Before and After

Are you happy with your name?

I remember during my kindergarten days when I wished that my name was Sylvester after watching a Rambo flick. I even asked my mom if they could still change it. Of course, that silly idea of mine was immediately dismissed. Luckily I wasn’t scolded when I brought up the topic again after watching the first installment of Rocky.

I’m already happy with my name (I’ll keep you guessing as to what my name is :) ). It is common, but at least I don’t get teased because of it. I had a classmate named Wilbur. As you know, this name is associated with a pig. The fact that he was fat did not help his predicament. As expected, he got a lot of “oinks” from some of our boisterous classmates.

I ran a people search on him a couple of years ago and I was very surprised to see that he was a member of his college’s football team! He still sported a heavy built though, but the baby fats were definitely gone and were replaced by muscles! It was quite frightening, actually.

It is quite amazing how one’s appearance changes over time. I hardly even recognize my classmates in kindergarten and middle school. I’m happy though, that most of those who were teased because of their name or looks turned out to be gorgeous beings upon reaching college. I hope that those who mocked them before could see what they’ve become right now. I’m sure they would eat every word that they’ve said to those poor guys and girls.

It’s fun searching for old friends and classmates. It’s like looking at a “before-and-after” beauty salon project. I wonder if their character also changed. I hope not. If it did, I wish it’s for the better.

Mediterranean Cruise

Have you tried going on a cruise to the Caribbean or the Mediterranean? I haven’t tried the former but I sure did enjoy the latter.

I wasn’t able to treat my parents on my first paycheck. The first job that I got was with an insurance company in Michigan. Needless to say, I’d just be spending my whole salary for airfare alone if I went back to New York just to share my first pay with mom and dad.

I got to say thank you to them when I got my current job. I went back to New York after spending almost two years in Lansing. My present job doesn’t pay much compared to the previous one, but I’m able to save more here since I’m staying at our old house in Rego Park.

I wasn’t able to treat my parents immediately to a lovely Mediterranean cruise on my first pay check. In fact, it took me 5 months before I could save enough for that trip. It cost me a fortune, but it’s the least that I could do to show them my gratitude for their sacrifices during my college days. They even wanted me to go to law school and promised me that they’ll support me financially. Lucky for them I begged off and decided to give the corporate world a try.

We had a great time seeing Italy and Greece from our room’s balcony. Although I really wanted to stay on land longer, the brief stops were already enough to fill our photo albums to the brim (or rim).

I hope you don’t mind me reminiscing about that particular vacation of ours. I recently came across an article about two persons who fell of their room’s balcony while in a Mexican cruise. I don’t know how they could’ve fallen off from the balcony. The railings are usually high enough to prevent accidents. The report didn’t indicate if they were drunk or under the influence of prohibited drugs. I’m not comfortable leaning too heavily on the railings. I even made sure that my feet are squarely in place on the floor before losing myself at the lovely view of Italy and Greece.

I guess it’s really advisable to travel in groups or in pairs. You’re bound to be shark meal if you fall off a ship without anybody knowing that you’re a passenger thereof. Your relatives might run a people search on you thereafter, but that would already be too late.

Second Chance

I don’t know why American Presidents have a sour charisma towards the citizens of their South American neighbors. I mean, what have they done to deserve such treatment?

I guess it’s not about what they have done which earned them the ire of millions of Latin Americans. Instead, it’s more of what they haven’t done to promote the rights and welfare of those who have migrated to the United States. Latin Americans are by far the fastest growing minority in the country. It won’t be long before their number could influence things in government.

I’m one with the President in his call for a law that would regulate the entry of Latin American migrants, and protect the rights of those who already made it through American soil, whether legally or otherwise. Bush is pushing for a guest worker program that would allow migrants to acquire a limited working visa. These people would soon be granted an option to extend their visas and eventually acquire U.S. citizenship.

Majority of the members of the Senate are quite cold on the Bush’s proposal. They contend that granting illegal immigrants with working Visas is tantamount to condoning their illegal act of entering U.S. soil without going through the prescribed process.

I hope the impasse would not take years to resolve. I think they’ve already realized that penal sanctions do not and would not deter Mexicans and other Latin Americans from crossing the border with the hope of making it big in the country. I had several Latin American classmates in college who admitted that their parents crossed the border illegally to look for a better future in the United States.

