unedited ramblings

Kudang-dang

2011-07-26T16:33:00.000-07:00

Tita Chit with H cooking on my 21st birthday.

Some people call them friends, some people call them comrades, I like to call them family. No matter how feudal that sounds.

I've always had a BIG family. Nanay has always been welcoming to comrades needing a home so a lot of them come to her - and I mean a lot! It is not your usual afternoon visit. Some of them actually lived with us for some time. Leaving, if necessary, for work then coming back to us once again if they're on "vacation." Over the years I have come to love these people as family.

Now, as a kid, it was okay. I had a lot of people to talk to, to play with, but as I grew older I can't deny that it was hard. You have almost no privacy, people just pop out of nowhere (honestly) and the house is always a mess. Being poor and all, I did not have the luxury of having my own private room so every time we have visitors the house would always be too crowded for a decent sleep.

Despite all that, however, I learned to live with it, accept it and eventually embraced it. They are family after all. :)

One of these people was Tita Chit. Tita Chit was my godmother. She did not exactly buy me lots of gifts. In fact, in the 22 years that we've known each other, she has given me exactly 4 gifts. Hahaha! :D The 1st one was a teddy bear on my 1st birthday (I still have the bear), a jewellery box on my 13th birthday, a see-through underwear (oh yeah) on Christmas of 2008 and, lastly, a Looney Tunes towel on my debut.

Tita Chit was many things to many people and I know you have heard many versions of what she's like. Since I was not given a privilege to speak on her "parangal" (hehe), I decided to write what she is to me instead.

This is not a romanticized version of my outlook. I want to be as honest as possible (not entirely because as some people know, some things are considered kompart).

Tita Chit is a great cook. She's always present in family occasions and she and Nanay are always found in the kitchen cooking away. You can even say that she's a good flower arranger since every time someone dies or gets married in the family (bad combination), she and Chano always helps out in arranging the flowers. In short she always helps out.

In my case, she helped me make campaign materials when I ran for our council on my 1st year in high school (she was also there cheering me up when I lost), she helped me with school projects especially in home economics when it involved sewing (Nanay is hopeless in these kind of things), she helped in taking care of me when Nanay and Tatay was not around.

Tita Chit was also there for the JRG when it first started. She cooked us breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner and sometimes on the rare (kuno) occasions that we were allowed to drink, pulutan. She helped in the EDs, gave advises etc.

There was a time however when Tita Chit and I had a rocky relationship especially on my teenage years. She always said that I was being bitchy 99.9% of the time and that I am lazy as hell. At the time, we lived in the same compound, she would constantly nag me about my bitchiness and laziness and fights between us were not pretty.

Being blunt was one of Tita Chit's many talents. She never beats around the bush, she never uses semantics and she does not sugar coat things. When you're ugly, she says so and more, much much more. When you're arrogant, she put you in your place, sometimes lower. This is why along with friends she also made many enemies. Hehehe... This did not bother Tita Chit one bit. Why should it? She is after all a woman who has faced many storms in her life.

She was infamous for her satire and sometimes insulting humour. She is often quoted by friends especially during inuman sessions. She is well known for the crazy stunts she has pulled over the years, in and out of the organization. But most all, she is known for being a good comrade, a loving family member and a dedicated cadre.

It was obvious that she wanted it known that she loved the revolution very much. It was apparent on her last requests before she died. She wanted to last 4 more years. She wanted to witness something that a lot of us have been waiting for in a long time, so she fought her disease and she fought very hard. However, finances were low already and she herself decided to stop the chemo treatment until finally she decided to let go and rest.

Tita, you did not make it to my wedding. I'm sorry I did not get married right away; I promise I will dedicate a toast to you during the reception. ^_^ Boray is with us now, sometimes she's with Tita Nats. She is very much like you, hard-headed and stubborn but don't worry we love her all the same. Nanay is teaching her how to cook; she seems to have the knack for it. She is in good hands.

We will show her the path less travelled and if she chooses to trek it, we will be there alongside her. And Tita- a clench fist salute.

Politika kag iban pa. Hiligaynish version.

2011-07-25T17:48:00.000-07:00

Madamu ako sang abyan nga lain ang paglantawan sa politika kumpara sa akon. Kung kis-a gina bais ko man sila ugaling may ara gid sang panahon nga gina likawan ko na.

Una, madamu sa ila ang gaka-badtrip samtang ga ba-is kag ikaduwa, pagtapos sang ba-is akig na. Ang ending nagadamu lang ang akon kontra, sa sulod man Unibersidad (sang una) sa gwa man, ukon sa cyber nga kalibutan.

Daw kanami na lang nga pabay-an sila. Para wala na away, para wala na gamo. Ugaling ang tudlo sa akon sang una, kung naga pati ako nga sala ang ila paglantawan dapat ipa-intyende ko sila. Responsibilidad ko na kuno. Haaay.. ;)

Teh, ari na naman ko liwat. Ma-wakal na naman angot sa politika biskan bal-an ko pagkatapos sini, i-chismis na naman ako kag suya-an (like they did in college).

SA PAG PUNA KAY NOYNOY

Damu ang naga-hambal nga dapat untatan ta na ang pag puna kay Pnoy. Gaan ta man sya kuno sang chansa. Tawo lang man na sya nga naga sala kung kis-a. Instead nga puna-on ta sya, mag tinguha na lang kuno kita nga mapa-maayu ang atun kabuhi para maka bulig kita sa atun pungsod. Sugudan ta kuno ang pag bag-o sa atun mga kaugalingon.

Una, gusto ko lang i-point out nga naga gwa ang mga puna (criticisms - para sa mga konyo da) bangud indi maayu ang performance sang gobyerno. Not the other way around. Kung matu-od sila nga naga serbisyo sa pumuluyo dapat maka deliver sila sang maayu nga performance whether or not gina puna sila. Isa pa, kung maayu ang ila nga performance in the first place, wala sang mga puna nga maga tuhaw halin sa masa.

Ika-duwa, indi mo pwede pag i-separar ang imu kaugalingon sa sosyudad (society - mga konyo: listen - Hiligaynon 101). Indi pwede nga mag uswag ang aton indibidwal nga kabuhi samtang balingag japon ang sistema. Biskan anu ka baka-baka trabaho sang isa ka tawu kung sa taga hulag nya gina kawatan sya sang gobyerno (through taxation) kag sa taga masakit nya kag sang iya pamilya wala sang proper health care system, kag biskan ipa-eskwela nya ang iya bata manubo ang quality sang edukasyon, kag bisan 10 ka tuig na sya sa iya kompanya wala ga-taas iya sweldo samtang naga sige taas ang mga balaklon - wala pakadtu-an ang pagbag-o sa atun kaugalingon unless you can't see the bigger picture.

Kung si Kyut ang imu Nanay, you are bound to pick up a thing or two when it comes to politics and economics. Sa akon nga nabal-an biskan, mga ekonomista (dire kag sa iban nga pungsod) mismo naghambal nga ang naga govern sang ekonomiya sang isa ka pungsod sa subong amu ang superstructure, i. e. politika kag kultura. Sa idalum sang politika ara ang mga layi. Sa idalum sang kultura ara ang medya, simbahan kag eskwelahan.

Madamu na nga mga pagtu-on ang naghambal nga halin pa 19th century indi na ekonomiya lang ang naga kontrol sang pag uswag sang isa ka pungsod. Indi na resorsa (land and labor force) ang determining factor kung maga uswag ka ukon indi. Kung lantawon mo, ang Africa, Latin America kag Asian countries ang pinaka manggaranun pag-abot sa resorsa kag labor force pero sa subong sila ang mga pinaka-imol. Ini bangud kontrolado sila sang gina tawag nga superstructure.

EHEMPLO: Biskan may pila ka ka-ektarya nga tambok nga duta kag pila ka gatos nga mapisan nga mangunguma, kung indi mo ini pwede umahan bangud hambal sang gobyerno ubrahun ina golf course sang isa ka tarpolano, anu man bi ma-ubra mo? Imol na imu mangunguma, manubo pa imu agrikultura. Pyerde na ang tawo, pyerde pa ang pungsod. Bintaha kay tarpolano, may "cut" ang politiko. o_O

Ang iban, mahambal gid na: "Teh, kay wala sila bi titulo mo." EXACTLY! Sin-o naga ubra sang mga titulo in the first place haw? Mangkuton ta mga mangunguma sang Hacienda Luisita? I rest my case.

Sa mga uber alam ko nga mga abyan, para nga makita nyo ang other side sang argument when it comes to economics, read books on top sang mga libro nga gina prescribe sang inyu mga eskwelahan. As I've said before, dala ang eskwelahan sang superstructure nga naga kahon sang ideya sang tawu sa kung paanu gamitun ang iya ekonomiya. Teh, para indi ka ma-kahon, read books from outside the box like the ones written by Marx, Engels, Lenin, Bakunin, McLellan etc..

Sa matuod, indi mo na kinanlan sang bonggang bonggang bungabilya nga tun-anay para ma-inchindihan ang economic status sang Pinas. All you have to do is look around you. Makita mo nga naga laba ang pila sa mga Agencies for work abroad, nagadamo ang unemployed (naka-eskwela kag nagapangita gihapon trabaho), kag damo gid ang underemployed (mataas tinapusan, mediocre ang trabaho kag sweldo). All you have to do is take a few steps back and see nga mas madamo gid ang naga-imol kumpara sa pipila nga manggaranon.

Bottomline, kung may naga-puna man kay NoyNoy, indi ni bangud kay trip trip lang nila. Indi ini tungod kay bored lang sila and they just want something to do to burn their time. Ini bangud kay, personally, nabatyagan nila ang krisis; bangud makita nila ang ila pamilya nga naga-agunto adlaw-adlaw; bangud ini kay nakita nila nga bisan ano nila ka-baka-baka, wala naga-uswag ang ila sitwasyon; bangud ini kay akig-akig na sila sa sistema - bangud panahon na gid man para sukton natun ang gobyerno.

