different when stopping in the Philippines December 14, 2008

This is mainly aimed at people looking at renting properties or buying property. Simply because most features you expect in the west maybe missing. Why? because price is critical here. Often the roofing is metal due to keeping cost down, electrics substandard to name but a few things. But then again even if you rent locally you could find things like :-

Shower

 

This is what a local shower looks like. A tap a bucket to fill with water and a pot shaped scoop to wash with. Very simple but effective the reason for the bucket is many houses dont have a seperate water tank to store water and its very common for water to be off at certain times of the day. This is the way round it. Disadvantage of this type of system is the water is very cold in the morning. But the big advantage is the bigger the bucket the more showers you can have if the water is off.

The other thing you will notice on this photo and the next is that there is water filters on both taps regardless. I havent found anything in the water that I would call a real threat to health but have had several pebbles. Which makes you wonder if a pebble can get into the water whate else can.

Electric showers are available and pretty reliable but I strongly advise getting your earth bonding correct and also a full inspection of your electrics to make sure the system can take the strain of the extra current. The other thing you may have noticed is there is only one tap. There is no hot water. The easiest and cheapest way round this is to add an exterior tank to a sunlit area and you will receive free hotwater. Ive noticed the tank at the house we are currently renting has been moved which is why we now have cold water 24/7 instead of hot 50% and warm 50%. But you cant have everything.. There is two ways to receive water to a house generally and most places have access to both. One is a deep well which taps into the underground waterways which has a major advantage its free! generally its low in pollution and likely to be as good if not better than the tap water. We currently have only the deep well water which is pumped up via an electric pump into a tank then we just fill it as we need it. An example of what is called an E-Pump is shown below :-

Not the prettiest objects but saves using a hand pump each day to get the water out. Add a tank with adapted ballcock to automate the pump and you wouldnt need to get upto the pump to regular. Cheap to run and if its maintained regular will run for literally years. Ive worked on motors as part of my previous work and to be honest the older ones are better than a new one. Why? Because the internal blades and many other components now are made of plastic where before they were metal. So if you take into account heat generation from the pump in motion its life cycle due to component failure is very much reduced. Ive worked on military motors which are fully metal many are over 30 years old but the new ones are lasting 1 – 3 years. Although supposed to be direct replacements. So if you find a good motor that looks a little old but all metal components its likely to outlast a brand new one.

Another thing people dont realise is getting used to Aircon in hot climates. But if you use Ceiling fans or wall fans they are much cheaper and also involve less cleaning and running costs. As you find bacteria build up often causes minor coughs and sore throats and at the worst case scenario legionaires disease if not maintained. The wall mounted ones I find dont take up to much space and you dont get the shadows at night of spinning blades next to the ceiling or wobbling of light that you get with ceiling oscilating fans. Either way you should also add at least one small battery backed fan to your list of essential items. Its only when you find you havent bought one in a powercut do you realise how hot it gets quickly and how much you miss the item. Try and get one with a larger battery compartment as you should be able to use motorcycle batteries which are easy to come by and also test it regular as a lot of batteries are resold as new here. Something to be aware of. Its not just street vendors but often where you least expect it. The fan shown here cost less than £10.00 but ideal for keeping things cool during the night if theres a power cut aswell as the fact it has a built in light and very compact.

 

Another thing people dont realise is Gas is fed from tanks not from mains in the majority of locations its cheap one bottle will last you several months but the big problem is many of these bottles wouldnt pass safety standards in the West. Currently the one we are using at the moment is missing a seal which is spilling gas when connected. Its been repaired locally with an elastic band. Not the best solution to a very dangerous problem. Ive seen the damage done with a fire extinguisher would hate to see the damage done with one of these tanks going off. Anyway getting back to my point. These are connected to your cooker via a hose as there is nothing else in the house that requires gas.

Another thing people forget to take a look at is security on a property before buying. This is a picture from one of our windows. This is a typical layout in the Philippines “on request” before you rent get them to fit a mosquito grill and security grill. They may ask you for 2 – 3 months rent in advance to cover the costs. But its worth it mosquitos are a major problem not only for irritation but Dengue is still a big problem in Cebu and other parts of the Philippines. Malaria is supposed to be virtually none existant but to be honest I wouldnt be so sure as many of the figures arent accurate due to the majority of population finding medical fees too expensive so the death registry is unlikely to be accurate. Getting back to the design. The metal grills are good security and if designed well look very artistic and in keeping with the house. My father inlaw makes them so if you ever want some made please drop me an email. The mosquito mesh is either metal or plastic depending on whats used. Generally it keeps 90% of the pests out but ants are the biggest problem everyone seems to face and an ongoing battle. The louvre type windows work well especially if you have open fields or above ground level to allow air to flow through the house. Means you dont need Aircon during the day and depending where you are maybe no aircon at all.

Hope  you found the information useful. But one thing i will add is all western things are available but at a cost. Not only buying costs but running costs. A house without Aircon can have a bill as little as P500 a month. But a single Aircon unit can add as much as P2,000 per unit. So if you can get by with fans give it a go. Try for a few days the first couple of days will seem too hot but with the fans your body will adapt. Saving you in the wallet especially if your here long term.

Grumpy women and jelous guys.. November 27, 2008

A Western guy with an asian girlfriend is often seen as a loser and a guy unable to carry off a relationship in the west. But i want to put my story here and several of the other people i know of..

