Just before turning in for the night, my friend Trish buzzed me on YM. It had been a while since we last spoke or met. She said she came from Chris’ wake, and from her tone I would say she took it pretty bad. She and Chris were from the same batch in high school and knew each other quite well.
Her friend Vida texted her about what her friends knew of Chris’ accident. He had been driving along the Alabang overpass at 1:30 am and for some reason knocked one of the lampposts, ending up on the wrong side of the road. Not the type who would call home, his parents knew about it when they drove at the exact same road at 5:30 am going to Greenhills, bewildered that their car was being towed. The doctors operated on him to remove the clot from his head, but he never regained consciousness.
The infuriating thing about this is, some asshole had the gall to steal Chris’ belongings while he was dying. That’s just so wrong.
Trish was feeling particularly morbid that night and I told her I wanted to see her again in the future, even when we were both fat and wrinkly. She said she couldn’t promise that, which is true I suppose.
Death is a chilling concept, and personally I’m afraid of it. There’s no point running away from it, though, because we’re all doomed to die sooner or later. When it’s your time, it’s your time. Instead of being afraid of death, I feel I might as well embrace all the opportunities I have with my friends while we’re both here.
I’ve lost three friends to death in the last three years. I don’t want to sit idly by and regret not having spent more time with the ones I can still get in touch with.
about the talking fish
- JM
- Writer. Wheelman. Occasional DIY mechanic. Walking collection of hang-ups. Hopeless romantic. Old-school. Analog soul in a digital world. I am all of these things and more.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Saturday, December 02, 2006
In memoriam: Chris Gabriel, 1985-2006
Last week I was unlucky enough to succumb to what seems like a fashionable disease these days: the common cold. Coupled with my hyperactive brain’s reluctance to go to sleep at night, the cold went into overdrive and became a full-blown flu. As such I had to take my first couple days of sick leave.
I’m feeling a lot better now, but I know I’m not completely out of the woods yet. Although I’ll be able to work next week, I can still feel my head complaining a little. All this meant I had to miss out on the badminton tournament Paolo Cruz and I registered for.
Still, this doesn’t compare to what a friend of mine had. Bianca informed me this morning that my high school and college friend Chris Gabriel died today from a car accident, which is pretty grave news.
Chris was a wonderful, jolly fellow. He’s one of the hardest-working souls I’ve ever met. Even though he was always chasing deadlines in the time I was with him he never seemed flustered or pressured. He was always like that, ever since my days in Counterpoint back in high school. It’s really such a shame that he died so young. I’m not sure if he even got employed already.
Rest in peace, Chris. You will be missed dearly, I am sure.
I’m feeling a lot better now, but I know I’m not completely out of the woods yet. Although I’ll be able to work next week, I can still feel my head complaining a little. All this meant I had to miss out on the badminton tournament Paolo Cruz and I registered for.
Still, this doesn’t compare to what a friend of mine had. Bianca informed me this morning that my high school and college friend Chris Gabriel died today from a car accident, which is pretty grave news.
Chris was a wonderful, jolly fellow. He’s one of the hardest-working souls I’ve ever met. Even though he was always chasing deadlines in the time I was with him he never seemed flustered or pressured. He was always like that, ever since my days in Counterpoint back in high school. It’s really such a shame that he died so young. I’m not sure if he even got employed already.
Rest in peace, Chris. You will be missed dearly, I am sure.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
At long last
We finally have a new monitor! Hurrah!
I was looking around for CRT monitors because I still wasn’t convinced that the ever-cheapening LCD variety would serve our home computer well. PC Magazine Philippines wrote in their “Monitors LCD vs. CRT” piece last year that LCD monitors don’t work very well outside their “native resolution,” or the actual count of the pixels of the display. That means games and video playback tend to suffer from “ghosting.” It doesn’t help that response times at 8-16ms aren’t as instantaneous as CRTs. Besides, the price is still rather high in my view. I could get a decent 15” CRT for PhP5,000.
My parents thought differently though: since this is effectively an upgrade, we might as well trade up to the best we could afford. So they were all sold on the merits of LCD monitors, such as the low power consumption and the space savings.
When I got home two days ago with the CD-Rs my dad wanted, he casually asked me “Have you seen the new monitor?” I was surprised.
Sitting on the desk was a silver-bezel Samsung SyncMaster 940BW monitor: a 19” LCD beast of a monitor. The thing’s got an aspect ratio of 16:10, significantly wider than the 4:3 of usual monitors. But it was still an LCD and I had my doubts. This called for some testing.
I booted up my games and played a few minutes of “Turn-A Gundam,” both at full screen and at various resolutions. Not bad! There was barely any shimmer or ghosting, and it wasn’t enough to be an annoyance. I found out from the promotional decal of the monitor that it sported a fast response time of 4ms from gray to gray. If anything, the Samsung is ridiculously bright.
In my spare time I researched the Samsung 940BW online. My parents made a very good choice, it seems. It’s reportedly one of the best monitors around at this price range (PhP14,000). Although it’s not ideal for graphics work and Photoshop, it’ll cover home PC duties very well, or so the reviews say.
What can I say...I’m actually pleased I was wrong.
The monitor had an unexpected extra with it. My folks threw in a new keyboard, the A4Tech kL-5. This thing has no numeric keypad, which saves space, but seems to jam all the keys in a small footprint, which means the auxiliary keys I’ve learned to use on a full-size keyboard are in new places I’m not so familar with. It’s also a quiet unit which purportedly reduces RSI (repetitive strain injury), but I’ve never been a fan of shallow laptop keyboards, which this one feels like.
Oh well. At least it matches the monitor.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Ate Edith's birthday
Ate Edith had me and the SVMM people over at her place for her birthday. Let me rave about her spaghetti: despite being a sweet blend (the kind I usually don’t like), she put in two whole heads of garlic, Italian seasoning, mushrooms and red bell peppers for great effect. Very delicious.
It’s been a while since the choir met like this and I was simply drinking up the noise and the laughter from my friends. One month more and I can safely say I’ve spent one year with SVMM. It hasn’t been without its down moments, and I do have questions about the commitment of some of my choir mates, but overall I’m glad I’m part of it.
It’s been a while since the choir met like this and I was simply drinking up the noise and the laughter from my friends. One month more and I can safely say I’ve spent one year with SVMM. It hasn’t been without its down moments, and I do have questions about the commitment of some of my choir mates, but overall I’m glad I’m part of it.
Another impending farewell
My blog started five years ago with news of our old AE101 Corolla 1.6 being prepped for sale. Now it’s the City’s turn.
There’s still a lot to be done before it can be sold, such as dent repair and repainting, which means a sale isn’t as imminent as it may seem. I’m still reluctant to let it go, though. It’s easily the most frugal vehicle in our stable (I’m still achieving a consistent 10-11+ km/L), the easiest to park and maneuver, the lightest and arguably the most enjoyable to drive.
We’ll be hunting for another second-hand vehicle as a replacement. With my mom’s bias for Toyotas though, I’m afraid I’ll be saying goodbye to all of the things I liked about my car, as I’ve never really enjoyed driving her ZZE121 Corolla Altis, either because of its “driving on stilts” responses or its atrocious driving position.
I’m still waiting for that Honda Jazz 1.5V to come my way. Whichever transmission, I already know from my test drives that I’ll appreciate it a lot.
There’s still a lot to be done before it can be sold, such as dent repair and repainting, which means a sale isn’t as imminent as it may seem. I’m still reluctant to let it go, though. It’s easily the most frugal vehicle in our stable (I’m still achieving a consistent 10-11+ km/L), the easiest to park and maneuver, the lightest and arguably the most enjoyable to drive.
We’ll be hunting for another second-hand vehicle as a replacement. With my mom’s bias for Toyotas though, I’m afraid I’ll be saying goodbye to all of the things I liked about my car, as I’ve never really enjoyed driving her ZZE121 Corolla Altis, either because of its “driving on stilts” responses or its atrocious driving position.
I’m still waiting for that Honda Jazz 1.5V to come my way. Whichever transmission, I already know from my test drives that I’ll appreciate it a lot.
Too good to give away...
I was in Alabang Town Center last weekend to shop for some Christmas presents. Why don’t I look for the shoes to gift my trainer with? I figured. While I had intended to get him a good pair, I’m not about to break my wallet on shoes—most especially shoes as gifts. So I kept a strict limit on budget.
I passed through the typical stores: Nike, Adidas, The Athlete’s Foot. My general qualm was their merchandise was just too expensive, and not all of it was particularly fetching either. I did get my mom’s present at Nike though. As a final stop, I went into Olympic World.
The shoes on display were a surprise. The moment I laid my eyes on Mizuno’s Incision futsal sneakers, I was instantly drawn. It looked like no other shoe I’ve seen: it was black on the outside edge, silver on the inner edge, and red at the heel. (I know the photo I posted doesn't match my description.) It’s a fusion of Nike’s Total 90 futsal/football shoe, with its shine, offset laces and extended tongue, and their expensive-but-suave Nike Free 7.0 Trainer, with its split-colored upper. Unlike the Trainer, the Incision cost about half of its PhP4,400, and you can have it with outdoor-use molded cleats for just PhP100 more.
Right there and then I had second thoughts: it looks and costs too damn good to be given away. When I showed up in church wearing them the next day, Jajah couldn’t have enough of them. Aileen told me I should keep them.
Besides, she said, in this day and age, giving away new shoes to a relative stranger can bring about negative implications about my sexuality, no matter how good the intentions. Now I don’t really know about this: I’ve kept the Mizuno Incisions for myself, but I still plan to buy the guy a pair of cheap-but-good sneakers as a present.
I guess I was too carried away by the looks to fit the Mizunos properly. Looking back, the ones I got are a tad cramped at the toes; I should have opted for the 9.5 size. However, I’ve used them for a few badminton games, a taebo routine and jogging on a treadmill and they’re pretty good so far. Jogging with them was surprisingly comfortable. Mizuno’s reputation as an underrated but excellent athletic shoe is confirmed, and they can definitely add “stylish” to their CV now too with the Incision series.
I passed through the typical stores: Nike, Adidas, The Athlete’s Foot. My general qualm was their merchandise was just too expensive, and not all of it was particularly fetching either. I did get my mom’s present at Nike though. As a final stop, I went into Olympic World.
The shoes on display were a surprise. The moment I laid my eyes on Mizuno’s Incision futsal sneakers, I was instantly drawn. It looked like no other shoe I’ve seen: it was black on the outside edge, silver on the inner edge, and red at the heel. (I know the photo I posted doesn't match my description.) It’s a fusion of Nike’s Total 90 futsal/football shoe, with its shine, offset laces and extended tongue, and their expensive-but-suave Nike Free 7.0 Trainer, with its split-colored upper. Unlike the Trainer, the Incision cost about half of its PhP4,400, and you can have it with outdoor-use molded cleats for just PhP100 more.
Right there and then I had second thoughts: it looks and costs too damn good to be given away. When I showed up in church wearing them the next day, Jajah couldn’t have enough of them. Aileen told me I should keep them.
Besides, she said, in this day and age, giving away new shoes to a relative stranger can bring about negative implications about my sexuality, no matter how good the intentions. Now I don’t really know about this: I’ve kept the Mizuno Incisions for myself, but I still plan to buy the guy a pair of cheap-but-good sneakers as a present.