JUAN TAMAD

Madamo man ako sang kilala nga naga-hambal nga may mga imol bangud tamad kuno ang mga Pinoy. May mga squatters daw kay wala gid sila naga tinguha mag-ubra. May mga street children kay wala sila ga-tinguha mag eskwela. May mga naga pangalimos kay inom kag drugs lang ila nabal-an. Para sa akon indi gid ini matuod.

Ang mga kilala ko nga mangunguma sa Igbaras, mga imol man. Pero sa akon nga nakita, indi sila pwede tawgon nga matamad. Alas-kwatro pa lang ma bangon na sila para magtig-ang (wala sud-an, asin lang kag langgaw). Ang mga bata, malakat pa sang layu pakadto eskwelahan. Ang mga tigulang, malakat man layu pakadto sa ila gina umahan. Wala na na panyaga. Para sa panyapon, mga bata na na ang madigamo kay wala pa na kapuli ang mga ginikanan. Sige pa ang panguma. Mapuli sila mga alas-7 sang gab-i. Manyapon kag mag tulog. Sige sige na, wala day-off. Amu ni ang tamad para sa inyu?

Ang mga kilala ko nga kargador nga taga North Baluarte, indi man matamad. Mayorya sa ila mga bata pa. Kung ga eskwela sila mga 3rd year ukon 4th year high school na. Pero wala sila pamlete, pamabayad sa eskwelahan, pamabakal gamit pang eskwela kag iban pa. Amu na nag ubra na lang sila. Mabudlay maging kargador, sigurado ko mas mabudlay pa sa ubra sa call center ukon banko. Pero nga-a mas imol sila? Nga-a mas nubo ila sweldo? Bangud bala tamad sila?

Ang mga trysikad driver ko nga nakilala kag na-suki sa Mohon, sigurado ko mga imol man. Pero nakita ko man sila, alas-6 pa lang ga-byahe na. Untat sila byahe mga alas-10. Teh, nga-a wala sila iPhone haw? Mapisan man sila. Mas pisan pa kay Pnoy, nga-a indi sila ya kabakal Porsche haw? Nga-a asta subong sikad lang japon ila gina-drayb?

Logic and common sense na lang. Sin-o gusto mangin imol haw? Kung Nanay ka, gusto mo man na pakan-on bata mo sa Jollibee biskan ka-isa lang sa isa ka bulan. Kung Tatay ka, gusto mo man patindugan sang balay ang pamilya mo nga indi puno sang tanga (cockroach - konyos alert!) kag naga tulo ang atop. Hello? Sin-o nami-an mag istar sa squatters man? Sin-o ang gusto mag sikad bilog nga adlaw para sa kita nga Php1oo sometimes less?

Tanan ni sila, gusto man sang maayu nga pangabuhi. Tanan ni sila naga tinguha para sa ila pamilya. Tanan ni sila maka-relate sa kanta ni Bruno Mars nga "I wanna be a billionaire". Pila ka milyon nga imol, mapati ka nga 90% sini bangud tamad lang sila?

Ako, gusto ko man pahampangon si Ilaya sa Little Martians. Gusto ko man sya tani palantawun sang Kung Fu Panda 2. Gusto ko sya tani dal-on sa Manila para palantawun sang Varekai. Wala ko ni tanan na-ubra, indi bangud tamad ako! Indi ako matamad! Haluson na ko gani maka-paligo sang maayu bangud sa naga salalampaw nga raket para sa pamilya ko!

Bilang isa ka imol, nagaka insulto gid ko kung may naga suya sa mga tawu pareho sa akon. Tapos hambalon nga tamad kami. Samtang ang mga tawu nga naga hambal sini, MAPISAN nga naga pungko sa isa ka air-conditioned room clicking away on his/her computer and whatnot.

MGA NEGA NGA TIBAK

May mga naga hambal nga gaan ta kuno sang chansa si Pnoy. Isa pa lang gani ka tuig. Indi madasig ang pagbag-o. Indi basta basta ang pag-uswag sang isa ka pungsod. Nami man ang iya nga SONA. Ga-i sya sang chansa nga ubrahun ang iya mga gin promisa. Mangin positibo kita.

Sa EJK nga gina tawag ukon Extra Judicial Killings or to put in bluntly: PAGPATAY SA MGA AKTIBISTA, wala sang gin hambal nga specific actions si Pnoy. Now, wala ko ya plano nga gaan si Pnoy sang chansa mag do nothing about EJK.

Si Ka Ine/Gen ukon Fernando Baldomero isa ka personal friend sang pamilya ko and I was there when they first heard the news. Nakita ko sang gin kup-an ni Nanay si Neneng kag nag dungan hibi. Now, indi ako amu na ka-lapit kay Ine but malapit ako sa iya mga bata kag masubo para sa akon nga nadula-an sang Tatay si Ernan, Fernan kag Greg.

Isa pa lang ka tuig? ISA NA KA TUIG! Lawig na na. Kung inyu Tatay, Tiyo ukon abyan ang gin patay, would you still say the same thing? Nga gaan japon sang chansa si Pnoy? Especially since ang mayor nga suspek mga militar sa idalum sang gobyerno ni Pnoy. Let us wait some more while killers roam our streets? Simple lang ang sabat da: INDI! Pamilya kag mga abyan ko aktibista, I am not going to sit idly by while my family and friends could be their next target.

Ang mga tibak ukon aktibista indi puros negatibo lang ang makita. The fact nga mahilig sila mag rally sa dalan is enough proof of that. Nagapati sila nga may pakadtu-an pa ang Pinas. Gapati sila nga dapat pamaayuhon ang kabuhi sang mga imol sa syudad. Gusto nila maka eskwela ang mga kabataan para mas manami ang ila mga puturo. Kung negatibo ang ila nga panan-awan sa kabuhi, wala na sila dapat naga himakas (struggle).

Ang mga tibak abi mga maalam (haba ng hair!), mas maka kita sila sang bigger picture nga gina tawag. Mas malapad ang range sang topiko sang mga libro ang gina basa nila, mas kritikal kag mas analitikal sa sosyudad kag sa politika. Mas madamu sila sang makita. Kung ikaw man abi, may makita ka nga sala, hipos-hipos ka lang? Syempre indi, dapat ipabalo mo sa iban. Responsibilidad mo na di bala?

Pamati-i bala ang ila gina singgit. A bigger budget for social services, wage hike for workers, roll back sang oil prices etc.. Sala bala ang mga ini? Makapala-in bala ini sa mga kabuhi sang tawo? Indi man, di bala?

Hambal sang iban, wala pulos ang pag rally. Sala man ina. Kabalo kamu kung pila ka beses gin roll back ang oil prices bangud sa strike kag pag-lobby sang mga drivers? If it weren't for them ang plete subong maga range sa Php12-15 sa taga 4 ka kilometro. Ang 13th month pay, ang night differential and other benefits sang mga trabahador now, feeling nyo mga politiko na nag make into reality? Sus! Para sa mga estudyante sang CM, you think may kolehiyo kamu now if it weren't for countless tibaks in the past protesting against using the land to build a bloody hotel? May ara kamu council, right for organizations like fraternities and the like, pila ka estudyante sang Martial Law ang pinatay para makuha nyo ang mga kinamatarung nga na. Sa mga kababaihan, grabe ang pag baka-baka sang mga organisasyon like Gabriela sa organizing and lobbying para mas ma uphold ang women's rights and welfare.

Samtang may mga isyu kag samtang balingag ang sistema, dapat sige ang protesta.

WALA KAG TU-O

Biskan ano man nga bagay may ara gid na sang duwa ka side sang story. Kampante gid ako nga nakita ko ang two sides of the coin. Sa wala nga bahin, madamu ako sang abyan nga tibak, pamilya nga tibak kag Tiya nga NPA (Mary Gene "Ka Tingting" Dumaplin). Sa tu-o nga bahin, Lolo, Tiyo kag Tiya ko ara sa military. Isa ko ka Tiya ara sa lokal nga gobyerno kag isa ko ka Tiyo politikal nga adviser sang isa ka politikal nga party sang una. Madamu man ako sang abyan halin sa eskwelehan nga wala naga suporta sa aktibismo. Ang akon nga mga panindugan kag mga opinyon sa subong, indi lang sa mga leftist nag halin. I talk to rightists too.

Wala ako naga expektar nga mag diretso kamu sa dalan kag mag rally (although manami gid ina tani). Ang akon lang gina pangayu nga tani antis kamu mag husga, imbistiga kamu anay.

Istorya man kamu sa mga tibak instead nga tsismisun nyo lang sila nga tsismisun. Better yet, upod man kamu sa mga aktibidad nila para aktwal nyo nga makita ang ila mga gina pang ubra.

Lastly, ako mismo personal nga naga volunteer, ako mismo maga tour sa inyu. Ipa kilala ta kamu sa mga tibak nga kilala ko. Ipa kilala ta kamu sa mga basurero nga abyan ko halin sa Mandurriao dumpsite, mga kargador halin sa North Baluarte kag mga mangingisda sa Sooc. Kung kaya nyo mag tukad sa bukid, ipa kilala ta kamu sa mga mangunguma sa Igbaras. Sus, biskan sa Miag-ao lang. Pa-istaron ta kamu sa balay ni Henden.

Para ma-inchindihan nyo nga-a may kaimulon. Anu ang gina tawag nga krisis. Paano batyagon ang gutom. Nga-a naga himakas sila. Para ma inchindihan nyo, NGA-A MAY MGA AKTIBISTA.

Update

2011-04-03T20:42:00.000-07:00

Oh hello blog, how have you been? :)

I've been so busy with work and stuff that I didn't really have any free time to write let alone think about what to write. However, my work hours have been reduced so I'm back to blogging. Yay! :) Sadly, this also means less salary for me so I have been thinking about monetizing my blog. Hey, maybe I can actually make a decent living out of blogging. You'll never know, right?

My blog needs lots of updating so I'll be working on it starting today. I'm hoping I can get more followers and readers so that the monetizing thing can actually work. I'm still trying to figure that one out since I'm not exactly sure what to do or how to get started.