I’m sure many were not as lucky as my classmates’ parents. I’ve heard stories where Mexicans tried to beat the authorities to the border, only to be caught or shot in the process. You could just imagine the shock and grief that their relatives felt after they’ve conducted a simple people search on them.

America should start drafting a comprehensive program or law which would facilitate the acceptance of immigrants from Mexico and the rest of Latin America. If the country has accommodated many similar requests for working visas from Asian and European countries, then why can’t we do the same to our closer neighbors?

Seeing Double

I’ve been conducting background checks and people searches for almost a decade now. I’m not exactly sure if it’s a profession. Technically speaking, a profession involves a job which requires certification from a government body. But, then again, a profession may also refer to a vocation or an activity which one habitually does for a living.

I guess I could safely say that I’m already really good at what I do. Although you may contend that doing a people search on the Internet is a no-brainer, there are some tricks that are known only to professionals that could really speed up the process.

As good as I think I am, I committed a blunder recently when a client asked me to look for a particular person in Alaska. I can’t give you the person’s name, so I’ll just concoct a fictional one. Let’s call that guy Michael Doe. Michael Doe is my client’s stepbrother. They haven’t seen each other for 22 years. They were separated by their grandparents when they were just 2 years old.

I thought that the assignment was an easy one. The population density in Alaska is so thin that I think I would be able to find him even if I’ll go there and do the search personally. Of course, that’s impractical. So the next best thing (actually the best) to do is to search for him on the Internet.

I immediately found his name on the database. However, there were two Michael Does on the list. To make the situation more complicated, the photo attached to each of the two person’s file is the same. I thought that it was just an error. I called the site’s administrator and asked if they might have inadvertently duplicated Doe’s records. The person managing the site said that the files are different and that I’m actually looking at two different persons.

The guy on the phone was right. I should’ve read the records thoroughly. They’re really two different persons. The photographs are not identical either. Hmm I guess you already have an idea on why two different persons have, ostensibly, the same photo in their respective files.

They’re twins! Silly me. I didn’t read the entire request form of the client. If I just read a few lines more, I would’ve known that Michael Doe has a twin. They bear the same names, too, albeit the first one is Michael Doe II and his brother is Michael Doe III.

Talk about being very good at what I do. That twin twist really got me. This is the first time that I got a people search request where the person to be searched has a twin. I guess I have to be more careful and attentive next time. I’m sure this is not going to be the last time that I’ll be looking for a person who has a twin brother or sister. I just read a report on Yahoo! that twins are becoming more common.

And the Oscar Goes Too...

I’ve been receiving tons of tasks involving public records these past few days. This is quite unusual since February has always been regarded as a lean month as far as requests for court records are concerned. Many people are usually busy hiring accountants during the first quarter of the year in their bid to comfortably beat the tax deadline on April.

I haven’t had time to check my e-mails. My niece has already complained that I haven’t responded to her electronic correspondences since last week. She had just created her first e-mail account on Yahoo! Unfortunately, the only names that are listed on her address book is mine and that of her parents’.

Newspapers have piled up on my porch, too. I haven’t acquainted myself with what’s happening in the city and in the world since last Tuesday. I even missed the Oscar Awards on TV.

I heard that Forest Whitaker won the Best Actor plum. I initially thought that he was the guy in Big Momma’s House. Forgive me for the error. I was at the local bar when it was being aired, and their TV set is a poorly refurbished 14-inch Samsung unit.

I was very happy to know that Martin Scorcese finally got the honor and recognition that he deserves when he was awarded the Best Director award for the film The Departed. His movie also bagged the Best Picture trophy.

Many say that the hosting was not that spectacular. Ellen DeGeneres kept it light and funny, but it wasn’t that impressive. A number of those who presented the awards were stunning, though. Some of us at the bar didn’t utter a word when Cameron Diaz went to the stage. She was a sight to behold, especially in that fabulous white gown that she wore.

I’m sure many movie fans would be conducting people searches on the winners in order to know where they might get a glimpse of them. I’m a big movie fan, but I think I don’t have that kind of inclination. I love Cameron Diaz, but I don’t have any plan of being one of her stalkers.