I guess I was too carried away by the looks to fit the Mizunos properly. Looking back, the ones I got are a tad cramped at the toes; I should have opted for the 9.5 size. However, I’ve used them for a few badminton games, a taebo routine and jogging on a treadmill and they’re pretty good so far. Jogging with them was surprisingly comfortable. Mizuno’s reputation as an underrated but excellent athletic shoe is confirmed, and they can definitely add “stylish” to their CV now too with the Incision series.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Tales from the crypt
All Saints’ Day started ominously enough with a column by Andre Palma on the Inquirer: Ultimately this day is one of remembering. While Palma chose to remember the cars he drove growing up, I chose to remember something else.
I tagged along with my dad to Baliwag on our annual visit to the family grave. Of the five or six names there, the only tomb I’m familar with is of my grandfather’s, who died in 1992. I was all but nine years old then, and we weren’t exactly what you could call close. I hardly knew the guy. All I really knew was that he was a doctor and he was born in 1919.
At my dad’s ancestral home in Baliwag, with the de Leon clan at the dining table, we were talking about my granddad for what seemed like the first time ever. Well, perhaps not, but it’s the first time I remember hearing anything more about him that I didn’t already know.
It was a surprise learning that he never intended to become a doctor; he simply took the course because his parents wanted him to. What he really wanted to become was an engineer. That didn’t stop him from placing within the top ten of the board exams, though. It seems he didn’t practice medicine; the ancestral home has obvious traces of being a pharmacy once. Tita Vik said that once in a while, he’d observe structures and buildings and comment on how they could be made better. Whenever he did that, he was in a world of his own.
A little segue here: My cousin Carlo is currently in his third year of high school in La Salle Greenhills, and he was asking me about college, entrance exams and my experiences at work. (Good lord, he’s already much taller than I am at 5’10”.) He says his forte for now is geometry, while chemistry is something he could be better at.
When I asked him about what he was planning to take up in college, he didn’t pick any particular course—all he said was he wanted to extend his grasp of geometry, and a BS Math degree is out of the question. When I told him he might have a future as an engineer, his eyes lit up in agreement. After hearing my granddad’s story, he remarked the will to be an engineer might have been passed down to him.
It was a day of remembering, all right. I’m very thankful for it.
===
Normally, the North Luzon Expressway is transformed into a crawling parking lot on holidays like All Saints’ Day and the end of Holy Week. So you can imagine my surprise when on the way home, the traffic stayed in the Cagayan Valley road leading to the towns and cities of Baliwag, none of it leaking into the NLEX.
Using the NLEX is expensive: even with a claimed lower cost per kilometer than the SLEX I’m all too familiar with, the stops up north are spaced much farther apart. However you can really see where the expense goes on the NLEX. The asphalt is smooth, the four lanes are wide enough for Americans to be comfortable with, and the traffic jam I was expecting to get stuck in was nowhere to be found along its length. With Pinoys being Pinoys, there are still idiots who don’t know what a passing lane is, but even so it’s surprisingly manageable. There’s even an electronic toll payment system called the EC-tag, mimicking the more popular E-pass of the SLEX.
All I can say is...wow. If this is the price of progress, I’ll gladly pay. Just don’t count on me making frequent trips to Bulacan or Baguio all by my lonesome.
===
In the halcyon days of high school I used to buy the US edition of PC Magazine—it was still relatively cheap at PhP150 or so. This was one of the expenses I had growing up that, in hindsight, was ultimately utterly pointless. I was too poor (or rather not willing) to spend on the latest processors, CD-ROM drives and graphics cards, although being the gullible geek I was at the time I was amazed just reading about them and what they could do.
My old prof Gary Mariano had a point: He buys computer magazines only when he’s looking for upgrades to his computer or shopping for a new one. After that, he ignores them completely. The point is simple enough: Everything in a computer magazine is intended to make you feel like your system is obsolete.
Over time, the peso weakened and the US version of PC Magazine became hideously expensive. So not long ago, PC Magazine Philippines was born, published by Hinge Inquirer Publications (also known, rather arrogantly, as “hip”). It sells for PhP100 and is considerably cheaper and thinner than the ad-packed US version. You already know about how I’m looking for a new monitor, so I decided to buy the recent issue.
I wasn’t prepared for the irony that awaited me. Art Ilano’s column “Next Wave” had a piece called “An Embarrassment of Storage Space,” and it talked about the pointlessness of Blu-ray and HD-DVD, the much-ballyhooed optical media of the near future. “Blu-ray and HD-DVD are coming,” he says. “Now just what are we going to do with them?” Unlike the migration from CD-ROM to DVD, where DVD movies brought extra features, Ilano says there’s no compelling reason to move up to these new disks with huge capacities.
I am amazed. Here’s a guy who writes for a magazine that is determined to make me part with my money in the endless pursuit of better computing and avoidance of obsolescence. But here he was, preaching a different gospel—a gospel of the pointlessness of some of the technology we are influenced to buy.
Color me impressed.
I tagged along with my dad to Baliwag on our annual visit to the family grave. Of the five or six names there, the only tomb I’m familar with is of my grandfather’s, who died in 1992. I was all but nine years old then, and we weren’t exactly what you could call close. I hardly knew the guy. All I really knew was that he was a doctor and he was born in 1919.
At my dad’s ancestral home in Baliwag, with the de Leon clan at the dining table, we were talking about my granddad for what seemed like the first time ever. Well, perhaps not, but it’s the first time I remember hearing anything more about him that I didn’t already know.
It was a surprise learning that he never intended to become a doctor; he simply took the course because his parents wanted him to. What he really wanted to become was an engineer. That didn’t stop him from placing within the top ten of the board exams, though. It seems he didn’t practice medicine; the ancestral home has obvious traces of being a pharmacy once. Tita Vik said that once in a while, he’d observe structures and buildings and comment on how they could be made better. Whenever he did that, he was in a world of his own.
A little segue here: My cousin Carlo is currently in his third year of high school in La Salle Greenhills, and he was asking me about college, entrance exams and my experiences at work. (Good lord, he’s already much taller than I am at 5’10”.) He says his forte for now is geometry, while chemistry is something he could be better at.
When I asked him about what he was planning to take up in college, he didn’t pick any particular course—all he said was he wanted to extend his grasp of geometry, and a BS Math degree is out of the question. When I told him he might have a future as an engineer, his eyes lit up in agreement. After hearing my granddad’s story, he remarked the will to be an engineer might have been passed down to him.
It was a day of remembering, all right. I’m very thankful for it.
===
Normally, the North Luzon Expressway is transformed into a crawling parking lot on holidays like All Saints’ Day and the end of Holy Week. So you can imagine my surprise when on the way home, the traffic stayed in the Cagayan Valley road leading to the towns and cities of Baliwag, none of it leaking into the NLEX.
Using the NLEX is expensive: even with a claimed lower cost per kilometer than the SLEX I’m all too familiar with, the stops up north are spaced much farther apart. However you can really see where the expense goes on the NLEX. The asphalt is smooth, the four lanes are wide enough for Americans to be comfortable with, and the traffic jam I was expecting to get stuck in was nowhere to be found along its length. With Pinoys being Pinoys, there are still idiots who don’t know what a passing lane is, but even so it’s surprisingly manageable. There’s even an electronic toll payment system called the EC-tag, mimicking the more popular E-pass of the SLEX.
All I can say is...wow. If this is the price of progress, I’ll gladly pay. Just don’t count on me making frequent trips to Bulacan or Baguio all by my lonesome.
===
In the halcyon days of high school I used to buy the US edition of PC Magazine—it was still relatively cheap at PhP150 or so. This was one of the expenses I had growing up that, in hindsight, was ultimately utterly pointless. I was too poor (or rather not willing) to spend on the latest processors, CD-ROM drives and graphics cards, although being the gullible geek I was at the time I was amazed just reading about them and what they could do.
My old prof Gary Mariano had a point: He buys computer magazines only when he’s looking for upgrades to his computer or shopping for a new one. After that, he ignores them completely. The point is simple enough: Everything in a computer magazine is intended to make you feel like your system is obsolete.
Over time, the peso weakened and the US version of PC Magazine became hideously expensive. So not long ago, PC Magazine Philippines was born, published by Hinge Inquirer Publications (also known, rather arrogantly, as “hip”). It sells for PhP100 and is considerably cheaper and thinner than the ad-packed US version. You already know about how I’m looking for a new monitor, so I decided to buy the recent issue.
I wasn’t prepared for the irony that awaited me. Art Ilano’s column “Next Wave” had a piece called “An Embarrassment of Storage Space,” and it talked about the pointlessness of Blu-ray and HD-DVD, the much-ballyhooed optical media of the near future. “Blu-ray and HD-DVD are coming,” he says. “Now just what are we going to do with them?” Unlike the migration from CD-ROM to DVD, where DVD movies brought extra features, Ilano says there’s no compelling reason to move up to these new disks with huge capacities.
I am amazed. Here’s a guy who writes for a magazine that is determined to make me part with my money in the endless pursuit of better computing and avoidance of obsolescence. But here he was, preaching a different gospel—a gospel of the pointlessness of some of the technology we are influenced to buy.
Color me impressed.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
The sweetest illusions are the ones everyone believes
Ever since I started logging on to Friendster again I’ve been getting testimonials from my colleagues. Nothing new, yeah, but I’m flattered with what most of them have been saying. The gist of it is, they say I’m optimistic and confident about myself.
I’m flattered, primarily because I never thought of myself as confident and optimistic. I’m a pessimist by nature; I tend to assume the worst case scenario in most things and I panic easily. And by Jove, I am not a confident person. People who know me a long time know I’m actually very shy and introverted. It’s not always easy for me to be loose and outgoing, so most of the time I find it easier to act nonchalant and aloof to other people to hide my shyness.
People say that sex appeal is 50% what you’ve got and 50% what other people think you’ve got. They say that the trick is to make people think that you have sexiness long enough, and before you know it, the feedback comes to you and you yourself will think you’re sexy as well.
It sounds like a nice idea, but when you cut it down to the essentials it’s actually the sweetest illusion. It’s the little lie that comes around and goes around...until it comes back to you and becomes truth.
How much easier it would be if we didn’t have to trick others and ourselves like this. But then again this doesn’t seem so bad. Don’t get me wrong; I appreciate all these good comments and I guess this means I’ve changed a lot for the better since my regrettable childhood.
If people think I’m confident and optimistic then so be it. They will see me as such until I mess up their perceptions.
===
Still, one thing is for certain: I absolutely love to perform. I love to sing, dance and make other people happy and entertained. I am a frustrated performer no more.
My current project at work is a tedious one and I was getting tired of it. So when I got an invitation over email about the choir rehearsal for the First Friday mass I jumped at the opportunity: I worked straight through lunch and finished my stuff so I could be out by 6pm.
You know what? Before the rehearsal I didn’t feel alive today. My choir mates—all Accenture people, from different projects—are a swell bunch who know how to let loose and have fun. My day felt complete when we played around with our songs while rehearsing them, trying to make them better or more entertaining.
Ever since the battle of the bands last summer I’ve been bugging my teammates on a few occasions about going back to Audiophile, reserving their studio for a couple hours to sing and play our tensions and frustrations away. So far it hasn’t happened yet, but I’m still hoping for a convenient chance.
No music, no life.