Other than that, I'm also thinking of doing some "projects" since that seems to be a trend in the blogging world these days. However, I can't seem to think of any "cool projects" to work with. If you do, drop them in my comment box. If they're do-able, well - I'd do them! Haha! :D

What else? I'll also be adding some pictures in my gallery tab. My previous pictures received some good reviews so I figured I'd add some more. :)

Also, SUMMER IS BACK! So, I'm really hoping I can get lots of articles, pictures, videos, movie reviews or song suggestions about my all-time favorite season, up here in my blog!

That's all for now. Cheers to all!! ^_^

To my favorite revolutionary

2010-09-29T19:09:00.000-07:00

Today marks Toto's 12th year death anniversary and I want to tell her story. Our story.

When Toto died I was in 4th grade and a lot of statements were given to the press from our family. However, since we were young (my cousins and I) our version was not known. Now, that I am all grown up and before I am all too old, I want to share my version of the events.

It was September of 1998, I just got home from school and Nanay said that Toto was injured in an ambush by the 12th Infantry Batallion of the Philippine Army. As a kid, I did not react. I do not remember feeling any fear nor sadness. For me, this is normal. Having revolutionaries as family members, it's only normal that once in a while one of them will get shot, caught, imprisoned or hunted down. But it never crossed my mind that one of them will die, I know I have been oriented many times that this can happen, again though, I was a kid and I believed in happily ever afters.

Back then I believed that we will win the revolution in a few years time, without that much drama and me and my family can live in bliss. I do not read Marx and Mao back then so my theories were a little hazy. :)

We gathered supplies - medicine, food, clothing, anything that we can send to Toto for a faster recovery. We know that Toto will not be able to come home right away. We know that it was too dangerous and that she has to stay in the mountains until it is safe to come home and maybe get proper medical treatment. We wrote her letters, telling her that we love her and that we are here for her and that she should stay strong, for us, for the people.

A few days later, it was late at night or early morning. Nanay Jo and Tatay Willy visited our house, I was already asleep and was too groggy to wake up and greet them properly. Then I heard my Nanay wail, like a wounded animal. The sound was so loud and so horrific that I woke up. I saw Nanay on the floor sobbing, I asked Tatay what was wrong and he said: "Nothing, go back to sleep."

The next day when I woke up Nanay was gone. Tatay said she went to Antique, Tatay said she went there to get Toto, to bring her home. He said Toto is gone. I did not react.

Everything was a blur after that. It was all over the news, from newspapers to radio shows to local television, it was mad. Black propaganda was used to taint the image of the New People's Army, lies were made to taint the image of my Aunt, statements were released, different versions of the encounter was blaring out of the radio, a personal letter from Joma was delivered, death threats towards the media... and in the middle of all of these, we waited patiently for Toto to come home.

My family was busy arranging everything so that when Toto arrives, everything would be ready. One night, everyone gathered at St. Therese, a truck pulled up in front. I saw Nanay, and for the first time since the day I found out that Toto has been shot, I felt pain mixed with sadness. I realized that I'll never see Toto again. The pain was excruciating, and I ran to the nearest person for comfort - Tita Chit. She saw me crying, hugged me tight, told me it's okay and cried along with me.

When Toto arrived she was already decomposing and Nanay said she didn't have a face anymore. After she died, she was buried by her lover. (Tito, we will always be grateful for what you did) She needed to be buried because the AFP was looking for her/her body. They made sure that the area was surrounded so that no-one can go to the city without being seen. They questioned the people living in the neighboring Barangays. They wanted my Aunt's corpse but comrades and the masses protected her.

We had a short close-casket wake. We needed to bury her right away. Toto's body was wrapped in a white cloth. Then, her upper part was dressed in a red camisa tsino and her lower part was covered by a malong. A parangal was held. Comrades offered songs, a painting, poems, dances, a carved wooden clench fist, flowers, candles, solidarity messages and other types of support. 3 red flags decorated my Aunt's wake.

On her burial day, to honor her, her coffin, draped in red was raised above the shoulders and was marched from the church to the cemetery. She was carried by comrades. We all wore red camisa tsinos and we all marched. At the cemetery, someone yelled: "Si Toto napatay sa lupok, Si Toto pasidunggan sang lupok." Guns came out of nowhere, shots were fired and her tomb was sealed.

Toto is now a martyr.

P.S.

Will write another entry, this time, my memories of her, alive. :)

September Madness

2010-09-29T18:19:00.000-07:00

It is the end of the first Ber Month and sadly I have written only five entries. I wanted to write more but unfortunately for me, September was absolutely hectic. So, I am writing this entry as an update and as tribute to September.

First of all, I am now officially 22 years old. So yeah, thanks for that, I guess. (Not exactly sure) I had a very peaceful birthday. There was no celebration and there were no food, my family weren't here, my boyfriend had school activities, I was flat broke... the list goes on and on and on... Haha!! :D

But I was happy and certain things happened that made up for my lousy birthday. One is that, I had so many birthday greetings. (Thank God for Facebook... hehe!) There were private messages, chat messages, wall postings, text messages and calls. It made me all fluffy inside. Awwww.. :) Next is that my Sister once again made it to the TOP TEN which is no lousy feat since she's attending SPED. I was able to receive presents, yay!! :)) Lastly, I have a new job. A regular one so once again - yay!! :))

September also gave way to a lot of activities, activities that I was able to attend. So, it gave me a chance to hang-out with friends and once again bond with family. I have been cooped up for far too long and I'm happy and glad that I'm once again back on my feet. There are still adjustments to be made and admittedly there are still a lot of screw ups but I'm positive, things will work out oh so fine. :)

I was right on when I said that September was a month to look forward to and now it has come to an end. So, here's to you oh so faithful month! Cheers! May next year be more fruitful! :D

literature

2010-09-04T11:12:00.000-07:00

When I wrote my last entry, I said I'll make another post about books. So, here I am making a new one and this time I'll be talking about literature. Yay! :)

I love books, ever since I was child. I'm not into deep reading though. I prefer light and uncomplicated books. So I guess most people would think that my list is shallow but what the hell, to each his own, people! Somebody stop me! Haha! :D

So let's start off with the award-winning ones. Everybody reads them, I actually think that award-winning books are pretty mainstream. Personally, I love 100 Years of Solitude, The Color Purple, and The Good Earth. Marquez's magical realism is genius, there's no other way to put it. I can't really describe it but the way it was written was just plain perfect. Walker's journal-ish book was out of the box and for me one of a kind. I haven't read anything like it, before or after. Buck for me deserves some praise, she isn't Chinese after all. So, kudos for the emotion.

Now for the Classics. I don't read that much classics, mainly because I don't fully understand most of them. Hehe... :) But I do love the following: Sherlock Holmes (the complete volume 1 and 2), To Kill a Mockingbird, The Curious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Secret Garden and Little Prince. I read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde when I was 13 and I found it very entertaining. It's like a sci-fi movie in paper. Nyahaha! :D Sherlock was surprisingly fun and light. It's fast-paced and perfect for the young at heart. It's hard not to like Little Prince and Mockingbird since almost everyone can relate to it. Even my 6-year old sister loves Little Prince.

As for series, I like Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables and Winnie the Pooh. Oh yeah, there's a series about Pooh's life and a big chunk of my childhood was spent reading them. When Christopher Robin went to school and left Pooh, I actually cried. I read about Anne's life from the day she was adopted to the day of her first love. It was fun and I was attached to the series. I was so attached I got depressed when I read the final chapter of the last book, it didn't help that it was filled with adult sentiments about her childhood. [sigh] Who hasn't read Narnia and Potter? It's filled with magic and adventure, for a kid like me, they're hard to resist. :)

For books that I can't quite label, I have the following: The Stories of Eva Luna and The Woman Who Walked Into Doors. I both love them and I cried while reading the two. The Stories of Eva Luna was the first book I read by Allende and Roddy Doyle's novel was such an eye opener and at the same time depressing. o_o Oh and yeah, I also like An Interview with the Vampire. Rice's description towards blood is so romantic it made me nauseous. (meaning, it was THAT good)

For pocketbooks, I'm a big fan of Nancy Drew!! Yes, I think I've read about a hundred of them. Hehe... I can honestly say I read all Nancy Drew books from IBAM when I was in grade school. Until now I still read them whenever I get the chance.

For text/political books, I like Selected Works of Mao Tse Tsung Volume 1, Philippine Society and the Revolution, The Cartoon Guide to Genetics and that book about Jose Maria Sison's life, I can't remember the title. I like volume 1 because it's the lightest, literally and figuratively. It talks about the simplest issues and it's the thinnest out of the 5 volumes. (H says there's only 4 volumes but I have a 5th one, in hard bound so - *shrug*) PSR because well, I'm tibak. There's no other way to explain it. Joma's autobiography because I read it when I was skipping school and I was sort of happy that Joma got kicked out when he was in his 2nd year in high school.

When my Nanay got angry because of my absences, I would use Joma as a response right away - "Si Joma gani, galigoy man. He turned out alright!" I know, I know, pretty lame but you can't really blame me, blame puberty. Haha! :D The genetics book because it was hilarious! It was epic and I was very surprised to have enjoyed a science textbook.

What else? Ah, Filipino literature. I like Dekada 70 and MacArthur. I honestly believe Bob Ong deserves an award.

So, I guess that's about it. Listing every book I've ever read is impossible. I apologize if I didn't give much justice to the following literary pieces. I didn't want to sound like total douche by giving super deep insightful critiques. Besides, that was not the point of this whole entry. Lastly, I also read books by mainstream authors but I'm not a big fan of them so I didn't bother listing them here.

So, what do you guys think? Too shallow? Too deep? To bah... Let me know, drop your comments in my comment box! Thanks! :)

comedy

2010-09-03T09:11:00.000-07:00

I got this idea from a fellow blogger named Tyler Cowen. You can check out his blog by clicking here.

According to Tyler Cowen comedy is subjective and I agree with him. Our culture is so diverse that what's funny in Europe can actually be just plain 'ol sarcasm in America. Anyway, since I believe what I find funny might be mundane for others, like Cowen I will say this - this is not a recommendation but if you're feeling adventurous, go ahead and check them out.