My story….

                      Im a surveyor and a high earner.. i had a relationship that wasnt working for me and even though it wasnt working i stuck it out for many years in the hope things would recover. Truth is when your thinking on how to “save” a relationship its already pretty much doomed. A few things happend and eventually i called it a day. I was now single and wealthier than i had been in any other time of my life nothing holding me back.. finding a bank balance grow and a job that had a lot of prospects.. but was i happy?? simply yes.. i was single nice car, nice job and free to do what i want. I spent as much  time with my daughter as possible and things were going well.. I met April online and we became friends quickly. April had a good job and pretty content with life in the Philippines although keen to travel. We were both in relationships of some description at this time. So stayed friends for most of the year. A few events happend we both became single and after a bit of time we started to become a couple and eventually i flew out to the Philippines and we got married and the rest is history.. Both of us are well educated.. Neither of us struggle to get admirers and April is more into being practical than Prada and Mercedez…

Friends of mine i wont add names.. but its a story ive heard many times from many people and writing this i can think of at least 5 people who will think its about them personally but its a general description..they are in the 50+ year bracket of life either a widow or left a marriage that they woke up one morning and thought what am i doing here? My wifes a nightmare either via spending,affairs or other means.. but the results all the same they had a wake up call. Divorcees found themselves lonely looking to rebuild a life after a partner had gone but ultimately they wanted a change and a big one..

So what happens? Most headed to the Philippines via friends,holidays or just started looking online for someone mainly for curiousity.. finding a life partner isnt like going into a mall and thinking “i know what, ill get a wife today”. Its time consuming with a rollercoaster of emotions.. eventually they land in the Philippines and as many say it takes at least 10 years off you. For me its a destress i find my headaches and stress gone as soon as i see the islands.. a warm smile comes to my face. But getting back to the guys. Many are on fixed pensions and also realise that life in the Philippines doesnt only mean your respected by younger people but the fact people want to know you, want to talk to you.. they enjoy your company. They normally find a filipina who is generally younger (but not always) but you find most of these relationships are happy and content.. and why ? because the guy if hes sensible realises what he has, he has been given a new life.. a life that in the West would be a younger mans life or dream. A beautiful woman and a pension or income that stretches well beyond his country of origins ability.. Waking up to sunshine and smiles each day. So whats wrong with this ???

This is where the title comes into play.. many guys end up with grumpy ex wives.. the laws in most countries in the west are biast towards the females and its destroying many of the old family units. Your a guy you get a bag of clothes and the cost of children until theyre old enough for work (murderers get less time!). The female gets the house,car and an allowance from the ex. She can choose to work or not doesnt really matter shes got it made!

So why the stigma about the guys being a loser? Well it comes from the fact how many exs are happy to see theyre ex husband doing well?? How many like to see a woman 20yrs younger and half her weight on the arm of the ex husband? What about knowing your in a cold wet country and only knowing the life youve done for the last 20yrs+  when your ex is now living in the tropics with a beautiful wife, house and within walking distance of the beach?? Truth is the ex wife is the one who has lost.. she may sit on a pot of gold reminding me of a dragon sat on coins in a cold damp cave.. but she feels she has been made a fool.. who wants an ex husband to be happy!! How dare he.. show how much his life improved after the break up!! so in return the ex wife will make it difficult for the guy to see his kids when home (if not doing before he even left for Asia). Then when he eventually does look to leave the guilt comes on how much the kids will miss him etc etc. yet the truth is they were struggling to see the kids anyway.. being abroad they are likely to generate more income and maybe even put a nest egg away for the kids.. which would be impossible in the home country..

The Jelous guys ive seen this from a distance.. a friend of mine has a wife who is from Thailand.. they work hard for what theyve got and he goes home every night.. he doesnt go to the pub with his friends anymore but his friends joke that hes under the thumb with his wife while sat drinking in the pub.. So whos wrong here? Hes gone home to a cooked meal his wifes prepared after doing a long day herself and they are content being together.. or the guys in the bar bitching about he is under the thumb..where is theyre wives?

Well to be honest with you most are now single they left.. others have marital problems and either way if your life orintates round a group of friends bitching about others in a bar each night what really is your life who is the loser here???

Its part of life having people complain about others but the truth is i find the Philippines, Filipinos, Retirees and guys who goto the Philippines or married to filipinas get a raw deal.. But then again if someone complains they dont have to value theyre own life..

One.com November 27, 2008

I was surprised to find out how much my brother just got clobbered with by One.com for his webspace. He doesnt use it very often and its not fully developed.. Last year One.com charged £10.00 for a 3GB webspace. But what they did during the year is “AUTO” upgrade everyone to 25gb without authorisation. So this week what happend they “auto” renewed and my brother expected a bill for £10.00 for the 3gb.. what did he get ??

A bill for £59!! not only that they refuse to cancel it or even downgrade as they now have his money..

Now looking over the options they provide not only is it overpriced but they have virtually no real facilities to add wordpress or any other software that could actually be useful on the net.. a provider that has a service that i havent seen so poor since the 90s.. But then again i wouldnt complain if it was free..

BUT £59.00 for a site thats worth nothing and impossible to do anything with to develop?? must be crazy.. just want the guys over at one.com know that ill be doing what i can to spread the truth about this company and its “auto” upgrades and “auto” renewals great stealing other peoples money..