I’m flattered, primarily because I never thought of myself as confident and optimistic. I’m a pessimist by nature; I tend to assume the worst case scenario in most things and I panic easily. And by Jove, I am not a confident person. People who know me a long time know I’m actually very shy and introverted. It’s not always easy for me to be loose and outgoing, so most of the time I find it easier to act nonchalant and aloof to other people to hide my shyness.
People say that sex appeal is 50% what you’ve got and 50% what other people think you’ve got. They say that the trick is to make people think that you have sexiness long enough, and before you know it, the feedback comes to you and you yourself will think you’re sexy as well.
It sounds like a nice idea, but when you cut it down to the essentials it’s actually the sweetest illusion. It’s the little lie that comes around and goes around...until it comes back to you and becomes truth.
How much easier it would be if we didn’t have to trick others and ourselves like this. But then again this doesn’t seem so bad. Don’t get me wrong; I appreciate all these good comments and I guess this means I’ve changed a lot for the better since my regrettable childhood.
If people think I’m confident and optimistic then so be it. They will see me as such until I mess up their perceptions.
===
Still, one thing is for certain: I absolutely love to perform. I love to sing, dance and make other people happy and entertained. I am a frustrated performer no more.
My current project at work is a tedious one and I was getting tired of it. So when I got an invitation over email about the choir rehearsal for the First Friday mass I jumped at the opportunity: I worked straight through lunch and finished my stuff so I could be out by 6pm.
You know what? Before the rehearsal I didn’t feel alive today. My choir mates—all Accenture people, from different projects—are a swell bunch who know how to let loose and have fun. My day felt complete when we played around with our songs while rehearsing them, trying to make them better or more entertaining.
Ever since the battle of the bands last summer I’ve been bugging my teammates on a few occasions about going back to Audiophile, reserving their studio for a couple hours to sing and play our tensions and frustrations away. So far it hasn’t happened yet, but I’m still hoping for a convenient chance.
No music, no life.
Santa's been kind to me lately
Recently I’ve been getting the stuff on my Christmas list one by one.
A couple of weeks ago, my dad got ahead of me and bought a Sony external DVD writer. Well, it’s actually an internal drive hooked up to an external chassis meant to house a 5.25” hard disk, but for all intents and purposes it’s an external DVD writer. It’s proving a welcome addition to our computing at home. We can finally burn our own CDs and watch all those stubborn DVDs that don’t want to work on our standalone DVD player.
Around the same time I bought some computer goodies myself. After asking around and looking everywhere for a PC gamepad, I was happy to realize I only had to climb up one more floor on Festival Mall to get it. It’s a nice blue Logitech Precision Gamepad, shaped in the style of the classic PlayStation gamepad, and surprisingly cheap relative to their feature-packed and ridiculously expensive mice. Hey, given all this I might as well go buy a reputable brand if it’s not going to cost me an arm and a leg.
My Panasonic headphones were constantly giving my ears pain due to the hanging design, so I splurged on a nice pair of TDK neckphones instead. They’re not the DJ-style headphones I was hankering for, but they’re a nice substitute. They didn’t cost me an arm and a leg either.
I got both these goodies from Octagon. They really do live up to the moniker of being the computer superstore, simply by dint of carrying the only assortment of PC gamepads I know. Next up on my list is a new monitor (it’s about goddamn time), and I’ll have to save a little harder for one.
Sadly, there’s no news on the Jazz VTEC I wanted. Aheheheh. You can’t have them all I guess.
===
The same day I bought my first set of anime DVDs in what seems like years. I went all-out this time, buying the complete set of “After War Gundam X,” “Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket,” a sadly malfunctioning copy of “Mobile Suit Gundam F91” and “Leatherman.”
“Leatherman” was the only regrettable purchase. Really, I’ve seen better hentai.
“War in the Pocket” is definitively the un-Gundam. There is very little emphasis on the Earth Federation and Principality of Zeon; instead we see how the war affects innocent civilians, particularly the children who think war is a big cool game. It’s a short 6-episode series, but it shames many of the long-winded Gundam TV series because of the poignant theme and brilliant execution.
Finally, “Gundam X” is not the black sheep of the franchise simply because of being cut by 10 episodes. If anything, it’s night-and-day-and-most-of-the-following-evening better than the popular but disappointingly brainless “Gundam SEED DESTINY.” There are no loose ends in the plot, the premise of the post-apocalyptic story is interesting, the action almost never stops, and everything else just contributes to a solid anime series. That it strongly roots itself with many concepts and parallels from the Universal Century saga is icing on a very fulfilling cake.
===
Color me jaded but I think I’ve finally outgrown Gunpla.
There are a few model kits that still tickle my buying fancy, such as the just-released transforming 1/100 Saviour Gundam, the old MG Gundam GP01 “Zephyranthes,” the MG RX-78-2 Gundam “One Year War” version, the MG Nemo and the MG God Gundam. Overall though, I’m not as ardent a collector as I once was. I now see them for what they are: they’re essentially expensive toys that break too easily and lose their posability over time, especially because I haven’t gotten around to painting any of them.
There are some gems in the lineup though. My last kit, the MG Rick Dias, is a masterpiece of engineering and stability. The MG Wing Gundam ver.Ka I bought for my birthday last year is also one of the best models I have, surprisingly stable and forgiving for a transforming robot. Finally, there’s nothing more that can be said of the MG Zaku II F2, the best kit of the classic Zeon grunt mecha.
New MGs are generally disappointing though. I am not a fan of the new ball-jointed fingers on the hands because they aren’t any good at holding anything by themselves. The greater concentration of ABS used means that when something breaks, it’s broken for good—no more repairs via traditional plastic cement.
Besides, Bandai isn’t probably too keen on making some of my favorite mecha designs into kits because they’re from a forgotten era (read as “unprofitable”). If Bandai ever decides to make an awesome 1/100 kit of the RMSN-008 Bertigo from “Gundam X” I’ll be the first in line.
A couple of weeks ago, my dad got ahead of me and bought a Sony external DVD writer. Well, it’s actually an internal drive hooked up to an external chassis meant to house a 5.25” hard disk, but for all intents and purposes it’s an external DVD writer. It’s proving a welcome addition to our computing at home. We can finally burn our own CDs and watch all those stubborn DVDs that don’t want to work on our standalone DVD player.
Around the same time I bought some computer goodies myself. After asking around and looking everywhere for a PC gamepad, I was happy to realize I only had to climb up one more floor on Festival Mall to get it. It’s a nice blue Logitech Precision Gamepad, shaped in the style of the classic PlayStation gamepad, and surprisingly cheap relative to their feature-packed and ridiculously expensive mice. Hey, given all this I might as well go buy a reputable brand if it’s not going to cost me an arm and a leg.
My Panasonic headphones were constantly giving my ears pain due to the hanging design, so I splurged on a nice pair of TDK neckphones instead. They’re not the DJ-style headphones I was hankering for, but they’re a nice substitute. They didn’t cost me an arm and a leg either.
I got both these goodies from Octagon. They really do live up to the moniker of being the computer superstore, simply by dint of carrying the only assortment of PC gamepads I know. Next up on my list is a new monitor (it’s about goddamn time), and I’ll have to save a little harder for one.
Sadly, there’s no news on the Jazz VTEC I wanted. Aheheheh. You can’t have them all I guess.
===
The same day I bought my first set of anime DVDs in what seems like years. I went all-out this time, buying the complete set of “After War Gundam X,” “Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket,” a sadly malfunctioning copy of “Mobile Suit Gundam F91” and “Leatherman.”
“Leatherman” was the only regrettable purchase. Really, I’ve seen better hentai.
“War in the Pocket” is definitively the un-Gundam. There is very little emphasis on the Earth Federation and Principality of Zeon; instead we see how the war affects innocent civilians, particularly the children who think war is a big cool game. It’s a short 6-episode series, but it shames many of the long-winded Gundam TV series because of the poignant theme and brilliant execution.
Finally, “Gundam X” is not the black sheep of the franchise simply because of being cut by 10 episodes. If anything, it’s night-and-day-and-most-of-the-following-evening better than the popular but disappointingly brainless “Gundam SEED DESTINY.” There are no loose ends in the plot, the premise of the post-apocalyptic story is interesting, the action almost never stops, and everything else just contributes to a solid anime series. That it strongly roots itself with many concepts and parallels from the Universal Century saga is icing on a very fulfilling cake.
===
Color me jaded but I think I’ve finally outgrown Gunpla.
There are a few model kits that still tickle my buying fancy, such as the just-released transforming 1/100 Saviour Gundam, the old MG Gundam GP01 “Zephyranthes,” the MG RX-78-2 Gundam “One Year War” version, the MG Nemo and the MG God Gundam. Overall though, I’m not as ardent a collector as I once was. I now see them for what they are: they’re essentially expensive toys that break too easily and lose their posability over time, especially because I haven’t gotten around to painting any of them.
There are some gems in the lineup though. My last kit, the MG Rick Dias, is a masterpiece of engineering and stability. The MG Wing Gundam ver.Ka I bought for my birthday last year is also one of the best models I have, surprisingly stable and forgiving for a transforming robot. Finally, there’s nothing more that can be said of the MG Zaku II F2, the best kit of the classic Zeon grunt mecha.
New MGs are generally disappointing though. I am not a fan of the new ball-jointed fingers on the hands because they aren’t any good at holding anything by themselves. The greater concentration of ABS used means that when something breaks, it’s broken for good—no more repairs via traditional plastic cement.
Besides, Bandai isn’t probably too keen on making some of my favorite mecha designs into kits because they’re from a forgotten era (read as “unprofitable”). If Bandai ever decides to make an awesome 1/100 kit of the RMSN-008 Bertigo from “Gundam X” I’ll be the first in line.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Just some stuff I'd do for now if I had the money...
On Thursdays I’m usually at my office building by 7am due to color-coding. As my work starts at 9am, I burn the time by hitting the gym.
My tae-bo instructor came in when I was on the treadmill this week. I didn’t recognize him at first because of the fisherman’s hat, but waved him hello at second glance. We were casual acquaintances; I don’t know him that well outside of the weekly workout. Just as I was finishing with the treadmill I saw him walk outside with a bottle of “rugby” contact cement and his shoes. Apparently he was trying to mend something on them, probably the soles.
That’s when it hit me. Why don’t I give him a new pair of shoes as a gift this Christmas? I would have wasted the money otherwise, probably on a model kit that’s worth 7-14 hours of manual labor. In my typical idealist fashion, I thought maybe this was the start of my giving a gift to someone I hardly know every year. Who knows?
After dressing up for work, I wanted to ask him about his shoe size, but he was busy attending to someone else. Oh well. Maybe next time.
===
Frankly I’m convinced my eyes are telling me I need a new monitor for my computer. I’ve tried swapping our old and not-so-old monitors around and both have problems.
Both exhibit color “bloom” from what are supposed to be clearly delineated objects. Both also have annoying color shifts. While doing my stuff on them I will suddenly see everything tinged a shade of pink (forgivable), yellow (too bright and hard on the eyes), blue and deep red (unacceptable), and I try (usually in vain) to smack the monitor on its top to get it back to proper color.
While I’m at it I might as well up the size to 15” or 17” if money permits, and throw in a decent AGP graphics card.
If money permits.
Sigh. I never have enough.
===
Two weeks after the event, the mess that typhoon “Milenyo” left on our front yard is gone. The branches and leaves strewn across the church parking lot and streets have now been relocated to the sides or swept away.