Today, I will write about what's funny for me. May it be books, situations or tv series. So, let's begin...

First of all, I'm a big fan of sarcasm. I love satire and dry humor. I know, I should have lived in Britain instead of the Philippines. While I was growing up, most of my friends never did appreciate my humor or wit for that matter. I was labeled weird and a freak, a label that I eventually grew fond of and was eventually proud of. Funny how things work out because now, freaky is in! I am "in" baby! Haha! :D

When it comes to TV series, I like Two and a Half Men. It's quite famous and very mainstream. I love it because the lines are witty, it's not censored (bastos to the max!) and it's light. No deep-pyscho-philo-intellectual bs. I also find House and Supernatural funny. I know that they are not listed under comedy but I love the lines and the lines are what's important, right? The Nanny and The Thin Blue Line are classics. We also have good 'ol children shows. Animations (that are not for kids) are of course also funny. We have South Park and The Simpsons.

Movies are a little harder. I find Amelie and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy funny. Most will not agree but those movies made me laugh and all light inside. They're what you call feel-good movies. Animations of course made it to my list but listing them all would be a pain. I find light films funny, examples are: Only in New York, Dumb and Dumber, Old Dogs, Chicago, Rat Race and the like. However, for the life of me I do not like spoof movies. I find it dumb and just plain lame.

For TV shows that are not necessarily series, I like: The Soup and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Filipino shows are very hard to appreciate. Sometimes I just don't dig Filipino humor. [sigh] However, I love: Going Bulilit, Bubble Gang and Banana Split. Admittedly, I don't watch them often but when I do, I find it funny and well - passable.

For some reason, I don't find books funny. I tried to recall books that made me laugh and I can't remember any. I'll make another entry regarding books then maybe you can tell me if some of them were actually funny. I might have failed to see/appreciate it.

Comics on the other hand are fantastic here in the Philippines. I absolutely adore Pugad Baboy and Kiko Machine Komix! Haha! :D I believe no one can compare to those two. Hehe...

In the internet, I like youtubers' Michael Buckley of the What the Buck Show, Toby Turner of Tobuscus, Davedays and Nigahiga. I enjoy bloggers' like Jessica Zafra (now that I think about it, Twisted Series are funny!), Okrayero and The Professional Heckler.

Stand up comics are sometimes fun. I haven't seen an actual show by famous comedians but I have seen a local one and I didn't really enjoy it that much. Here in the Philippines I like stand up comics when they mimic politicians. I find it absolutely entertaining. ;p

So, what do you guys think? Tell me!! ^_^

My very own vampire.

2010-09-03T06:39:00.000-07:00

I just love the title. It's very catchy, isn't it? Hahaha... :) I hope this title might help spike up my site meter. [smirk]

Everyone seems to associate vampires to love ever since the Twilight Saga. When someone says vampire, Edward Cullen springs to mind. So, I am getting involved in the Twilight Frenzy, again in order to spike up my site meter.

I have my very own vampire. My own version of Edward Cullen and he's the love of my life. In today's entry I'm going to tell our story as best as I can and I don't care if I make someone barf in the process. [bleh]

My vampire's name is Henden but everybody calls him H. We met last April of 2004 and he started courting me June of the same year. Our relationship, like any other had a rocky start and I'm glad it did. We learned so much from our problems and those lessons made our relationship much much stronger. Anyway, enough with the cheesy stuff. I want this entry to be funny and hopefully entertaining. Haha! :D

So, here's a collection of our many experiences. Enjoy! ^_^

We used to go on regular dates. This is normal for baby relationships and like any normal couple we also watch movies. One time, we watched King Kong. It was such a lousy movie that a few minutes into it, H started a discussion about dinosaurs. He talked about possible theories on how the species became extinct and he talked about his favorite type of dinosaur. As I recall he likes raptors. I know, geeky right? Haha! :)

Henden is a dork, a geek and a nerd. In a bourgeoisie's eyes, he is uncool but in my eyes, he's HOT STUFF and no one can tell me otherwise. [smirk]

Geeky discussions from H and weird discussions from me (mainly about art and literature), is our idea of a perfect date. He would talk and I wouldn't understand a thing, I would talk and he wouldn't appreciate a thing and we would be perfectly happy and content. We are total opposites and we like it that way. We learn from each other, there is always something new to talk about and we were never bored of each other's company.

Enter the fights. We fight just like any other couple out there. We scream, sometimes we make scenes, we pout, cry, we get jealous, angry, hurt and most of all, we make mistakes. Lots and lots of them. :) There was one fight early in our relationship that I can never forget...

We were at St. Paul's Hospital visiting a friend. I can't remember exactly what happened but yeah, eventually a fight broke out. We were young (college young, hehe) and we were petty so tempers rose and both of us weren't open for compromise. I want his balls and he wouldn't give them to me. [smirk] He was wearing slippers that I bought. Out of anger I broke up with him and demanded that he return the slippers to me at that very moment. He took off the slippers, gave them to me and walked out. I took the slippers and threw them in the garbage can.

A few minutes later, I wasn't angry anymore. I texted him and convinced him to go home with me. We walked along Gen. Luna while waiting for an Oton to pass by. He was barefoot and a lot of people were staring at him. I felt bad, guilty so, I took off my Havaianas and walked barefoot alongside him. He was touched and soon we were laughing our ass off. People stared but we didn't care, we were inlove. :)

Henden is an awesome boyfriend. People might think this is cheesy but to each his own, right? I think my guy is great and I'm sure you think your guy is great as well so, peace! ;p Anyway, he's awesome because he opened my eyes to science, made magnets float on top of each other (seriously, it was awesome), helped me become a better individual (pol and otherwise), he leaves me secret messages, he prepares surprises, he gives me sweet nothings as gifts, he does household chores (from laundry to cooking to cleaning, you name it!), he works hard not just for me but for my family (financial wise) and lastly he's good to my family which is why my family ADORES him.

On the 21st, we would be celebrating our 6th anniversary and although our relationship is as screwed up like any other relationship out there, here's to us, my love! Cheers and I LOVE YOU! ♥

pap pa ra pap pa... poverty.

2010-09-02T03:40:00.000-07:00

Today's entry is going to be a little serious but it's something that I feel I must write about. It's an issue that has affected me since childhood and I hope that by writing about it, I will be able to let go of certain hung-ups that has controlled a part me.

I can definitely say that I grew up from a poor family. This is despite my family's well-off background. My Nanay and Tatay decided to become full-time NGO Workers way back when they were in college. As a result my parents did not have the usual salary. What they have is an allowance, good enough for their operational expenses.

Let me clear the air first. I am not bitter and I do not blame my parents for their decisions. It is true, I did experience hell due to poverty (which is the main reason why I am writing this entry in the first place). However, if I was given a chance, a choice to change this part of my life (financial set-up), I will not think twice and say: "Na-ah, not a chance!" Haha! :D

These are my encounters. This is poverty for me.

I've never lived in a house that is our own. We pay rent and over the years we kept on moving from one house to the next. This for me is the worst part of being poor. I used to live in a squatters area in Lapaz and every time there's heavy rain, it would flood. Flood in that neighborhood is hell. Imagine, black water with floating poop inside your living room. Fights almost every night and politics within the Barangay is a major pain. There was once a time wherein we couldn't buy water (nawasa) because the holder of the key locked the bloody gate. He said he wasn't earning enough money. No one stood up to him because he was a Barangay official. [sigh] Poverty for me means not being able to build a home because poverty will eventually find a way to mess things up.

When I was little there was a time when funds were so low even meals were budgeted. It was so low I had to eat rice with salt and nothing more. Yes, the typical movie-drama-ish scenes that you see in poverty porn, I've actually lived it. It went on for about a week. Then there was a time when boxes of 555 sardines were donated to the organization. Again, funds were low so we were not able to buy food other than rice. So, for about a month we ate sardines from breakfast to dinner. Nanay was so sick of sardines that even until now she avoids it. Haha! :D I on the other hand developed love towards it and consider it one of my many favorites.

Have you ever missed school because you do not have any money for jeepney fares? I have. I was happy of course, I was a kid and like any other kid, missing school is a treat. Hehehe... :) The next day when the teacher asks why was I absent, I would whip up some lie, like a fever. When you're young it's a little hard to put up a brave face while admitting poverty in front of your teacher and school mates. Most of us, including me, were once embarrassed. Mainly because society has this twisted notion that poor people deserves their situation, because they do not work hard enough to uplift their social strata.

Have you ever walked home after school because you were not able to stop yourself from buying snacks during recess? Because you were too hungry and the only money you have left is your jeepney fare home? I have and it's actually quite fun as long as it's not raining. I used to walk home with friends. We would cross an old bridge made from an old railway and we would be laughing all the way.

I have many more memories that shows poverty but this entry is already long and most of you might find it as a bore. Anyway, as you can see for every hell that I went through, I always gain a positive experience in return.

For me and for many others, poverty is the lack of option. The lack of choice to do/have certain things that would have made a certain situation a little bit happier. A Christmas tree during Christmas, a cake during a birthday, new school shoes for an elementary school student, a Chuckie drink for recess, a summer vacation and many more.

However, poverty helps us learn. Helps us see things that the rich has failed and will always fail to see. Poverty enlightens us, therefore making us better.

Inspired by Snoopy.

2010-09-01T23:25:00.000-07:00

I'm a fan of theater, always has been always will be. Broadway Musicals in New York of course are included. Someday if I have the money, I'll catch a show in New York and I'm going to brag about it here in my blog. Hehehe... :)

Anyway, if you guys are fellow theater fanatics you must be familiar with the musical, "You're a good man, Charlie Brown." It's quite famous and the most recent version starred Kristin Chenoweth. If you're not, that's okay. This entry isn't about theater anyway. This entry is about happiness and it will be based on a song sung in the Charlie Brown musical. For more information about the song, click here.

So, back to happiness. :) This is my own personal version, of course it would sound off if you start singing it but you get the picture.

Happiness is...