Bittersweet

I borrowed five Adam Sandler DVDs from a friend yesterday so I won’t be tempted to join Jim and some of our neighbors for a few rounds of beer. I’m not really a fan of booze since I can’t stand its taste. Unfortunately, liquor is staple (and a must-have) in all-male gatherings.

I don’t know if majority of American males detest beer because of its taste. Really now, what’s there to like in that drink as far as taste is concerned? But, then again, maybe my taste buds are just damaged or something.

I guess majority of all males in the world loves beer. I could run a people search on all guys who don’t drink and come up with nothing on the results page. This bitter drink is not absolutely bad for one’s health. In fact, it could help prevent certain heart diseases. And contrary to popular belief, it actually softens or calms your disposition IF taken moderately.

Moderation is the key, guys. Don’t go gulping yourself a keg just because many say it’s good for your health. A bottle or two would do.

Rescued

I’m so glad to learn that the Mount Hood rescue mission was a success, with all three climbers who fell off the edge of the mountain being rescued.

The survival of the group was partly attributed to Velvet’s continuous care throughout the ordeal. Velvet is a 4-year-old dog which provided warmth to the climbers as they cuddled around the former while waiting for rescuers to come.

While many were elated with the news, some are saddened by the fact that accidents still continue to happen despite the precautionary measures that resort owners regularly undertake. There are a number of climbing accidents that ended up tragically. A few of these cases have not been fully resolved yet as the bodies of the climbers have yet to be recovered.

Some of the victims’ relatives are not yet giving up, though. They continuously try to convince the authorities to send another expedition to search for their missing loved ones. I’m sure they are also conducting a number of people searches on their own just to keep their hopes from fading.

Old Flames

Chris concocted a silly plan on how to hook up an officemate of ours with the receptionist at the lobby. His idea was far from being original. He also had a hard time keeping his mouth shut about it.

The plan was to send flowers to Leslie and make it appear that it came from Sid. However, half of the people in our department already knew of it, so it wasn’t surprising that Sid was able to nip the plot at the bud.

Most of the bachelors in our office have no plans for Valentine’s Day. Some even made fun of their lonely predicament by conducting people searches of their high school flings and crushes. I gave out a hearty laugh when they told me about it. However, my chuckles had traces of guilt on it since I was also planning on checking the current status of my old high school sweetheart. I guess I’ll be looking at another dateless Valentine.

Social Endeavor

One of our clients asked me if he can conduct a people search of persons in a specific locality which are either bankrupt or are deep in debt. Curiousity got the better of me at that time, so instead of immediately answering in the affirmative, I first asked him why.

He smiled before answering my question. Maybe he thought that the person he hired to conduct background checks for him was too nosy. He told me candidly about his plan to put up a cooperative where residents/members could borrow money from it at very low interest rates. However, they would be required to patronize the products and services of the cooperative and its members.

I believe my client means well. I told him that we’ll try to help him in his endeavor. I even gave him the URL (http://recordssitereviews.com/recommends/webinvestigator/people) of the Web site which would allow him to look for people who are in debt. I hope that he succeeds in his planned social venture.

Bend it Like Beckham

Despite the fact that soccer has already been around for more than a century, it’s still a budding sport here in the United States. It’s the most popular sport in the world, but ironically, it’s one of the least known or played in America.

Fortunately, the last two FIFA World Cups and our own Major League Soccer are slowly capturing the hearts of many Americans. The word “football” is gradually being returned or referred to the sport to which it originally described. Many parks have already installed goal posts in their fields.

I bet you only know two or three football stars, and one of them is certainly David Beckham. If you’re a football fan and living in LA, you won’t have to travel all the way to Spain just to see the soccer legend bend the ball. I guess everybody knows by now that he’ll be playing in the MLS starting next season.

I hope that the league’s most expensive acquisition would provide a spark in the flickering future of soccer in the United States. I guess it already has. Reports say that LA Galaxy season tickets have already been sold out. David Beckham’s name has been the most searched or typed in any search engine on the Internet after the announcement of the deal was made. Soccer is indeed alive and kicking here in America!

Futile Search?

Summer is still several months away, but some of us in the office are already daydreaming of crossing the pacific for a tropical vacation.