I wish I could say it was the same situation everywhere.
You need not look further than Edsa to see that it wasn’t. Yesterday morning traffic was a slow crawl from Magallanes interchange all the way to Buendia intersection because of a crane that ate up all but 3 lanes. The crane in question was a government one dispatched to get rid of the potentially hazardous billboards along this major road.
Cleanup isn’t going to be done for a while. We’ll have to put up with this inanity for now.
My tae-bo instructor came in when I was on the treadmill this week. I didn’t recognize him at first because of the fisherman’s hat, but waved him hello at second glance. We were casual acquaintances; I don’t know him that well outside of the weekly workout. Just as I was finishing with the treadmill I saw him walk outside with a bottle of “rugby” contact cement and his shoes. Apparently he was trying to mend something on them, probably the soles.
That’s when it hit me. Why don’t I give him a new pair of shoes as a gift this Christmas? I would have wasted the money otherwise, probably on a model kit that’s worth 7-14 hours of manual labor. In my typical idealist fashion, I thought maybe this was the start of my giving a gift to someone I hardly know every year. Who knows?
After dressing up for work, I wanted to ask him about his shoe size, but he was busy attending to someone else. Oh well. Maybe next time.
===
Frankly I’m convinced my eyes are telling me I need a new monitor for my computer. I’ve tried swapping our old and not-so-old monitors around and both have problems.
Both exhibit color “bloom” from what are supposed to be clearly delineated objects. Both also have annoying color shifts. While doing my stuff on them I will suddenly see everything tinged a shade of pink (forgivable), yellow (too bright and hard on the eyes), blue and deep red (unacceptable), and I try (usually in vain) to smack the monitor on its top to get it back to proper color.
While I’m at it I might as well up the size to 15” or 17” if money permits, and throw in a decent AGP graphics card.
If money permits.
Sigh. I never have enough.
===
Two weeks after the event, the mess that typhoon “Milenyo” left on our front yard is gone. The branches and leaves strewn across the church parking lot and streets have now been relocated to the sides or swept away.
I wish I could say it was the same situation everywhere.
You need not look further than Edsa to see that it wasn’t. Yesterday morning traffic was a slow crawl from Magallanes interchange all the way to Buendia intersection because of a crane that ate up all but 3 lanes. The crane in question was a government one dispatched to get rid of the potentially hazardous billboards along this major road.
Cleanup isn’t going to be done for a while. We’ll have to put up with this inanity for now.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Friday the 13th...means jack shit to me
Friday the 13th. It’s been a while since my last entry.
My costly mistake from two weeks ago has been addressed. I guess I was ignorant about how setting off my debt with cash rather than my insurance would leave me a few thousand bucks poorer. The whole mistake eroded some of my confidence in my parking skills, which I thought were close to perfect. Oh well. Crash and learn, as someone quoted in the Philippine STAR said.
It was also an expensive way of meeting new people...in this case the people in question were ones I’d rather avoid. Goodness, they were practically nagging me for the cash and reminding me of how hassled they were by the dents I gave them at every opportunity. Don’t they realize that I have other obligations to keep and that I will pay them when possible? Despite the guilt trip they were leading me on to, I had the decency of stopping short of telling them that they were my hassle. I am so glad that that’s over with.
At least none of my boo-boos behind the wheel have matched the damage of a white City I saw parked at work yesterday. All my incidents were simple fender-benders; this white Honda’s right front corner was totally, grotesquely smashed in. It’s a wonder the suspension’s still aligned enough to be driven.
===
It didn’t occur to me to start buying books until after I started working. In the span ot two months I’d bought myself two Haruki Murakami novels, “Norwegian Wood” and “Dance Dance Dance.”
“Norwegian Wood” is a great read. It’s not as mind-boggling as Murakami’s other stuff, it’s just a straightforward story in 1960s Japan and all the better for it. Bought just this afternoon, “Dance Dance Dance” seems like a continuation of another work, “A Wild Sheep Chase,” which left my head scratching. I’ll see how it goes as I move along.
Being the mecha freak that I am, I’ve discovered the Super Robot Wars games too. They’re fun to play, but are taxing on time and mind because of all the micro-management you have to do. There’s something rather cool about seeing Mazinger Z, Combattler V, Voltes V and all the UC Gundams working together.
I think I’m beginning to outgrow my plastic mecha model kits though. I’m paying serious dough for 7-14 hours of manual labor. I’m starting to have a “been there done that” complex with them, seeing how I’m usually frustrated with their fragility after half a year or so. The expense of this hobby is also making itself felt on my wallet—I’d just paid off a huge debt and adding expenses isn’t going to help me any.
===
When I got home today I had a surprise waiting for me on my mess of a desk. It was a Timex watch from my dad. He had scribbled a note: “Punctuality has its reward. Keep it up.”
At first I wondered how on earth he knew of my attendance record at work. It turned out it was my punctuality in getting home on or before the time I told them.
Ah well. Most of my watches are broken or too old. I’m long past the time when I was complaining about having too many watches, so this one’s a welcome addition that came at just the right time.
My costly mistake from two weeks ago has been addressed. I guess I was ignorant about how setting off my debt with cash rather than my insurance would leave me a few thousand bucks poorer. The whole mistake eroded some of my confidence in my parking skills, which I thought were close to perfect. Oh well. Crash and learn, as someone quoted in the Philippine STAR said.
It was also an expensive way of meeting new people...in this case the people in question were ones I’d rather avoid. Goodness, they were practically nagging me for the cash and reminding me of how hassled they were by the dents I gave them at every opportunity. Don’t they realize that I have other obligations to keep and that I will pay them when possible? Despite the guilt trip they were leading me on to, I had the decency of stopping short of telling them that they were my hassle. I am so glad that that’s over with.
At least none of my boo-boos behind the wheel have matched the damage of a white City I saw parked at work yesterday. All my incidents were simple fender-benders; this white Honda’s right front corner was totally, grotesquely smashed in. It’s a wonder the suspension’s still aligned enough to be driven.
===
It didn’t occur to me to start buying books until after I started working. In the span ot two months I’d bought myself two Haruki Murakami novels, “Norwegian Wood” and “Dance Dance Dance.”
“Norwegian Wood” is a great read. It’s not as mind-boggling as Murakami’s other stuff, it’s just a straightforward story in 1960s Japan and all the better for it. Bought just this afternoon, “Dance Dance Dance” seems like a continuation of another work, “A Wild Sheep Chase,” which left my head scratching. I’ll see how it goes as I move along.
Being the mecha freak that I am, I’ve discovered the Super Robot Wars games too. They’re fun to play, but are taxing on time and mind because of all the micro-management you have to do. There’s something rather cool about seeing Mazinger Z, Combattler V, Voltes V and all the UC Gundams working together.
I think I’m beginning to outgrow my plastic mecha model kits though. I’m paying serious dough for 7-14 hours of manual labor. I’m starting to have a “been there done that” complex with them, seeing how I’m usually frustrated with their fragility after half a year or so. The expense of this hobby is also making itself felt on my wallet—I’d just paid off a huge debt and adding expenses isn’t going to help me any.
===
When I got home today I had a surprise waiting for me on my mess of a desk. It was a Timex watch from my dad. He had scribbled a note: “Punctuality has its reward. Keep it up.”
At first I wondered how on earth he knew of my attendance record at work. It turned out it was my punctuality in getting home on or before the time I told them.
Ah well. Most of my watches are broken or too old. I’m long past the time when I was complaining about having too many watches, so this one’s a welcome addition that came at just the right time.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
A truncated record of my clash with typhoon "Milenyo"
Thursday morning, 6:30am: Took the Skyway going to work (color-coding ako). It was terrifying just maintaining a steady 90 km/h. Visibility was a bitch and my wipers couldn't keep up with the torrential rain.
Thursday afternoon, 12:30pm: A used car lot just below my office is reduced to a pile of GI sheets flying in the wind. Sayang yung mga kotse.
Thursday evening, 5:45pm: Left the office. A fallen tree blocked almost all of Pioneer St.
Thursday evening, 6:10pm: Driving along C5 southbound. The road is cleaner than I thought, but there were 5 fallen lampposts and a few large fallen tree branches.
===
Friday morning, 9:00am: Left the house.
Friday morning, 9:45am: Stuck in Magallanes interchange. I see a bus that got entangled within a fallen billboard.
Friday morning, 10:30am: Still stuck in EDSA. Rude drivers are everywhere. I can't count the number of times I almost trade paint with buses or other cars.
Friday morning, 11:10am: Turns out all the traffic from Magallanes northward was due to ONE fallen billboard at the Kalayaan flyover/MMDA Orense area. The billboard fell such a way that it blocked everything but 2 lanes of northward EDSA asphalt. After navigating the fallen billboard there is suddenly a very free piece of road where it would usually be filled with buses (Guadalupe area).
I arrive for work 1.5 hours late.
===
The day before all that, I had the misfortune to rear-end another car for the first time ever. I had fallen victim to wrong maneuvers done in the dark.
My car was hardly scratched...at least hardly any more than it already was. The dark red Sentra I bumped into had a shallow dent within its fender area. I’m sure it won’t be too hard to fix as the damage was localized into one body panel only.
Crikey. This is turning out to be such an expensive way to meet new people. Oh well.
Thursday afternoon, 12:30pm: A used car lot just below my office is reduced to a pile of GI sheets flying in the wind. Sayang yung mga kotse.
Thursday evening, 5:45pm: Left the office. A fallen tree blocked almost all of Pioneer St.
Thursday evening, 6:10pm: Driving along C5 southbound. The road is cleaner than I thought, but there were 5 fallen lampposts and a few large fallen tree branches.
===
Friday morning, 9:00am: Left the house.
Friday morning, 9:45am: Stuck in Magallanes interchange. I see a bus that got entangled within a fallen billboard.
Friday morning, 10:30am: Still stuck in EDSA. Rude drivers are everywhere. I can't count the number of times I almost trade paint with buses or other cars.
Friday morning, 11:10am: Turns out all the traffic from Magallanes northward was due to ONE fallen billboard at the Kalayaan flyover/MMDA Orense area. The billboard fell such a way that it blocked everything but 2 lanes of northward EDSA asphalt. After navigating the fallen billboard there is suddenly a very free piece of road where it would usually be filled with buses (Guadalupe area).
I arrive for work 1.5 hours late.
===
The day before all that, I had the misfortune to rear-end another car for the first time ever. I had fallen victim to wrong maneuvers done in the dark.
My car was hardly scratched...at least hardly any more than it already was. The dark red Sentra I bumped into had a shallow dent within its fender area. I’m sure it won’t be too hard to fix as the damage was localized into one body panel only.
Crikey. This is turning out to be such an expensive way to meet new people. Oh well.
Monday, September 18, 2006
What I want for Christmas...
It just occurred to me that it’s already the middle of September. By itself that’s not much of a reason to notice, unless you’re into celebrating bad things happening—Martial Law 1972 and the 2001 World Trade Center massacre being the most notable examples.
No, what I’m talking about is the start of the countdown to this year’s Christmas (which the Philippines has arguably the longest celebration of any country). And this would be the perfect time to buy stuff for the people you’re planning on giving gifts to. There aren’t too many people who’ve realized this fact, I guess, so you won’t have too many people to fend off in the malls and department stores.
Wait a tick. Holy cow.