-a fridge full of food

-the smell of a new book's pages

-my boyfriend's corny jokes

-early mornings and golden afternoons

-rain exactly when you get in bed for sleep

-eating ice cream directly from the container

-cheese popcorn while watching a good movie

-my dogs all clean and playful

-ice cold coke to top a perfect meal

-friends and good conversations along with ice cold beer

-family get togethers

-riding a jeepney early in the afternoon without traffic and without hassles

-a song in a radio that perfectly matches your mood

-perfectly cooked rice

-sepia photographs

-grassy plains

-silence

-freebies

-a cheap, on sale, second hand book

-having a sister

-a choco web donut

-old antique stuff

-memory flashbacks

-sleeping besides the beach

-smiling without reason

-standing up for a cause

-love

-being alone once in a while (from the song)

or like in the song, happiness is everything and anything at all. :)

It's mushy, I know but I promised myself I'd stay positive. Look on the brighter side of life. Besides, I think it's quite fun. You get to smile while writing an entry.

So, what's your happiness? Let me know, drop 'em in my comment box! :)

hiligaynon blues

2010-08-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

Kahimtangan

By: Dalisay

Naga-dulum na,

Nagapalapit na ang gab-i...

Nagasakay ako upod sa akon tiyo,

Sa iya salakyan papuli.

Mahipos sa sulod sang salakyan,

May problema, makapoy.

Samtang nagalantaw ako sa bintana,

Nakita ko ang isa ka salakyan nga pribado

Nga gulpi lang nag liko

Kag dutayan lang nabunggu-an

Ang isa ka traysikad.

Naghibi ako kag na-akig.

Nasubu-an ako

Sa kahimtangan sang traysikad drayber.

Na-akig ako

Sa mga tawo nga ara sa poder.

Nagyuhum ako...

Magabato ako,

Magabato kita!

p.s.

Pasensya, sang high school ko pa ni gin sulat. Una nga testing sa Ilonggo nga Literatura. Proud gid ako sa tula nga ni, amu na nga nag desisyon ako nga una sya nga ibutang sa akon nga blog. Para abi sa akon mabudlay mag sulat sa Ilonggo, sang naka ubra ako isa ka tula, nalipay gid takun! Hahaha! :D

Naka base sa tuod nga kabuhi. :) Natabo ini isa ka hapon sang gapa puli kami sang tiyo ko halin sa Rm9.

Long Live Ka Tingting.

2010-08-21T06:32:00.000-07:00

September is just around the corner. :) September has always been an important month for me, on the 11th is my birthday and LFS' anniversary, on the 17th is KL's birthday, on the 21st is Martial Law's anniversary which usually means a big mobilization and lastly on the 30th my aunt's death anniversary.

As tribute, I will post one of her poems here. Later, I will tell her story. For now, I hope you guys will like this.

Language of Reality

By: Mary Gene Dumaplin

They speak of distance

In hours to walk

Or in the length

Of bamboo poles.

Not in units of measurement.

They talk of space

In units of how many chupas

Or gantas of palay seeds

Can fill the land.

Not in acres.

They talk of red-letter days

In terms of full moons and

Harvest seasons.

Not calendars.

They talk of time

By the angles of shadows.

Not by wall clocks

Or wristwatches.

They name places after objects

And events easy for them

To describe, and close for them

To remember.

They tell of colors

In association with flowers

And butterflies.

Not by established names

Artists have known.

They talk of love

In the silence of emotion.

Not through love letters,

Chocolates and roses.

They talk of peace

In the midst of a raging war:

That there can't be one

Without a protracted

People's war.

A bitch slap to male chauvinism.

2010-08-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

Last week was absolutely hectic. I was so busy I was not able to join the Blog Action Day which was hosted by Anakbayan. I felt really bad. However, if I find some time, I'll make a late entry. I promise.

Anyway, I noticed that a lot of bloggers are posting poetry in their blogs lately. I thought that I should join in the trend. I've always loved poetry and I'll try and whip some of my old poems and post it here in blogger. As of now though, due to limited time, I'll just take some of the poems that I made as notes in Facebook and post it here.

Copy-paste, easy peasy. Hahaha!! :D So here's one that I found from panitikan.com, I absolutely love the writer's sarcasm. I think it's refreshing and out of the box. Satire in its most glorious form.

A Prayer of Great Expectations

By: Fanny H. Ba. Llego

There’s no doubt about it I need to get hitched:

I need someone to scratch me whenever I itch

Or give me a backrub whenever I want it

(Who’ll pout only a little when someone else does it);

Someone on whom I can vent all my frustrations

And who is supportive in trying situations;

Who’ll extol all my virtues, forget all my faults

And would always submit to my sexual assaults;

Who’ll bring up my children the way they should be

Yet still be entirely devoted to me,

Who’ll always obey me, my word being law,

My logic perfect, my thinking, without flaw,

My sexy cheerleader, housekeeper, accountant,

Secretary, nursemaid, unflagging assistant;

Brought up and moulded to think that success

Is found in the home: nothing more, nothing else.

O, Mother Goddess, I need in my life

A man willing to be the perfect little wife!

On to the lighter side...

2010-08-15T10:05:00.000-07:00

This entry was especially made for some announcements. Hehehe... :)

First in the list is that my mom read some of my entries a few days back. She told me that I was using words like stupid and dumb way too much. Naturally, I did a double take. I re-read all my entries (thank god I'm a baby blogger!) and came to the conclusion that my mom was overreacting. Of course, I am biased, it is my work after all.

Anyway, I have decided to refrain or lessen my use of such terms. From now on, I'll try and write about things on the lighter side. I am turning over a new leaf. Hahaha! :D

Second, despite my decision on writing lighter topics, I will not compromise articles about activism, social issues and the revolution. I'll write about them just the same. :) I know, most who stumble upon my blog will not easily appreciate such entries but I stand firm on grounds that these entries are important and necessary. So I ask readers to read with an open mind. I am open for discussions if some of you have questions on certain topics. (epal! as if marami akong readers! hehehe...)

Third, there is a Blog Action Protest this coming Wednesday, August 18, 2010. The issue is about Hacienda Luisita and a recent agreement formed by the Aquino-Cojuangco family. Anyway, click here for more information. Bloggers unite! ^_^

Lastly, I am currently tweaking my gallery tab. I'll be adding more pictures very soon and I'll be adding two or more pages for additional pictures not related to the dump site motif. I'm no photographer but what the heck, if you've got nothing to do, time to spare, and bandwidth to burn, do try and check them out. ;)

Comments on my pictures can be posted here on this entry. (again, epal!!) Hahaha! :D

That'll be all for now. Happy Monday to all! ^_^

konek konek

2010-08-11T21:48:00.000-07:00

Warning: If you haven't seen National Geographic's Live Curious commercial, you will not appreciate this entry. :)

If you are, you feel. If you feel, you hurt. If you hurt, you know pain.

If you know pain, you know discrimination. If you know discrimination, you know oppression.

If you know oppression, you know poverty. If you know poverty, you know hunger.

If you know hunger, you will start to question society.

If you question, you learn about activism. If you learn, you see the need to fight.

If you start fighting, you will understand the people's struggle.

If you understand, you become a revolutionary. And if you become, so shall others.

If others become, the enemy will know fear. If the enemy is afraid, they will strike us hard.

If they strike, WE ARE READY.

Living Curious is not enough.

popcorn, mahjong and beer

2010-08-08T23:31:00.000-07:00

I had a great weekend so, I wanted to brag este... blog about it. :)

Friday

Henden didn't have school last Friday so my weekend started early. :) Now, since we're both flat broke we spent most of the day at home watching two and a half men episodes and just hanging out. No biggie, nothing special but perfect nonetheless. [awwwwwww. barf.]

Anyway despite our perfect afternoon we got bored and later decided to watch a movie despite our financial set-up. I know, boredom makes you do insane things. I'm sorry mom! :p hehe...

However, I needed to check on my little sister first. So, before going to the mall we decided to stop by my aunt's place. It was drizzling but its been drizzling for days so, we didn't pay any attention to the rain. While walking I decided to take a short cut, one I am not familiar with. Well, big surprise - we got lost and since we're not known in that area the dogs weren't exactly friendly. This was a problem because, in order to figure out where we are, we needed to circle the place. The dogs won't let us. [bad dog!] To top it off, it rained BIG TIME. :D We got drenched, we got lost and we had fun.

We found my aunt's place, dried off, made sure my little sister is all set for the weekend and then we went to the mall.

We decided to watch The Sorcerer's Apprentice. We wanted to catch the last full show (lfs). Henden and I are fond of last full shows mainly because we usually watch movies on an impulse. Like last Friday.

Anyway, since we are short on cash we settled on buying popcorn for snacks instead of our usual, which is: pizzas + chocolates + donuts + chips and drinks. Pigging out while watching a movie is an absolute delight. Hahaha! :D

The movie was good and we both enjoyed it. We had fun and it felt good. We stopped by UP and bought chicken skin barbecues. We talked about the movie and walked for a little while, we discussed dinner, talked about the movie some more and, with popcorn cheese stained hands, we went home. That was the beginning of a great weekend.

Saturday

A small family get together was decided on Saturday. My aunt bought lechon (roasted pig) and my other aunt cooked ginata-an nga lukon (big shrimps with coconut milk). We all had lunch, we talked, we gossiped and we played mahjong! :D

Mahjong is a Chinese game and I don't know the English translation for it. Anyway, mahjong is always present during our family gatherings. Ask anyone, it's a guilty pleasure. We used to play until the wee hours. Some drink lots of coffee just to stay awake and play. You can say we are addicted. :)

We burned the afternoon playing mahjong. We ate snacks, drank coffee, talked about issues, gossiped about people and their lives, laughed and then laughed some more. They bought ice cold beer, perfect for early afternoon gossip. However, it started to rain really hard around 5 and we were forced to stop playing. Our garage roof was leaking and we were all starting to get wet. We watched the kids play under the rain and by 6:30 everyone was preparing to leave for home.

Nanay cooked home made lechon paksiw (from the leftover lechon) and after everyone had gone home we ate dinner. We tidied up the house, chatted about the day's events then went to sleep.

I won exactly 3 pesos and 75 centavos from playing mahjong. :) Not bad eh? Hahaha!