Jane and her husband are planning to go to the Philippines. None of us have been there yet, but we’ve heard that the beaches there are excellent. Thailand is also on our list for the same reason. If you have no idea how breathtaking that country’s waters are, try watching Leonardo De Caprio’s “The Beach.” The movie was shot entirely in Phuket, Thailand.

We’re also thinking of hopping to Vietnam. Although there’s nothing much to see in that country, some of our acquaintances who have already been there said that many popular designer clothes and bags are made there and are sold at just a tenth of their $U.S. price.

There are Americans who go to Vietnam for a different reason, though. Many Vietnam War veterans still return to that country in search for fallen comrades who are reportedly still alive and living among the locals in the mountains. I don’t want to be skeptical, but I think the prospects of their people search in Vietnam are very slim.

Name Game

Child: Mom, why is my name Martha?
Mom: (Not really sure) Well, your name was kind of famous during the year that you
were born.

Child: Really? So who was I named after?
Mom: Uhmm…why don’t you just ask your dad, honey.

Hmmm something tells me that Martha would be getting the same answer from her dad :)

How many times have your child asked you that question already? Most parents have a ready answer, of course. However, if you forgot who your child was named after, then I suggest that you conduct a quick people search on the Internet for that person.

The procedure is quite simple, actually. All you have to do is type your child’s name in the search engine. It will then list the popular people bearing his name. If you named your child after an icon but forgot who he is, chances are that you’ll be able to see his name on the search results.

Varying Treatments

Are you familiar with the Devlin case? I’m sure you are. Everybody in America knows about it.

In case you haven’t read the papers lately or have dozed off early before the evening news could effectively occupy a regular and permanent fixture in your late night viewing habits or schedule, this case is about the abduction of Shawn Hornbeck and Ben Ownby by Michael Devlin.

Of course, we all know that both boys have already been found and rescued after conducting a frantic people search on them. Shawn Hornbeck’s ordeal was more tragic since he spent 4 years with Devlin.

It is not surprising then, that Hornbeck is getting more attention than Ben Ownby or Mitchell Hults, the one who gave the tip to the police. Ownby’s parents don’t seem to object to the imbalance. On the contrary, they even welcome a long respite from reporters.

A Long Text Message

One of the things that I would want to do before I die is write a novel. I made an overt act towards the realization of this dream a year ago, but I only ended up with 4 measly pages. I practically gave up on it after that brief and futile attempt.

Just recently, I came across a news article featuring a novel made mostly out of mobile phone text messages. I only read a few pages of it, but it was enough to whet my curiousity. A friend of mine said that he has a copy of the book. He’ll lend it to me next week after he finishes reading it.

I was meaning to do a people search on the author to know more about him, but I forgot his name. I guess it’s easy to search for his name, though. I’m sure I’ll hit the jackpot right away when I type in “text message novel” on Google or Yahoo!

Broadcast Yourself

Who would’ve thought that You Tube’s success would be phenomenal? Many were skeptical that it would survive for a month when it first launched. Needless to say, they were dead wrong.

People all over the world have poured millions of videos of themselves or of their friends. A good number of the entries are not that interesting. However, there are posts which could even merit a spot in primetime television. The cast of the videos are just your ordinary Joes and Janes, but that doesn’t mean that their lives or faces are not as interesting as Brad Pitt or Paris Hilton’s.

I won’t be surprised if a few Hollywood producers are browsing through You Tube’s collection for new talents. Even though the people behind the videos are not expecting any offers for their candid performance and have not posted any bio data form in their You Tube space, I’m sure Hollywood scouts could easily track them down through a simple people search on the Internet.

The Dreaded "P"

An old friend of mine from Connecticut recently visited New York along with his family. Many of our common friends didn’t know that he was here. I only chanced upon them at a convenience store near our village.

I jokingly asked him if he owed somebody here in New York. We have many common friends here in Manhattan, that’s why I was kind of surprised that he didn’t tell anybody that he was coming to town for a short vacation.

Eric really lost weight since the last time I saw him. I thought that he has been working out, but his wife told me that he’s on a very strict no-meat diet. They’re trying the “diet” approach for his psoriasis.