Just when I was trying to convince myself to stop shopping and start saving, I concoct the perfect reason for my own financial undoing. My only consolation is traditionally I’ve never had to buy too many presents, and it seems things will continue that way.
They have to. My wallet can’t take it any other way.
===
Anyway, while we’re on the subject, this early I might as well ask our favorite fictional fat father (I’m not so good with alliteration, do bear with it) to bring me a little list of the stuff I want. It’d be nice to have them, but I can live without these things.
Sigh. I think I’m asking for too much.
Santa, stop me. Hit me on the head or something.
No, what I’m talking about is the start of the countdown to this year’s Christmas (which the Philippines has arguably the longest celebration of any country). And this would be the perfect time to buy stuff for the people you’re planning on giving gifts to. There aren’t too many people who’ve realized this fact, I guess, so you won’t have too many people to fend off in the malls and department stores.
Wait a tick. Holy cow.
Just when I was trying to convince myself to stop shopping and start saving, I concoct the perfect reason for my own financial undoing. My only consolation is traditionally I’ve never had to buy too many presents, and it seems things will continue that way.
They have to. My wallet can’t take it any other way.
===
Anyway, while we’re on the subject, this early I might as well ask our favorite fictional fat father (I’m not so good with alliteration, do bear with it) to bring me a little list of the stuff I want. It’d be nice to have them, but I can live without these things.
- A nice little MP3 player of my own with a decent capacity—maybe at least 4GB. 128MB just isn’t cutting it for me anymore. Throw in a nice comfy pair of headphones too, the hefty kind that look and feel like what DJs use.
- A micro hi-fi sound system for my room with DVD and MP3/WMA compatibility. Presently my arrangement for playing CDs at home is via my old VCD player and my TV’s speakers...obviously not the most energy-efficient method, as the TV screen is on all the time. I’m not a fussy guy, as long as it’s made by Pioneer or Sony I’ll be happy.
- I’m still looking for a nice pair of flexible loafers or moccasins that I can use as secondary shoes at work. Please, let them be anything but black. Blue Sperry Top-siders would be great, but they cost some serious coin. I am not willing to spend more than PhP4,000 on just one pair of shoes. So should you.
- A Perfect Grade Strike Gundam model. Wait, scratch that. I think I have too many models and my room’s real estate is now at a premium.
- A portable CD player with 2500mAh AA-sized NiMH rechargeable batteries.
- An MP3/WMA-capable CD audio head unit for my car. I’ve been the staunchest supporter of cassette tapes, but as my CD collection now outnumbers my cassette library, I really have to move up.
- Computer stuff: a DVD burner, more RAM and a decent graphics card. A problem-free DSL connection would be nice too. Also, a decent game library of classics. I don’t mind playing “relics” such as Diablo II and FreeSpace 2 on weekends because they’re just fun games that stand the test of time well.
- And now I’m really being cheeky: A Jazz 1.5 VTEC with the manual gearbox. Second-hand in good condition, please?
Sigh. I think I’m asking for too much.
Santa, stop me. Hit me on the head or something.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
The happenstance music critic, part 2
My CD-shopping phase continues for a second week. Like an itch that hasn’t been sufficiently scratched, apparently I wasn’t satisfied with just last week’s purchase. I figure this might be the last couple of albums I buy for a few months as I still need to chip into my savings for this month.
Let’s get the first album out of the way. I already have some Hangad MP3s from Tantan back in my thesis days, so I haven’t really given “Hangad A Capella” a listen yet. However I already have a good idea of what it has and I’m sure I’ll be impressed when I do pop the CD into my player.
The more significant album is the second one I bought. I haven’t bought any Itchyworms stuff ever since they started making the airwaves around three years ago, but their melancholy song “Beer” stuck to my head like bubble gum. I was convinced I had to buy their album, “Noon Time Show (Commercial Break edition).”
After the disappointment of Mayonnaise and the lack of variety from Urbandub, “Noon Time Show” is a brilliantly written and produced CD. Taken as a whole, this “theme album” criticizes the inanity, negative influence and irrelevance of that staple of Filipino existence, the noontime variety show, in its various guises. Even breaking it apart, many of the songs can stand by themselves as they run the gamut of themes of love, heartbreak, showbiz, obsession and waiting.
What truly sets Itchyworms’ album apart is how well they’ve translated the concept into great songs, and here’s where the variety card plays in. “Noon Time Show” is sufficiently varied in musical styles to keep interest/curiosity levels high. They’ve invited quite a few musicians from other bands for some of the tracks, notably the 12-minute variety show spoof “Production Number.”
The “Commercial Break” CD throws in four of their music videos (which are all very well executed, especially the one for “Beer”). Playing up to the title, a few extra tracks make it in there which are collaborations with advertisements and other shows, such as “Kabataang Pinoy” (“Pinoy Big Brother - Teen Edition” theme) and “Happy Happy Song,” the jingle for Enervon multivitamins. The remainder of the tracks are remixes and tracks that didn’t fit into the original release, such as “Jackson.”
“Noon Time Show” might easily be the album of the year in my CD collection. These talented guys have nowhere to go but up.
===
Speaking of CD collections, I had bought a number of other items from my Alabang jaunt yesterday afternoon. One of them was a 36CD wallet for just PhP88. It’s not a high-quality item compared to the spiffier ones from Case Logic, but for my purposes it’s a great bargain.
I also bought replacement brake-light bulbs for my car. The last time I went to Honda to buy them, they were ridiculously expensive—and they had given me the wrong type! Imagine my delight when I strolled into True Value and not only found the correct type for my car’s sockets, but paid only 1/5 the price. Rounding out my purchases were a spare “keycard” for my car and some credits for my Timezone card, for a few rounds of Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2.
I’ll have to take a bit of a rest from shopping for now. The next time I’ll shop it’ll be for Christmas presents.
===
God knows I’ve sung this song so many times, and I never get tired of it.
Nais kong magpakalasing dahil wala ka na
Nakatingin sa salamin at nag-iisa
Nakatanim pa rin ang gumamelang binalik mo sa’kin
Nang tayo’y mag-hiwalay
Ito’y katulad ng damdamin kong
Kahit buhusan mo ng beer, ayaw pang mamatay
Giliw, h’wag mo sanang limutin
Ang mga araw na ‘di sana maglaho
Ang mga anak at bahay nating pinaplano
Lahat ng ito’y nawala n’ung iniwan mo ‘ko
Kaya ngayon
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
Nais kong magpakasabog dahil olats ako
Kahit ano hihithitin, kahit tambutso
Kukuha ako ng beer at ipapakulo
Sa kaldero’t lalanghapin ang usok nito
Lahat ay aking gagawin upang aking limutin
Na nag-iisa na ako
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
\
Giliw, h’wag mo sanang limutin
Ang mga araw na ‘di sana maglaho
Ang mga anak at bahay nating pinaplano
Lahat ng ito’y nawala n’ung iniwan mo ‘ko
Kaya ngayon
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
— Itchyworms, “Beer”
Let’s get the first album out of the way. I already have some Hangad MP3s from Tantan back in my thesis days, so I haven’t really given “Hangad A Capella” a listen yet. However I already have a good idea of what it has and I’m sure I’ll be impressed when I do pop the CD into my player.
The more significant album is the second one I bought. I haven’t bought any Itchyworms stuff ever since they started making the airwaves around three years ago, but their melancholy song “Beer” stuck to my head like bubble gum. I was convinced I had to buy their album, “Noon Time Show (Commercial Break edition).”
After the disappointment of Mayonnaise and the lack of variety from Urbandub, “Noon Time Show” is a brilliantly written and produced CD. Taken as a whole, this “theme album” criticizes the inanity, negative influence and irrelevance of that staple of Filipino existence, the noontime variety show, in its various guises. Even breaking it apart, many of the songs can stand by themselves as they run the gamut of themes of love, heartbreak, showbiz, obsession and waiting.
What truly sets Itchyworms’ album apart is how well they’ve translated the concept into great songs, and here’s where the variety card plays in. “Noon Time Show” is sufficiently varied in musical styles to keep interest/curiosity levels high. They’ve invited quite a few musicians from other bands for some of the tracks, notably the 12-minute variety show spoof “Production Number.”
The “Commercial Break” CD throws in four of their music videos (which are all very well executed, especially the one for “Beer”). Playing up to the title, a few extra tracks make it in there which are collaborations with advertisements and other shows, such as “Kabataang Pinoy” (“Pinoy Big Brother - Teen Edition” theme) and “Happy Happy Song,” the jingle for Enervon multivitamins. The remainder of the tracks are remixes and tracks that didn’t fit into the original release, such as “Jackson.”
“Noon Time Show” might easily be the album of the year in my CD collection. These talented guys have nowhere to go but up.
===
Speaking of CD collections, I had bought a number of other items from my Alabang jaunt yesterday afternoon. One of them was a 36CD wallet for just PhP88. It’s not a high-quality item compared to the spiffier ones from Case Logic, but for my purposes it’s a great bargain.
I also bought replacement brake-light bulbs for my car. The last time I went to Honda to buy them, they were ridiculously expensive—and they had given me the wrong type! Imagine my delight when I strolled into True Value and not only found the correct type for my car’s sockets, but paid only 1/5 the price. Rounding out my purchases were a spare “keycard” for my car and some credits for my Timezone card, for a few rounds of Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2.
I’ll have to take a bit of a rest from shopping for now. The next time I’ll shop it’ll be for Christmas presents.
===
God knows I’ve sung this song so many times, and I never get tired of it.
Nais kong magpakalasing dahil wala ka na
Nakatingin sa salamin at nag-iisa
Nakatanim pa rin ang gumamelang binalik mo sa’kin
Nang tayo’y mag-hiwalay
Ito’y katulad ng damdamin kong
Kahit buhusan mo ng beer, ayaw pang mamatay
Giliw, h’wag mo sanang limutin
Ang mga araw na ‘di sana maglaho
Ang mga anak at bahay nating pinaplano
Lahat ng ito’y nawala n’ung iniwan mo ‘ko
Kaya ngayon
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
Nais kong magpakasabog dahil olats ako
Kahit ano hihithitin, kahit tambutso
Kukuha ako ng beer at ipapakulo
Sa kaldero’t lalanghapin ang usok nito
Lahat ay aking gagawin upang aking limutin
Na nag-iisa na ako
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
\
Giliw, h’wag mo sanang limutin
Ang mga araw na ‘di sana maglaho
Ang mga anak at bahay nating pinaplano
Lahat ng ito’y nawala n’ung iniwan mo ‘ko
Kaya ngayon
Ibuhos na ang beer sa aking lalamunan
Upang malunod na ang puso kong nahihirapan
Bawat patak, ano’ng sarap,
Ano ba talaga’ng mas gusto ko?
Ang beer na ito o ang pag-ibig mo...
— Itchyworms, “Beer”
Sunday, September 10, 2006
The happenstance music critic
After perhaps more than a year of not bothering with it, I "rediscovered" Friendster. A lot has changed since the last time I logged on. This time I figured it would be cool to add my friends from work.
It's also worth the effort of going there to check up on old friends from high school. Yeah, I know I've publicly denounced my elementary and high school existence ad nauseam, but I can't deny that I made at least a handful of friends from the nouveau-riche circus that is Zobel. I just want to see how they're doing.
===
On the only real shopping trip I've been on since April, I managed to buy myself a memento of my high school existence.