Sunday

We had visitors last Sunday - family that were not able to join last Saturday.

My day started out normal. I went about my day like I always do. Chores, Ilaya responsibilities, dog responsibilities and host (since we have visitors) responsibilities. Later more family arrived and they bought snacks. We pigged out on arroz caldo, siomai, siopao and ice cold coke.

It might sound boring to others but I like such weekends. It was relaxing. However, two things screwed up my Sunday, there was a black out (from 6am-5pm) and Henden went home to Miami. :(

We hung out at our backyard and as usual chatted about mundane things that amuse us. It was pretty laid back until the beer came.

We started drinking after dinner. The initial plan was to drink a bottle or two, catch up and then home for our visitors, sleep for us. Several empty beer bottles later we decided to drink some more because it was so much fun. Hehehe! :)

Nothing beats beer, family and good conversation. We talked about love, life, sex, the revolution, our hung ups and bitterness, our happiness. We discussed the need for psych sessions and which Psychiatrist is the cheapest in town. We talked about how we hated and love each other at the same time. We gossiped about comrades whom we secretly hate. [smirk] We talked about art, photography and our dreams. It was a night worth getting pissed drunk for.

At midnight we all decided to stop and get some sleep. Class starts early Monday morning and we all have parent-ish duties. Before going to bed, I made Henden a note saying how the night could have been perfect with him in it. I told him to wake me up before going to school because I want to kiss him good morning. I slept. :)

It rained that night. It rained hard.

Monday

I woke up, saw Henden at our room's door. I saw him read the note. I saw him smile, saw him galloped (yep, like a horse) to our bed. I was horrified, he was gleeful. He kissed me good morning, morning breath and all.

Weekends. Weekdays. Perfect. Sigh. ;p

yellow butterflies

2010-08-03T20:19:00.000-07:00

I am listening to Glee's album. They are singing U2's One.

There's a dead wasp on my floor.

Carpenters are building a new house on the lot next to ours.

My dogs are barking like crazy. They are both white and furry. Their names are Spice and Lucifer.

I will have a job interview tonight at 7pm. I will also take an online exam for another freelance writer job.

I hate my Barangay, the Videoke Bar next door is driving me nuts.

I want to eat cake, donuts, kamote cue, kalamayhati or anything with lots of sugar.

I hate and love our house at the same time. We have lots of rats and cockroaches at night.

My laptop's name is em-em. My laptop is gay and he/she hates me. I think my SMART Bro is high. My connection's been very erratic.

There's a pink alarm clock on my table.

I sleep with a jungle knife under my pillow. It was made by a Tumanduk (an indigenous group found here in Panay). It was a gift from my late aunt Toto Mary Gene. She gave it to me when I was in second grade. She said I will use it someday when I join ranks with the revolutionaries. I never did, life happened.

Jump, jump, jump!

I am scared of blood. I get dizzy and puke my ass out every time I see it. I can't swallow tablets or capsules (medicine). I know, I am odd.

I do not own furniture, not one. I will build a house someday.

I like to believe I'm smart and most of the time I feel as if I am.

I hate wet weather. My whole body itches if it rains, I think it's an allergy.

I love golden afternoons. I think it is the perfect time of the day. I love to read books during golden afternoons. I've been reading Marxism after Marx. It is not a fun book. I want to buy a Kiko Machine Komix, the red one.

I am craving for cheese popcorn. I suddenly remembered Pure, a friend from UP. Hahaha!! :D UP's bird is a parrot. I love UP.

I really should stop blogging and clean our trash can. Our helper is sick, she went out to get a massage. I want to get a massage too.

I dream't about songs last night. When I woke up I thought it's going to be a great day. I was right. Music is a mood lifter.

There's dog poop outside my window. Chores are piling up. Sigh.

I love my sister. She's gonna graduate valedictorian, at least I hope she will.

I miss Henden. Horror. I should sweep my room's floor.

I have 5 new underwears. Might not mean much to others but I'm happy.

I don't buy gadgets, I buy appliances. I don't buy clothes, I buy groceries. I don't go out on dates, I buy kitchen needs.

My dog Spice is not white anymore, he's brown.

Love, love, love. Henden and I have two necklaces with wooden clenched fists as pendants. It was a gift from Tita Angie and Tita Naty when they went to Baguio.

My corkboard is filled with Ilaya's drawings and bills.

I miss yellow butterflies. They used to be so common. Now, I haven't seen a single one for years. I will use yellow butterflies on my wedding.

Henden has a yellow screw driver too. Yellow, yellow, yellow, Kris Aquino. Pfffft. My aunt likes her. I think I do too. [angal?]

I should really buy a brush for em-em and those thingiemagigs to clean him/her. I should buy flea powder for my dogs. Crisis. Sigh.

Are you not entertained? Shark's Tale.

Blog. End. Random.

God is a revolutionary.

2010-08-03T07:09:00.000-07:00

Yes dear reader, I will talk about God and a theory I just came up with. Hehehe... :) Now, I have no intention to step on people's toes, this is merely a theory and, mind you, a possible one. So please read with an open mind. :)

Remember when religious people used to say that life is a challenge, that God is testing our faith, that God is checking out which people are worthy to be accepted to his kingdom/paradise. Let's say that they're right, life is indeed God's test. However, they failed to see the instructions. [I was trying to sound clever by making a metaphor, I guess I failed. :( ]

Anyway, imagine that Religion is actually part of the test and that the correct answer is to not follow it. Yep, you got it. What if God wants us to defy Religion, to be a better person and stand up against it. God is all-knowing, he knew Religion would commit a lot of screw-ups and he was hoping we'll read between the lines and realize our mistake (to follow Religion).

If God is real he wouldn't be an anti-feminist. God will not tolerate discrimination against women. He would want equal rights because he knows this is the right thing to do. Religion has a different point of view. All throughout history we know of the exploits of the church and we know how they treated women. Even now, discrimination of women is still present.

When I was in high school, I told my Christian Living teacher that the Catholic Church is not open to change. She said I was wrong so, I challenged her. I asked her what would be the church's reaction if I suggested that it is high time for the world to have a woman priest/priestess/babaylan. She said it is not possible because only men have the right to serve God as a priest. The reason? Because man is created in God's image despite the fact that God has no gender or sexuality. We are not given the same right because we have vaginas instead of penises.

If God is real he wouldn't be anti-gay. He would recognize the right of all people to love and be loved. He would know that everyone should be given a chance to build a family with whomever they choose. If God is real, he would believe that love is love no matter the sexual preference.

We all know that most Religion is against homosexuality. They believe that it is immoral. It is against God's will because it is not natural. Hell, that bloody argument is as stupid as it is wrong. Several years back the church declared that the Earth is flat and the center of the universe - was this natural? They burned scientists alive - was this natural? They burned and hanged "witches" - was this natural? Now that you think of it, is there anything about the church that's natural? And who has the right to declare what’s natural and what’s not? The church?

If God is real he wouldn't be anti-science. He would recognize the legitimacy of the existence of dinosaurs because it was his creation. [Duh!] Did it ever occur to you that he made such amazing creatures as proof of his awesomeness? Hehehe.. :D

If God is real, he would have made sure that Science would progress because it will help people see the beauty and vastness of the world, the universe, and of life down to the smallest detail. You don't believe me? Buy a microscope and see for yourself. :)

Religion on the other hand has repeatedly brushed Science aside all throughout our history. If burning scientists alive is not enough proof then let us add censorship of practically everything scientific, judgmental statements against scientific findings, and outright attacks to the scientific community.

If God is real he would not let his name be used to colonize and enslave a country for 333 years. He would not go against the people’s struggle for freedom. If God is here he will join ranks with the oppressed and fight for true democracy. He will clench his fist, raised it up high and demand for greater state subsidy. If God is real he is a revolutionary.

He will not stand idly by and preach bullshit like: blessed are the poor, it’s okay to be poor, it is God’s will, or it is okay to suffer for you will someday be rewarded in heaven. If God is real he does not want his people to suffer, he does not want his people to die of hunger and he does not want his people chained.

Religion does not represent God for it does not represent the people.

Let us pray…

God if you are real, help your people see the truth,

Give them courage, give them strength.

God if you are real, help them understand,

For war is fast approaching.

God if you are real, hear my prayer through battle cries and bullets.

For I shall fight alongside your people.

God if you are real, help us paint the horizons red.

one social stigma at a time

2010-08-03T03:40:00.000-07:00

"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss

Dr. Seuss is a liar. No one can really be who they are. No one can truly be themselves. We are all part of a society and we all follow a social contract. We follow social norms, social rules that make our lives miserable but convenient. We fear the different and we judge outcasts.

If you try and base it on Science there’s actually a logical explanation for it. According to Genetics, if you maintain a nice/civil/helpful relationship with people within your community, chances are people will help you in times of need. This will ensure the safety and survival of your genes/bloodline. So, our genes are telling us to be good to thy neighbor. :) Hahaha!

I hate social stigmas and I hate feigning care towards people whom I'd rather see dead. However, like all people in the world I am forced to do so. We all do it, at home, at school, in the office, at the market even at church (it happens). But just for fun, let’s say we can truly break free from social stigmas, that we have enough courage to alienate ourselves, here are a few suggestions to help you make a head start.

1.People are not wines. Not all people get better with age. We should totally get over the idea that old people are always wiser than the young. Most of us respect our elders out of fear and convenience because if we don’t, a gruesome sermon will follow. We are more than capable of thinking and we should be able to make decisions on our own. Remember just because they think its best doesn’t necessarily mean it’s best for us.

2.Being kind to nosy neighbors. In Philippine society, gossip is very popular. If you live in a small Barangay (it’s a Filipino term for village), gossip is very hard to ignore or get away from. No matter how hard you try to keep a low profile, people will eventually talk about you. Most of us hate nosy neighbors but do we give them a piece of our mind? No, we maintain a polite and civil relationship with them. We pretend that we are not affected and we say to ourselves that by being civil we are better than them, educated. This of course is a facade. We care and we’re angry as hell and we would like nothing more but to scream expletives to them.

