Wesley's Tool-Box

On the early afternoon of September 19, 2014, the first launch day of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, I was catching a plane to Fukuoka, Japan. All because those phones wouldn't officially launch for another month or more in Korea.

So why Japan? It used to be that Japanese iPhones were locked to the local carriers, but SIM-free version is now offered after some changes to the telecom policy. Also, pre-ordering in Japan doesn't require a national ID like what Hong Kong asks. Lastly, it's right next to Korea. And so, with my pre-order successful on the afternoon of September 12, all I needed to do left was picking it up at the store.


The airplane left sunny Incheon, flew for about an hour, and landed on rainy Fukuoka. I forgot to bring an umbrella, so I got one at a convenience store eventually. It had been more than 6 years since I set foot there.

Continuing with the volunteering efforts, the KPX employees moved to Tagbilaran city on the island of Bohol. This area had an orphanage called Sunshine Home, which was managed by the local Catholic Church.

Along with presenting school supplies, we had some fun with the kids. After introducing each other, we blew balloons to the kids, while the kids responded with the dance routines they learned beforehand. Some volunteers also did some laundry.


For outside activity, two giant rubber balls about 1m in diameter needed to be inflated. All we had was a small foot pump about the size of a palm of a hand, though. I furiously stepped on the pump for about 20 minutes continuously to fill one ball with air. I also filled another one about half way.


Kids absolutely loved the balls. They rolled it across the field, competing to see who got to the goal fastest. It was so fulfilling to see that we could give some happiness to the kids.

The employees of KPX that came to the Philippines for the volunteering work visited St. Martha Elementary School located in Batia, Bocaue, Bulacan today. To start, various useful gifts were given to the school kids, then we got into giving some helping hands.


The volunteers arrived just before the lunch time, so the next task was to provide lunch to the hungry kids. Today's menu was steamed rice and chicken stew and the volunteers barely kept up with the flow of children lining up.

After everyone got their share, we got to play with the school kids. Balloons were blown and given out. Then some boys wanted to play basketball, so a nice 4-on-4 street basketball match was held as well. All in all, everyone was happy to take part in the experience.