Monty Macalino is perhaps better known as the band Mayonnaise's front man—and Mayonnaise is the band that won the Red Horse Muziklaban contest in 2004. Back in Zobel, though, he was one of the most gregarious and popular characters of Zobel batch 2000 and an active participant of the Search-In retreats. I bought Mayonnaise's second album "Pano Nangyari Yun?" out of curiosity.
While the riffs are cool, I'm not very stimulated by the lyrics. Not many of them make sense, unfortunately, and although Monty wrote all of them, I can't feel much of his spirit in the songs. Maybe I should have bought the first album instead?
Meanwhile, I remember how surprised I was with a certain band from Cebu whose sound could pass as a foreign act's. Now Urbandub has at least three albums and I bought the one called "Embrace," which seems like the newest one.
These guys are amazing, but they're not perfect. There’s just not enough variety to "Embrace." While I like their sound as demonstrated in "Alert the Armory" and "First of Summer," they have too many heavy tracks packed into this CD. This lends the impression that they can't break away from one routine. This level of seriousness and gloss is welcome, but they should give themselves a break to fool around.
The last album I bought was an old favorite. For me, you can never go wrong with the 1980s supergroup Swing Out Sister, and I bought the local version of their 2CD "Ultimate Collection" for a pretty good price. The foreign version has 3 CDs, but never mind that.
My only real complaint about "Ultimate Collection" is the second CD. 50% of CD2 is made up of remixes and live performances of tracks that are already on CD1, which is just too much. I would have appreciated having some of their more obscure songs on hand.
While I have mixed opinions over all these albums, I desperately needed new music to listen to, so the effort wasn't all that wasted.
===
I've returned to the driver’s seat with Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2. Using my black Mazda RX-8, I managed to fight my way to the end of the “Monster Machine” story arc. I do mean "fight" as the last two races in particular were very rough: my CPU opponents were constantly wanging into my car, forcing me into mistakes such as crashing into walls and traffic.
That means I've got just 10 races to go before I beat the game. And it can only get worse from here on in.
In somewhat related news, I hear Sega Rosso is beta-testing the next installment in the Initial D Arcade Stage games, Ver.4.
This time the game cards are credit-card-thick, and there will no longer be any data transfer from the old games (CRUD!). The cabinets will reportedly sport LCD monitors and the same old sequential shifter, now mounted at waist level—-I'm pretty sure these things will be expensive. Gameplay should be tuned less on "impossible" grip levels as the first 3 games and a little more toward realism, but not to the point of Battle Gear 3's realism. Four new courses have popped up for beta testing: Akina Lake, Shin-Myougi, Shin-Usui and the tough Ibaraki pass from the Fourth Stage anime.
Great. Come 2007 I'll have another way of wasting money.
Friday, August 18, 2006
Mumblings on a heavy Friday
All week long I’ve been ridiculously happy.
It was Celine’s birthday the other day. Birthdays being the joyous occasions they are, they’re a pretty good excuse for the normally boisterous Virtual Channels team to be even louder than usual. This day was something special, though. Out came the birthday cake, the bouquet of flowers, the guitar and the singers for our dearest “Prime Minister.”
It wasn’t until nightfall that the celebration really went under way, though. Cel had invited us all to a birthday party—at McDonald’s. A children’s party at that, complete with the Grimace mascot doing his thing. Not that it really made much of a difference: we were all game enough to join in the games, dance like lunatics when ordered and laugh our asses off. It’s funny, actually, how I used to dread the thought of going to children’s parties when I was three years shy of entering my teens. Now, I didn’t care, and neither did my co-workers.
I’ll post pictures soon enough; when my home connection isn’t so temperamental, I hope.
Thursdays are normally my low point of the week. I wake up at 6 am with not enough shut-eye, take a cold shower, skip breakfast and drive to my office before 7 so I can hit the gym for my 90-minute workout. You can imagine how pooped I become even before I start work at 9 every Thursday.
Somehow this Thursday was a lot more invigorating, though. Breakfast was a hearty bowl of congee, served hot with jokes and laughter from my teammates. Work didn’t seem as tedious as in other days (such as today). I had even put in a little more work with my weights. There was this inexplicable feeling of rightness about this Thursday, even though at best it’s like a weekend-long party: it’s major fun when you’re in it but also a bit of a relief when over.
I’d hit a low point today though. My body’s basically tired, feeling the burn from the added exercise I’d put in. My eyes are tired and droopy from the unsatisfied hunger for sleep. It’s still happy days, though.
===
Taking advantage of the long weekend, Cel, Mylou, Mao R., Anton and some others planned on going to Baguio for a vacation. Personally I’m rather sick of the place, but with them in tow I know it’s going to be fun for sure. They’re probably on their way there now. Unfortunately I opted out, figuring this would be a good opportunity to have a mechanic look at my car’s suspension.
===
To my chagrin, the shop in Cubao I’d heard much good news about was going to be closed on holiday Monday, so I’m going there tomorrow morning for an estimate.
Now the car is still technically my mom’s, but since I’m the one driving it and paying for its fuel, I might as well call it my own in terms of maintenance and repair—including the decisions for such. My mother doesn’t seem to understand this though.
I’ve already saved up for the potential expense as I was expecting the money to come out of my pocket, and I already had a couple places in mind for the repairs. But here she was, almost insisting that I bring it to the Honda dealership—which is really quite the foolish option. From my erstwhile participation in HCP, Honda charges a ridiculous fee for mostly substandard work. I love their cars, but it’s the servicing I’m still highly skeptical about.
She also pooh-poohed the pictures and videos I took of Cel’s party. There I was, proud to show off my friends having fun, but she gave a hiss and skulked away. Goodness. Now she wonders why I don’t make her a bigger part of my life.
Sigh. I have one simple request: some trust and respect from my mom.
Some much-deserved leeway to do the things I deem important would be right up my alley too. I can’t even move an inch without parental approval—and I’m 23 years old already.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
LC24 in da (Three)house!
...And so this is what happened after we left from DLSU last night.
Rachel and Leia frequently made mention of a "Threehouse" since last year, but Tantan and I never knew what it was, exactly. As it turns out, Threehouse is a beerhouse and grillery, with no air-conditioning but pretty damn good food, and it had been under my nose all along. It's in Dian St. in Makati, midway between Zobel Roxas St. and Gil Puyat Ave.
To add to the bewilderment, Threehouse has an actual tree inside it. Apparently this is where our Marketing professors hung out every Thursday night, and last night it was all ours.
It was really nice seeing everyone again, although not enough of us were in attendance. Everyone seems to be doing just fine. We were having a blast talking, eating and drinking (no beer for me though, I had to fetch my sister later that night) and basically reminiscing about the good old days.
Personally I think I left too early. I wanted to spend more time with these guys. Oh well, there'll be other days.
Cheers guys!
Rachel and Leia frequently made mention of a "Threehouse" since last year, but Tantan and I never knew what it was, exactly. As it turns out, Threehouse is a beerhouse and grillery, with no air-conditioning but pretty damn good food, and it had been under my nose all along. It's in Dian St. in Makati, midway between Zobel Roxas St. and Gil Puyat Ave.
To add to the bewilderment, Threehouse has an actual tree inside it. Apparently this is where our Marketing professors hung out every Thursday night, and last night it was all ours.
It was really nice seeing everyone again, although not enough of us were in attendance. Everyone seems to be doing just fine. We were having a blast talking, eating and drinking (no beer for me though, I had to fetch my sister later that night) and basically reminiscing about the good old days.
Personally I think I left too early. I wanted to spend more time with these guys. Oh well, there'll be other days.
Cheers guys!
The Impressives meet again!
I left work two hours early to go back to DLSU after six months or so. Leia, now working for the school, had invited us for the annual Cultural Arts Office (CAO) Awards, where we were going to be honored with a special commendation for our thesis, a study on the perception of college students on Philippine theater.
Well, basically it was an excuse for all of us to have a long-overdue get-together. Leia hugged me when we met up at the William Shaw Little Theater, while Rachel and Tantan arrived just in time to pick up our commendation plaque and CAO Graduate certificates.
That's a picture of us on the stage.
Well, basically it was an excuse for all of us to have a long-overdue get-together. Leia hugged me when we met up at the William Shaw Little Theater, while Rachel and Tantan arrived just in time to pick up our commendation plaque and CAO Graduate certificates.
That's a picture of us on the stage.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
The best place to break a duck is in Hungary
For the uninitiated, the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix held every August at the Hungaroring is notorious for being a dead boring race to watch.
The Hungaroring’s twisty, highly technical nature means it’s a good driver’s circuit, but more often it makes for a processional race with the sole overtaking opportunity provided by the pit stops. It’s just too damn hard to overtake, and wheel-to-wheel racing is what Formula 1 should be about.
So imagine my surprise when I turned on the TV last Sunday and found that it was raining buckets in Hungary. I don’t remember having any rain in this race in the eight years I’ve been watching this sport...
What was normally a dull train of cars had turned into the biggest racing spectacle this season. The rain made the race so difficult to call, and certainly separated the boys from the men. Wet races reward smooth driving and mechanical sympathy.
The corners that were usually overtaking opportunities for the foolhardy became fruitful ones as Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button carved their way through slower drivers. Passing maneuvers went inside and outside, and the cars pulled each other like magnets—a definite rarity in this F1 age where “bad air” from the car in front can cause your own aerodynamics to malfunction.
One by one, though, the names you’d expect to win the race dropped out of contention like flies. Kimi Raikkonen drove unsighted into Vitantonio Liuzzi, destroying his own McLaren. Championship leader Fernando Alonso had a driveshaft failure and a wheel nut thrown off his rear tire. Even Michael Schumacher, noted for being a “rain master,” misread the drying conditions at the end of the race and soldiered on with overheating intermediate tires. His dogged stubbornness to defend his position eventually cost him a broken steering arm after Pedro dela Rosa and Nick Heidfeld overtook him under braking.
However, the day belonged to Jenson Button and the Honda Racing team. Alonso and Schumacher simply took too many risks. Button remained cool and smooth, his car finally cooperating with him despite a blown engine that got him demoted from 4th to 14th at the start. Before Alonso’s disaster, he was within sniffing distance of the Spaniard’s rear wing as he stopped for fuel and dry “slick” tires at just the right moment. All the while, he led Schumacher and Raikkonen, too.
The race stretched to within 6 minutes of the 2-hour F1 race limit due to the slower pace at the start of the wet race. It was simply too good to pass up for anything, even the Sunday night broadcast of “Top Gear.” For the final ten laps, my heart was jumping in my chest. Alonso was out. Schumacher finally got what he deserved for dirty tactics. All that time, Button was alone in the well-fought lead with 30 seconds to Schumacher’s Ferrari rapidly traveling backward.
After 113 race starts, Jenson Button finally won his very first F1 Grand Prix. Honda Racing’s 2006 season has been majorly disappointing after stupendous form in 2005, but this win proves they have it in them to keep fighting at the top echelon of F1.
I never doubted Jenson’s ability. All that pressure for a maiden Formula 1 win must have been hell, but he delivered where and when it counted. It is only fitting he broke his duck in this year’s Hungarian Grand Prix—a marvelous race to watch and will definitely not be forgotten.
“To finish first, you must first finish.”