3.Feigning stupidity for your boss or supervisor. Most of us have experienced this. We have all worked for dumb bosses one way or the other and most of the time, when they give out criticisms you know they’re only doing it because they can. They like to do it, it promotes superiority. So to be a good employee you pretend that their criticisms are valid. You bow down your head and say: “I’m sorry. I’ll work harder.” You pretend that you are indeed incapable of doing a good job and that you need their superior guidance and intellect to guide you. Deep down, you just want to kick their asses.

4.Giving stuff to leeches – most of which are family. :) Come on, this is true. We all love our family but let’s face it, some of them are leeches. Picture this: your sister just arrived from Hong Kong; she’s been working there for 4 years as a domestic helper. Before she arrived aunts and uncles (who live in the same Barangay) never visit your house. However, when your sister arrived they start visiting everyday. They always have excuses to come and visit. Like, they want to give you mangoes, they suddenly miss you, they need to borrow some books etc. Some are very talented actors, upon entering the house they’ll suddenly exclaim: “Oh! You’re here? When did you get back? What a surprise! I missed you!” [insert rolling eyes here] Leeches don’t deserve charity, they don’t!

5.Pretense for friends. I believe all of us are guilty of such crime. All of us went through puberty. [smirk] We’ll pretend we like a particular type of music, a fashion statement, a book, anything as long as it helps us blend in the crowd. When a friend is in trouble we tell them we care and we understand. We’ll give out fake apologies. We’ll put on fake plastic smiles and establish fake camaraderie. Admittedly some are sincere but honestly most are lying.

At the end, I still maintain my belief that none can truly show who they are unless society is changed. So, let us change society by breaking one social stigma at a time. :)

We have made laws, laws of conventional behavior, built walls around ourselves, and we can’t see them, because they’re part of our thinking. –Shevek, "The Dispossessed"

Blood and what not.

2010-07-23T03:15:00.000-07:00

This is basically a continuation of my previous entry. Yes, I am still sick. I still have a fever, ridiculous chills (and by ridiculous I mean seizure-ish chills), a sore throat (result of too much puking) and a splitting headache. Alas however, I have stopped vomiting and my hyper-acidity is under control.

I am taking Tylenol/Paracetamol whatever for my fever and headache, Strepsils for my throat and I am drinking lots and lots of fluids. I have eaten some food although Skyflakes (it's a cracker) is still my best friend.

I was seriously considering begging my aunt or dad for money so that I can have myself checked by a doctor. A real one and not some floozy in the internet. My mom came to the rescue, she will lend me some cash. [sigh] I really didn't want to beg money from either my aunt or my dad. Hehehe.. :D Since I am practical (my mom calls it being cheap but you know her, she exaggerates), we will call a family friend who is a doctor and ask her what lab works are needed. After getting the results then we'll decide which doctor to go to.

My mom wants to check with my cardiologist, I didn't want to. Her fees are expensive and she's going to tell us to have some blood work done anyway. So might as well do the blood work first. I know others (esp. the ones with medical experience) will think I'm being stupid but honestly, we don't have any money. [sigh]

I really want to take the proper meds, I want to get better ASAP. Specifically, before Sunday. I have a job interview at 6pm and I don't want my headache screwing it up.

P.S.

I really hope it's not Viral Meningitis.

Body parts and what not.

2010-07-22T06:06:00.000-07:00

Random conversations with my boyfriend when I was sick.

I figured that the subtitle above was perfect and I couldn't help but include it in today's entry. So yes dear reader, I was sick since last Tuesday. I had a splitting headache, a fever and hyper-acidity. Anyway, me and my boyfriend tried to look for a diagnosis from the internet. All you have to do is type in your symptoms and they'll give you a list of your possible illnesses. I know, pretty lame but hey I couldn't afford a real check-up so bite me!

The internet came up with two possible illnesses. Meningitis and Encephalitis. Creepy huh? At the end however, we settled for Viral Meningitis, that's how it is with this type of check-ups. You get to choose what kind of illness you've got. Pretty cool, huh? :D

Viral Meningitis is actually very mild. It's like a common cold except that the headache is an absolute hell. So, back to my original plan. Here are my random conversations with my boyfriend. You have to excuse me, I was in a lot of pain. :)

Me: Meningitis? I have meningitis? Great! Starting today I'm going to live in a bubble. The pain is not worth living the high life.

Boyfriend: You do live in a bubble. It's called your immune system.

Me: Apparently, it's not bubbly enough!!

Boyfriend: You know, the meninges is supposed to protect your brain from the virus.

Me: Well, I guess I have pretty dumb meninges. They got themselves infected. How are they gonna protect my brain now?

After puking for the nth time...

Me: Oh, you must be really glad.

Boyfriend: Why?

Me: To have smarter meninges and a bubblier immune system.

I know, I know, dumb story. But hey, despite the pain and my puke-stained pajamas, I thought I was extremely clever.

P.S.

A friend said Viral Meningitis is not mild. My mistake... It was the internet's fault. I swear I ain't that dumb... :D

tagalog naman

2010-07-19T07:11:00.000-07:00

Sa ilang taong ating pinagsamahan..

Sa lahat ng boteng pinagsaluhan..

Sa lahat ng Donut kong kinuha mo..

Sa lahat ng sineng tinulugan ko.

.. lahat nang problemang dinusa nating dalawa at

lahat ng problemang kinusa sa isa't isa

Bawat oras, bawat minutong kasama ka,

Patunay sa pagmamahal na sa buhay ko'y wala nang hihigit pa.

Sulat ni: Henden Gayoma

Di na masyadong nagsusulat ang boyprend ko. Kaya nung isinulat nya to, feeling ko ang haba haba ng hair ko! :D Sana man lang, kahit papanu magandahan kayo sa tulang ito..

Edward Cullen is a dumbass.

2010-07-18T07:43:00.000-07:00

Remember when twilight first came out? They had this line in their posters and it goes somewhat like this: "If you live forever, what do you have to live for?”

Remember? I thought it was pretty dumb. Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against love or romance. Truth is I'm a sucker for romance. I swoon over love letters, romantic films and well-planned dates. However, I draw the line when it comes to Edward Cullen. There's a big difference between romantic and moronic.

The world is awesome! There are millions of things in this world that you can do if you're immortal. You can explore things mere humans can't. You can literally see science progress as time goes by. After hundreds of years, Edward was not able to see that. Why? Because he's a dumbass.

So, here are a few suggestions for Edward and for all vampires out there. If you're bored, you guys can try the following:

10. Travel the world. (Let’s just say you're new to the vampire business or that Edward did not think about this) Seeing the world, learning new cultures and meeting vampires from other parts of the globe can be fun. This will open up a lot of opportunities for you, better yet; it will open your eyes to the awesomeness of the world.

9. Be a social worker. Be an activist. Help make the world a better place. It might sound cheesy but the world has a lot of problems. It will keep you busy for millenniums. You'd be too buried in work; you'll forget you were ever bored.

8. Be a scientist. Be an inventor. Invent things mere humans can't. You've been in this world for hundreds of years. Grow a brain; it'll make immortality much more fun and less boring.

7. Be an archeologist. Explore hidden parts of the world. Uncover secrets that have mystified explorers for years. Look for the lost city of Atlantis. Uncover what's underneath the sphinx. Look for El Dorado. The possibilities are endless...

6. Look for a hobby. Some people collect stamps, others bottle caps. You can collect rare, valuable pieces of history. You can collect paintings, books even jewelry. You're a vampire; if push comes to shove you can just kill people from the black market if they don't give you what you want.

5. You can take inspiration from True Blood. If you think being a vampire is such a burden then go out in the open. Insist that you have a place in society. Fight for your rights! If you gain sympathy from the world it might ease the pain a little and make immortality a little bearable. Awww.. :)

4. Edward Cullen has thought about this but I'm writing it anyway. It might come in handy for baby vampires. Build a family. Look for a girl you want to share eternity with and turn her into a vampire. However, don't forget to make a baby first, this is a must!

3. Business. Yes, make a business out of your existence. Hotels for vampires, clubs for vampires etc. Most vampire stories out there say that they want to be human again. Work is a big part of human life. So either become an employee or become an employer.

2. Explore outer space. Hahaha!! :D Of course if you base your vampires from Anne Rice's version this would be impossible. They'll burn because of the sun. However, if you base it on Stephanie Meyer's version, not only will they survive but they'll glisten like a human jewel. So, look for other worlds. Explore black holes. You might get lucky, you might meet ET vampires.

1. This is my best option. Do nothing! Just enjoy that you get to live, sit back and relax. Appreciate everything around you and remember: ONLY BORING PEOPLE GET BORED. In this case, only boring vampires get bored! ;p

pechay vs vagina - why cheap talk is so much fun.

2010-07-14T09:14:00.000-07:00

Yes, there is indeed an ongoing rift between vegetables and genitalia however, as interesting as that sounds I have a more relevant issue to discuss in today's entry. I am sorry dear reader for disappointing you. Hehehe... :)

I recently watched a film by Joel Lamangan entitled Fuchsia. It's a beautiful film about social stigmas very common in Philippine society and how Mameng (played by Gloria Romero) sashayed her way around it. I absolutely love the film and everyone should watch it. (look for a copy after reading my blog)

Anyway, pechay was used as a euphemism for vagina. A friend told Mameng and I quote: "Wag na wag kalimutang diligin ang pechay!" which translates into: Never ever forget to water your pechay!

Now, there is absolutely nothing wrong in saying vagina instead of pechay but hell the vegetable is funnier than the genitalia which made me realize that cheap talk is way more fun than snotty intellectual exchanges. Don't get me wrong, it doesn't mean people who use such language are cheap and I do not have any intention on degrading such style but cheap talk seems to be the perfect title for it.

Let me give you an example; conyos will use fabulous while jejemons will use uber. It's okay but in cheap talk, it can transform into - bonggang bonggang bunggabilya! See, ten times better. It doesn't matter if it lacks the superficial facade of class. It's still great and I know you like it too.