I guess the no-meat diet is working. His arms are already clear of red spots. I remember 5 years ago when he was too shy to come to a party because his psoriasis had flared up. There were very few medicine or remedies for his skin disease back then. I wasn’t into public records yet in 2002, but I already tried conducting a people search on the Internet for persons who are also suffering from the problem. I just thought that they might have an idea on how to effectively get rid of psoriasis.

Hope you had a good time here in New York, Eric :)

Keep Looking

I’m sure you’ve already heard the news about the amazing discovery/rescue of two kidnapped boys in Missouri.

Shawn Hornbeck has been declared missing since 2002. He was still 11 when he was kidnapped. He is now midway through his teenage life.

I’m not sure if his stepfather, Craig Akers, had already conceded defeat a few months or years after Hornbeck was declared missing. I’m sure that he had spent years conducting an extensive people search on his stepson, asking relatives and strangers if they’ve seen him or heard from him.

Many are wondering as to why Hornbeck was only found or discovered after 4 years of searching. Michael Devlin, the suspected kidnapper, did not exactly hide the boy from the public. In fact, his neighbors even thought that Hornbeck was his son.

I know that there are hundreds of cases like this that haven’t been solved yet. Let’s pray that the Hornbeck case would inspire authorities not to give up on their search for missing persons.

Extra Time

My business trip to Vancouver has been moved to the first week of February. I was quite disappointed when my boss told me the news. I put in extra hours last week just to compensate for the time that I’ll be losing next week because of the trip.

My Canadian counterpart will be delivering a report on people search, while I’m tasked to discuss about the new developments in online court record retrieval. Honestly, I haven’t finished my report yet. In fact, my Powerpoint presentation is still all messed up.

I hope that there will be an increased awareness in the availability of people search and court records retrieval services on the Internet after the meeting. Many people are still unaware that they could conduct a thorough people search without having to hire the services of a private investigator.

I hope that my trip won’t be moved to a later date again. My parents are planning a few activities in March. Skipping family gatherings is a mortal sin for my parents. My calendar for March really has to be clean then.

Getting the Facts Right

Some of the guys at my department had been lobbying for people search tasks during the past few days. Apparently, they’ve read my previous post where I said that searching for people over the Internet is one of the easiest, if not the most effortless assignment, that any staff in our department could have.

Jason gave me a playful punch on the arm when he told me that his new people search assignment robbed him a few snores. Jack even jokingly accused me of deceiving them in asking for people search duties.

First of all, I didn’t know that the guys at our department read my blog. Second, they’ve jumbled some of the details of the persons that they were looking for. Of course, the consequence of information mismanagement or inaccuracy in people search is quite disastrous. Both guys got conflicting matches.

I told them to make sure that the information that they have on each person is correct. Paul tried processing one file, and he finished it in just an hour.

As Easy As Watching Kobe Dunk

It’s been a while since I’ve done a people search for a client. The last one that I did was even a charity case since it was for a friend who wanted to know where his aunt was. They were planning to have a big family reunion on New Year’s Day and his parents asked him to call up as many relatives as possible.

I guess nobody needs to hire somebody to look for anyone nowadays. Online search services have made this task very easy. I surmise that private investigators are experiencing a client drought because of this. But, then again, maybe not. While many of our clients know how to conduct a people search or background check online, they don’t have the time to do so. Some don’t have the patience to go through the results, especially if the search program produces a number of matches.

I hope that I’ll get some people search tasks this year. It’s one of the easiest assignments in our department. I could even watch a Lakers game while doing it.

Starting Strong

Office absences are rampant during the first few days of the year, especially when the second or third day of the year falls on a Thursday or Friday. Our boss has already warned us about this. He jokingly said that he’ll immediately conduct a people search on each absentee and send them his post holiday greetings with a termination letter attached with it. Of course, everybody laughed, albeit uncomfortably.

My boss has effectively preempted my plan to fake a flu in order to take the rest of the week off. Well, that plan has been shelved even before he made the announcement since a client of ours called me up a few days ago and asked if we could discuss some things tomorrow over lunch.

I guess it’s not good to start the year slow. Some say that our activities or disposition on the first day of the year will dictate how we think and act for the rest of the year. If that’s true, then I’d better start in a very upbeat mood.