—Rick Mears, four-time Indianapolis 500 winner
===
Cel, Jen, Chielou and I were at it again tonight, punching and kicking to the thumping music and following the bark of Sir Edmond’s orders.
I could follow the routine better now, and I lasted a little longer before the familiar stitch of exhaustion ferreted into my gut. I guess it’s down to equal parts rationing of energy and better stamina. When I did peter out, I kept marching in place for 20 seconds, then got back to the routine—that helped a lot in preventing even more exhaustion. Jen thought the “100 side kicks” bit was rather ridiculous though. Chielou and I agreed the jumps at the end aggravated the tiredness.
We felt our sides burning from the aerobic workout, but completing the ab routine was actually achievable, albeit with a few breaks.
The stretching that came afterward felt so good. Suddenly all the aching, burning and stitching went away by the time we congratulating ourselves for “surviving” the hour-long routine.
I haven’t been playing badminton with Gracey and Paolo for 3 weeks now. I should be missing it, I guess, but the Tuesday tae-bo habit feels so much better in terms of workout duration. It’s just too hard to break.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Our new weekly regular habit: punching and kicking
After a five-month drought of kits, I finally got myself the Master Grade model kit of the AEUG's grunt mobile suit, the RMS-099 Rick Dias of "Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam." The build process took me about 9 hours—I’m not totally sure, I wasn’t that keen on counting the hours. The big fellow’s dinky proportions, rock-solid stability and awesome posability make for a lot of comedic potential. Consider me a very satisfied customer.
Lately I noticed that fewer and fewer people come to read this blog, and that’s just fine I guess. There’s not much I can do, given I don’t have knowledge in active HTML and have mostly text as content.
Mao R. burned me a copy of the New Radicals’ only album, "Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too." I’ve been looking for it for years and it’s no longer sold here. Gregg Alexander’s pithy lyrics and addictive music are sorely missed.
===
Last Tuesday, instead of lifting weights I hit the gym for the tae-bo workout instead. My team lead Celine was curious if the gym offered any tae-bo classes and I said they did, so I figured I might as well join in. It’s been years since my last tae-bo class with my mom and other villagers with John Quay as our instructor.
So come 6:30, off we went, Jenny, Celine, Chielou and I, down to the fourth floor. We were punching and kicking our guts out to the music until we couldn’t take any more, the stitches of exertion ferreting into our right sides. Unfortunately, the ab workout came next and most of us were too exhausted to continue. Luckily for me I was at least able to follow due to the ab exercises I had every time I pumped iron.
Man, was I tired; I had to skip badminton the next day due to the unfamiliar burning in my thighs and shoulders. But we all enjoyed the exercise and felt good about ourselves, despite Cel’s own confession that she hasn’t had tae-bo for a while. Right now we’re planning on making it our regular weekly habit.
===
So far I’ve been pretty impressed with how my efforts at the gym are paying off. I’ve managed to lose five pounds, and I don’t recall weighing anywhere below 160 lb. in the last four years. People are starting to take notice too, although they’re quick to point out I still have baby fat on my gut. Oh well.
According to my grandmother, apparently I’ve gotten a lighter complexion too. I never noticed.
===
I was dancing with your shadow
Slow down memory’s hall
I said, “Wait, have I been seduced and forgotten?”
You said, “Baby, haven’t we all”
Now I don’t like crying
Because it only gets me wet
But I can’t help failing
To remember to forget you
And I know it’s going to be a long time
Now I’m crying like a church on Monday
Praying for these feelings to go away
So do me a favor baby, put down your new god
And love me like Sunday again
I was hiding in your bedroom
When I saw him come inside
I can’t live in his shadow
Is that where I’m dancing until I die?
Now I don’t light candles
Because they make me see the light
That I can’t help failing
To remember to forget you
And I know it’s going to be a long time
Now I’m crying like a church on Monday
Praying for these feelings to go away
So do me a favor baby, put down your new god
And love me like Sunday again
— New Radicals, “Crying Like a Church on Monday”
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Consumed, prohibited, celebrated
As much as I love spirited driving, the bitter reality of high fuel cost is undeniable. It’s especially clear now that I’m paying for my own gasoline.
I’ve started tracking my gasoline consumption three full tanks ago. Now that’s not a very good indicator of when I started, but it’s a good way to drive my point home. As always, I used regular 93-octane fuel and topped off the tank just up to the point where the pump automatically quits. I always made it a point to gas up at night.
Our old standing goal was to make a full tank last two weeks. In my college days that was just about as frugal as I could get, and I rarely ever nudged past 9.5 km/L. Ever since I started working though, I’m getting it up to levels I never dreamed of achieving. It started at 10.5 km/L, which is pretty good, but obtainable on good days. The next tank extended the range to 10.83 km/L and that was a pretty pleasant surprise.
Now imagine my mild delight when I computed my fuel economy after tonight’s fillup. I had managed an astonishing 11.24 km/L! In all my years of driving my Honda, I’d reached that figure just once. I still manage a few trips to the redline to get my oil pump working, and I don’t shirk from some engine braking to help slow down my car, but now I realize I’ve become a far smoother driver than I had ever been. I’m less severe on the brakes and I’m more conscious of taking easy overtaking opportunities.
Let’s put all the fuel economy figures as fuel consumption figures, like the Europeans do:
9.5 km/L = 10.52 L/100 km
10.5 km/L = 9.52 L/100 km
10.83 km/L = 9.23 L/100 km
11.24 km/L = 8.90 L/100 km
What this basically means is over the past six or so weeks, I’m clearly using up less fuel to go a fixed distance. At least I’m doing something right.
===
I bought my issue of Top Gear Philippines rather late this month. I was surprised to see my name in the Letters section, stating that I had aced their May automotive quiz along with four others.
Great.
Unfortunately, I didn’t win anything.
Oh well.
===
The first thing I did when I got to the office yesterday was head back downstairs to buy a few things from the grocery. Over the past three days I’ve had a bum gut which I suspect was from the drinking water at the office.
By coincidence Carla was on her way there too.
Three weeks ago I would have said hi and made small talk. But the thing is, I didn’t think there was any point in making myself known to her any more.
It’s true, I have a pretty lousy sex life. I don’t even have any recent practice with relationships. But even I know when I should stop trying. Women in present commitments are off-limits.
===
A pleasant surprise came my way when I received a text message from Leia.
Apparently our marketing thesis on theater had been given a special commendation award from DLSU’s Cultural Arts Office. A recognition ceremony is scheduled on August 11 at 6:30pm.
Unfortunately I’m usually not off work until 7. I’d love to go, though. Maybe I can ask Jenny for some time off?
I’ve started tracking my gasoline consumption three full tanks ago. Now that’s not a very good indicator of when I started, but it’s a good way to drive my point home. As always, I used regular 93-octane fuel and topped off the tank just up to the point where the pump automatically quits. I always made it a point to gas up at night.
Our old standing goal was to make a full tank last two weeks. In my college days that was just about as frugal as I could get, and I rarely ever nudged past 9.5 km/L. Ever since I started working though, I’m getting it up to levels I never dreamed of achieving. It started at 10.5 km/L, which is pretty good, but obtainable on good days. The next tank extended the range to 10.83 km/L and that was a pretty pleasant surprise.
Now imagine my mild delight when I computed my fuel economy after tonight’s fillup. I had managed an astonishing 11.24 km/L! In all my years of driving my Honda, I’d reached that figure just once. I still manage a few trips to the redline to get my oil pump working, and I don’t shirk from some engine braking to help slow down my car, but now I realize I’ve become a far smoother driver than I had ever been. I’m less severe on the brakes and I’m more conscious of taking easy overtaking opportunities.
Let’s put all the fuel economy figures as fuel consumption figures, like the Europeans do:
9.5 km/L = 10.52 L/100 km
10.5 km/L = 9.52 L/100 km
10.83 km/L = 9.23 L/100 km
11.24 km/L = 8.90 L/100 km
What this basically means is over the past six or so weeks, I’m clearly using up less fuel to go a fixed distance. At least I’m doing something right.
===
I bought my issue of Top Gear Philippines rather late this month. I was surprised to see my name in the Letters section, stating that I had aced their May automotive quiz along with four others.
Great.
Unfortunately, I didn’t win anything.
Oh well.
===
The first thing I did when I got to the office yesterday was head back downstairs to buy a few things from the grocery. Over the past three days I’ve had a bum gut which I suspect was from the drinking water at the office.
By coincidence Carla was on her way there too.
Three weeks ago I would have said hi and made small talk. But the thing is, I didn’t think there was any point in making myself known to her any more.
It’s true, I have a pretty lousy sex life. I don’t even have any recent practice with relationships. But even I know when I should stop trying. Women in present commitments are off-limits.
===
A pleasant surprise came my way when I received a text message from Leia.
Apparently our marketing thesis on theater had been given a special commendation award from DLSU’s Cultural Arts Office. A recognition ceremony is scheduled on August 11 at 6:30pm.
Unfortunately I’m usually not off work until 7. I’d love to go, though. Maybe I can ask Jenny for some time off?
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Crikey, it's fetal attraction...
What is it with me always falling for women that are taken?
The worst example yet came at work. I should have seen all the warning signs: the baby photos, the obvious age difference, the apathy toward me. Still, my wandering eyes kept trying to look for her, all the while putting up a stoic act to hide my attraction.
For crying out loud, it took a good long close-up glance at the previously innocuous bulge on her torso to realize she is most definitely taken and way out of my league.
I scare myself. Am I that desperate?
===
I so badly want to sing with a band and rock my heart, lungs and soul out in front of an appreciative crowd. I am just so, so jealous of my officemates who are able to do just that and get the approval of everyone else.
Unfortunately the last time I tried doing that in Batangas, most people just thought I had too much to drink. I now wonder if I had entertained the crowd at all, or if I had entertained them in all the wrong ways.
My guile and passion in doing the things I love is undeniable. It’s the public acceptance of that passion that needs work.
===
The first flush of youth was upon you when our eyes first met
And I knew that to you and into your life I had to get
I felt light-headed at the touch of this stranger's hand
An assault my defenses systematically failed to withstand
'Cos you came at a time
When the pursuit of one true love in which to fall
Was the be-all and end-all
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
When I'm in your arms I start believing (it's here to stay)
But love is only a feeling
Anyway...
The state of elation that this unison of hearts achieved
I had seen, I had touched, I had tasted and I truly believed
That the light of my life
Would tear a hole right through each cloud that scudded by
Just to beam on you and I
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
When I'm in your arms I start believing (it's here to stay)
But love is only a feeling
Anyway, anyway...
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
And we've got to stop ourselves believing (it's here to stay)
'Cos love is only a feeling
Anyway...
— The Darkness, “Love is Only a Feeling”
The worst example yet came at work. I should have seen all the warning signs: the baby photos, the obvious age difference, the apathy toward me. Still, my wandering eyes kept trying to look for her, all the while putting up a stoic act to hide my attraction.
For crying out loud, it took a good long close-up glance at the previously innocuous bulge on her torso to realize she is most definitely taken and way out of my league.
I scare myself. Am I that desperate?
===
I so badly want to sing with a band and rock my heart, lungs and soul out in front of an appreciative crowd. I am just so, so jealous of my officemates who are able to do just that and get the approval of everyone else.
Unfortunately the last time I tried doing that in Batangas, most people just thought I had too much to drink. I now wonder if I had entertained the crowd at all, or if I had entertained them in all the wrong ways.