Other examples include social networking sites and blogs. Anyone who has a facebook account would agree that today, everyone seems to be getting smarter. Their statuses say it all. Suddenly all your dumb friends back in high school are quoting philosophers about stuff you don't have the slightest idea about. Whoah! When did they get so bloody smart? Did I miss something? Suddenly everyone is an English teacher, correcting everything from grammar to spelling to punctuations. I'm so insecure that sometimes I have to copy-paste my status in word and run a grammar/spelling check just to make sure. [sigh]

Eventually, I got fed up. I started posting statuses in Hiligaynon. It's much more fun and less pretentious. Cheap talk is my ultimate weapon, I use it as much as I can and what to do you know. Bit by bit, my friends started using them too. [ha!]

Pretending to be smart seems to be the trend these days. People are afraid to ask questions, fearing that if they do, they might appear dumb. People talk about politics and economics while quoting phrases from their textbooks. People react violently when questioned - they usually recite an hour long monologue to defend his/her side. Intellectual arrogance is everywhere and I'm getting sick of it.

I miss the good old days when a bottle of coke costs Php5, when people say what's on their mind without fear, when people accept criticisms with an open mind. The time when being smart doesn't mean being deep or weird, when wit comes spontaneously and not researched days before from a hard-bound book, I miss the time when people don't fake intelligence.

Now, I don't know about you but in these dark times, I'm sticking to pechay. :D

on being featured..

2010-07-10T10:29:00.000-07:00

It was late, Henden was already asleep. I was tired but I wanted to check on my blog's stat before going to bed so I went online. I thought it would be typical and uneventful. Boy was I wrong!

I WAS FEATURED IN SOMEONE ELSE'S BLOG!!! Uhuh, uhuh I like it... ;p

I know, I know... I'm too happy but hey this guy/gay is famous in the bloggers world. So if you think I'm overreacting - bite me! :D I'm too happy to care about what you think anyway..

So, I wanted to thank okrayero for featuring me. It made my day. I featured you back in my blog roll list to return the favor.

Mabuhay ang mga Iskolar ng Bayan! :))

high school infernos

2010-07-08T18:47:00.001-07:00

I had a very typical high school life and just like everyone else, I have stories to tell. What better way to do it than blogging, right? :)

Now, I went to two high schools. The first one is a public school in a small town called Oton which we will name o2. The second one, a private Catholic school located in Jaro which we will call cs. I will not name names, I might get into trouble. Yes, here in the Philippines you get into trouble when you tell the truth. That's why we have political killings. I will talk about that some other time.

Anyway, it's pretty obvious that o2 and cs are very different. In o2 we don't pay any tuition and, since it's a public high school, it gets its budget from the government. We all know how that's like. Books are old, we lack classrooms, chairs; even teachers. Most of the students came from very poor families. However, the community was great. Everybody knew everybody else. There was camaraderie everywhere and everyone was like family.

I like o2, I felt like I belonged there. I empathized with my fellow classmate when we had to pay Php80.00 for an activity. For her and her family, Php80.00 is a big deal and she had to look for temporary work in order to pay. I complained along with my 59 classmates when the classroom was too hot since we only had one working electric fan. There were 60 of us. Imagine the heat. I groaned with at least 10 of my friends in the back row because we don't have any chairs and sometimes we had to stand. I walked home from school with a fellow friend named Julie. I buy cheap smoothies outside school and hanged out at the town plaza. That was high school life in o2.

Cs on the other hand was very much like hell. Yes, I hated cs. I stood out like an ugly duckling in a swarm of evil wolves. Hehehe... :) Don't get me wrong, I had friends at cs. Very good friends but the rest of them? Evil - pure evil. Oh sure, we had fancy uniforms, classrooms and laboratories. We had expensive books and lastly a facade that we are pure, innocent and good because we went to a CATHOLIC school. [barf]

I was discriminated because I came from a public school. Because I'm an activist, an agnostic, a skeptic and a critic to their very oppressive and very judgmental views.

I comforted a friend in the girl's bathroom while she cried because she was scared and ashamed of her sexuality. Because the whole school kept repeating that homosexuality was immoral and that homosexuals will be doomed in hell. I listened to a classmate complain to our group leader that Php150.00 is too much for a morning snack (agape) and then helplessly bowed his head because our group leader said he was complaining too much. She continued by adding that Php150.00 is cheap and in her opinion mere pocket money. My homeroom adviser forbade me to hang out at UP saying that UP students are bad influences.

Every Thursday (or Friday, I'm not sure), we would have a meeting with our religious group. I asked my homeroom teacher if it was okay not to join any and she said no. Having no choice, I chose a group where most of my girl classmates are involved. When I entered the room, a girl quipped: "Why are you here? You don't believe in God. You don't belong here." I froze; I literally didn't know what to do. I wanted to scream: "I didn't have a choice, MORON!" but of course I didn't. I could've gotten suspended. :)

It got worse when I started arguing with teachers. I stood out. I was different and because of that I was bullied. And then, I fought back. I stood firm and held my ground. I'm glad I did. I'm glad I wasn't normal.

Eventually, I was able to find friends that accepted me for who I am and until this day I'm very thankful I found them. They helped me survive high school.

I graduated high school with my head held high -- my left fist clenched and raised.

P.S.

damu pa ni mga stories but laba na gid. pasensya if medyo emo, malawig nga panahon nga wala napa utwas. salamat sa pag inchindi. :)

Going yellow green.

2010-07-06T22:34:00.000-07:00

It's funny, today, yellow is the "it" color. Ever since Cory died the Philippines has been struck with Cory fever or Edsa fever or whatchamacallit. Everyone is saying that yellow is the new color for courage, change, hope, even activism. [insert rolling eyes here]

It's funny because when it comes to left-leaning groups or left-leaning individuals, yellow has always been a "bad" color. Yes, I think bad is the most apt term that I can use, even though I sound like a first grader. For example, yellow journalism or yellow NGOs. Again yes, I only know two examples. If you've got suggestions, feel free to drop them in my comment box. :)

Everybody knows what those two mean but in case you don't, here's a brief but very accurate explanation:

Yellow journalism- It's like journalism only it's not. It's fake journalism.

Yellow NGOs- They're like NGOs only they're not. They're fake NGOs.

- I couldn't find a link so here's another one: organizations that uses funds for their projects in an unprofessional and unethical manner or organizations that uses projects as a front to earn more money.

Anyway, we are not going to talk about journalism or organizations. Hell no! We are going to talk about- yes, celebrities. :))

Remember Earth Hour? I was a fan of that activity, me and my whole family turned everything off in the house for the whole hour. There was such a big fuss over it, streamers were everywhere, advertisements in radios, televisions, the internet. As I've said being an activist is in, that time it was cool to be an environmental activist. Suddenly, everybody cared and everybody wanted to make a change, to pitch in and save mother earth. Everybody - especially the celebrities. Oh yeah, they held a concert/program/vigil or whatever you want to call it.

I like the fact that people are more involved in issues concerning the society and the environment. I'm happy that bit by bit people are starting to care more about recycling than the latest fashion, that they care more about renewable energy than Justin Beiber (no offense), but who are we kidding?

Celebrities have big houses with several air-conditioners, they own several cars, they use major amounts of hair spray, colognes and other chemical products for their beauty regimen and they travel a lot. In short, their carbon footprint is huuuuuuuuuuge! Singing in a concert during Earth Hour is not going to change that.

Even Meralco has the nerve to say that they're pro-mother nature. Hey Meralco douchebags! You really want to help and save Mother Earth? Then go renewable! Postpone your all-around-Europe trip and use the money for research. Say no to your daughter when she says she wants to buy a new Hummer (which by the way is a guzzler) and fund organizations or individuals so that they can launch projects that will make our community cleaner.

As for the government, don't go all yellow with us. DO SOMETHING! Like closing down factories that are killing our streams and rivers. Build a proper dump site. Protect our forests, our mangroves, our seas! Should we make a step by step list?

So yes Kim Chiu, you really want to help mother nature? Then stop being a celebrity otherwise, you're not really going green, you're just going YELLOW green.

It's all Mao's fault. He started a band.

2010-07-05T19:10:00.001-07:00

Do you watch late night shows from the local network, specifically ABS-CBN? Well, I do. Ever heard of Urban Zone? I'm an avid fan, it airs late at night on Sundays. :)

Now if you do watch late night shows on the local network, you probably know what happens before they sign off. Yep, you got it. They air music videos, the last of which is our National Anthem.

So one night, after watching Urban Zone I decided to watch more TV since I still don't feel sleepy and since we don't have cable (gasp!) I have to make do with ABS-CBN. I was having a perfectly nice night mocking the host of a late night show when suddenly it happened. What I saw made me barf!

Celebrities like Shaina Magdayao and Kim Chiu marching the streets waving red flags as if in a protest rally. What are they doing? Are they mocking us? What did we do to them? Huh? Huh? Huh?

For some reason activism is in again! Yay us! Tear up your jeans, ditch your uber expensive havs, slip on your org shirt and wear a tubao on your head- LETS DO THIS THING! Nowadays, being patriotic is the fashionable thing to do. You wouldn't want your friends to know you don't care about social equality don't you? It's sooooooo uncool.

I personally think this is due to the fact that Mao Tse Tsung started a band (or Che Guevara, take your pick). Remember the days when Che and Mao shirts were the coolest thing on earth? Everybody had one, even me. Hehehe.. :) Well, a student from UP was asked why he has Mao's face on his shirt. He said because System of a Down is a great band and Mao is a fantastic vocalist. There you have it folks, Mao's fault.

Being an activist is more than just a fashion statement. It's more than just wearing yellow. Being an activist meant standing by your principles even though it soooo 70's, being firm even though you're discriminated by your entire school and living a life serving the people.

Fashionable or not real activists fight against social injustice, wherever, whenever, whether in heels or in dragon slippers. Like the LFS! :) Do give their site a visit.

"To the left, to the left..." - Beyonce

boggled blogger blogging here..

2010-07-04T20:13:00.000-07:00

This is a test article. I am not as talented as my friends when it comes to customizing pages and I figured posting a test article would help me do the job better. You know, to see the tweaks and actual look. So, here it goes..

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