My guile and passion in doing the things I love is undeniable. It’s the public acceptance of that passion that needs work.
===
The first flush of youth was upon you when our eyes first met
And I knew that to you and into your life I had to get
I felt light-headed at the touch of this stranger's hand
An assault my defenses systematically failed to withstand
'Cos you came at a time
When the pursuit of one true love in which to fall
Was the be-all and end-all
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
When I'm in your arms I start believing (it's here to stay)
But love is only a feeling
Anyway...
The state of elation that this unison of hearts achieved
I had seen, I had touched, I had tasted and I truly believed
That the light of my life
Would tear a hole right through each cloud that scudded by
Just to beam on you and I
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
When I'm in your arms I start believing (it's here to stay)
But love is only a feeling
Anyway, anyway...
Love is only a feeling (drifting away)
And we've got to stop ourselves believing (it's here to stay)
'Cos love is only a feeling
Anyway...
— The Darkness, “Love is Only a Feeling”
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Two weeks of disappointment
As it turns out, Carla already has a boyfriend.
The MG God Gundam I ordered didn’t arrive...an MG Shining Gundam (the God Gundam’s immediate predecessor) arrived in its stead.
I came in for weekend work, only to find that for 3 of the 4 hours I was there, we all couldn’t do anything due to technical problems.
The cooking class I enrolled in turned out to be mostly a waste of time; I should have stayed longer in the office.
My badminton game is poorer than ever.
My car has developed barely audible but irritating high-pitched squeaks under acceleration, which I suspect has something to do with the suspension or wheel bearings.
Sigh.
===
I guess it was a good thing, my not pursuing Carla any further. I’m really not ready for a relationship—but then again, who can honestly answer that they are? We wouldn’t have been a good fit, judging from the email we’ve sent each other. Oh well.
I’m not claiming the MG Shining Gundam either. First of all, it’s not what I ordered, so I have every right not to accept it. Second, I know this is an expensive hobby (even though the God and Shining are some of the cheapest MG kits around).
And third...it’s a bit of a price increase over the MG God, but maybe I should be looking at getting an MG Rick Dias instead. I already have the smaller, simpler HGUC version, but the MG is simply amazing.
===
On the brighter side of things, I’ve coaxed 10.82 km/L on my last tankful of gas, even with a few trips to the redline to get my engine’s oil pumps running and cleaning up gunk.
Now if only I could be as happy with the Honda’s suspension. After years of neglect, I’m planning to finally have it checked and repaired next month, and I know it won’t be cheap.
===
In the absence of new Gunpla, one thing has kept me sane. It’s the love of music and singing that my officemates, choirmates and I share. I’ve become mister tambourine man at the choir, due to Ate Edith’s recent birth to her fifth son. All those hours we couldn’t do anything productive at the office this morning due to no fault of ours, Paolo Cruz grabbed Mark’s guitar from his desk and looked for chords to play for us to sing along to.
This was one of those songs. It’s really quite a beautiful one, and I understand why Mylou likes it so bad.
Shadows grow so long before my eyes
And they’re moving across the page
Suddenly the day turns into night
Far away from the city
Well, don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
Moon appears to shine and light the skies
With the help of some firefly
Wonder how they have the power to shine
I can see them under the pine
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
I can see the sunset in your eyes
Brown and grey, and blue besides
Clouds are stalking islands in the sun
Wish I could buy one out of season
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
— UB40, “Baby I Love Your Way”
The MG God Gundam I ordered didn’t arrive...an MG Shining Gundam (the God Gundam’s immediate predecessor) arrived in its stead.
I came in for weekend work, only to find that for 3 of the 4 hours I was there, we all couldn’t do anything due to technical problems.
The cooking class I enrolled in turned out to be mostly a waste of time; I should have stayed longer in the office.
My badminton game is poorer than ever.
My car has developed barely audible but irritating high-pitched squeaks under acceleration, which I suspect has something to do with the suspension or wheel bearings.
Sigh.
===
I guess it was a good thing, my not pursuing Carla any further. I’m really not ready for a relationship—but then again, who can honestly answer that they are? We wouldn’t have been a good fit, judging from the email we’ve sent each other. Oh well.
I’m not claiming the MG Shining Gundam either. First of all, it’s not what I ordered, so I have every right not to accept it. Second, I know this is an expensive hobby (even though the God and Shining are some of the cheapest MG kits around).
And third...it’s a bit of a price increase over the MG God, but maybe I should be looking at getting an MG Rick Dias instead. I already have the smaller, simpler HGUC version, but the MG is simply amazing.
===
On the brighter side of things, I’ve coaxed 10.82 km/L on my last tankful of gas, even with a few trips to the redline to get my engine’s oil pumps running and cleaning up gunk.
Now if only I could be as happy with the Honda’s suspension. After years of neglect, I’m planning to finally have it checked and repaired next month, and I know it won’t be cheap.
===
In the absence of new Gunpla, one thing has kept me sane. It’s the love of music and singing that my officemates, choirmates and I share. I’ve become mister tambourine man at the choir, due to Ate Edith’s recent birth to her fifth son. All those hours we couldn’t do anything productive at the office this morning due to no fault of ours, Paolo Cruz grabbed Mark’s guitar from his desk and looked for chords to play for us to sing along to.
This was one of those songs. It’s really quite a beautiful one, and I understand why Mylou likes it so bad.
Shadows grow so long before my eyes
And they’re moving across the page
Suddenly the day turns into night
Far away from the city
Well, don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
Moon appears to shine and light the skies
With the help of some firefly
Wonder how they have the power to shine
I can see them under the pine
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
I can see the sunset in your eyes
Brown and grey, and blue besides
Clouds are stalking islands in the sun
Wish I could buy one out of season
But don’t hesitate, ’cause your love won’t wait...
Ooo, baby, I love your way, everyday
Gonna tell you I love your way, everyday
Wanna be with you night and day
— UB40, “Baby I Love Your Way”
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Still frustratingly empty
Perhaps now I can confirm that it’s not the people I’m with who are at fault. My problem has always been myself.
I always thought the next newest set of people I mingled with on a daily basis would provide me with the belonging I so craved. Well, to a certain extent that was true. However it doesn’t mean that they could provide answers to the deeper questions and demons inside me, and after the initial euphoria, the same unquelled addiction for belonging rears its ugly head and leaves me melancholy yet again.
No matter where I go and who I meet, I have always had the same hang-ups. That’s an undisputed fact now.
===
This song is courtesy of the winners of the BDCN Global Vision song contest in Manila, the Combo-Rats.
I got my first real six-string
Bought it at the five-and-dime
Played it till my fingers bled
It was the summer of ‘69
Me and some guys from school
Had a band and we tried real hard
Jimmy quit and Jody got married
I shoulda known we’d never get far
Oh when I look back now
That summer seemed to last forever
And if I had the choice
Ya – I’d always wanna be there
Those were the best days of my life
Ain’t no use in complainin’
When you got a job to do
Spent my evenings down at the drive-in
And that's when I met you
Standin’ on your mama’s porch
You told me that you’d wait forever
Oh and when you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
Those were the best days of my life
Back in the summer of ‘69
Man we were killin’ time
We were young and restless
We needed to unwind
I guess nothin’ can last forever - forever, no
And now the times are changin’
Look at everything that’s come and gone
Sometimes when I play that old six-string
I think about ya, wonder what went wrong
Standin’ on your mama’s porch
You told me it would last forever
Oh the way you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
Those were the best days of my life
Back in the summer of ‘69
— Bryan Adams, “Summer of ‘69”
Thursday, June 29, 2006
The sea, the sand, the bands
The BDCN Summer Outing finally pushed through last weekend, and what a weekend it was. The weather cooperated with us long enough to fully enjoy whatever was planned in the program.
After arriving and having lunch, we went snorkeling a mile off the beach, and it was my first time. It took a while to get the hang of breathing through my mouth instead of my nose while biting on the air feeder hard enough to keep the salt water from filling my lungs. Disappointingly, we didn’t see too much coral (reportedly due to last month’s storm) but I still managed to see a few nifty things. There were jellyfish as big as my head, a color-changing cuttlefish, a blue sea star, low-swimming skates and the vague outline of an octopus taking a nap in a cave.
Our boat motored its way back to the beach just in time for the games, which I wasn’t really looking forward to. The rains conspired to sabotage them with a sudden downpour, but cleared up enough for the evening’s battle of the bands—the real reason I was in this outing.
We were six bands in all, but there was only one deserved winner and it sadly didn’t come from my team. Our band didn’t disappoint as we sang all upbeat songs. I tried getting people to move to Maroon 5’s “Sunday Morning” but I ended up getting joked the next day for taking to the stage drunk or drugged, hahaha! I gotta hand it to Tropical Monsoon though; they did our team proud by bagging second place. Had they chosen a better ending song, they would have brought home the bacon.
The rest of the time the guys were playing water polo in the pool, flag football and volleyball on the beach, and billiards, ping-pong and darts indoors.
It wasn’t the most eventful outing, but it sure made a lot of memories. My trusty Nikon FM SLR brought home two rolls of mementos for my team to fawn over on Monday.
===
Waiting for me at home was Uncle Butch’s promised graduation gift. I remember he wrote me about it back in my graduation in January, but I pretty much forgot about it until last Sunday.
I really didn’t have any idea of what it would be, but was I surprised to be the owner of a Sony CD Mavica digital camera. With it came a starter set of twenty 8cm CD-Rs and a CD-RW, one of them already loaded into the camera and with three pictures of the Chaingan family dog, Lucy.
It’s not new and it’s rather bulky, but I’ve read the MVC-CD500 was top-of-the-line three years ago, already packing a 5-megapixel CCD array—not too shabby! Unlike my mom’s Canon Digital Ixus 5, itself a 5-megapixel point-and-shooter, my CD Mavica has full manual control (shutter speed, aperture, even focus), a Carl Zeiss 3x optical zoom lens with decent range (~30-100mm), and a five-contact hot shoe for attaching external flash units.
It was just a shame it didn’t arrive in time for the outing. Many thanks, Uncle Butch! I’ll put this thing to good use.
===
Looks like I have enough money left over to buy some nifty stuff and have savings too. Suddenly that MG God Gundam doesn’t seem so far away.
After arriving and having lunch, we went snorkeling a mile off the beach, and it was my first time. It took a while to get the hang of breathing through my mouth instead of my nose while biting on the air feeder hard enough to keep the salt water from filling my lungs. Disappointingly, we didn’t see too much coral (reportedly due to last month’s storm) but I still managed to see a few nifty things. There were jellyfish as big as my head, a color-changing cuttlefish, a blue sea star, low-swimming skates and the vague outline of an octopus taking a nap in a cave.
Our boat motored its way back to the beach just in time for the games, which I wasn’t really looking forward to. The rains conspired to sabotage them with a sudden downpour, but cleared up enough for the evening’s battle of the bands—the real reason I was in this outing.
We were six bands in all, but there was only one deserved winner and it sadly didn’t come from my team. Our band didn’t disappoint as we sang all upbeat songs. I tried getting people to move to Maroon 5’s “Sunday Morning” but I ended up getting joked the next day for taking to the stage drunk or drugged, hahaha! I gotta hand it to Tropical Monsoon though; they did our team proud by bagging second place. Had they chosen a better ending song, they would have brought home the bacon.
The rest of the time the guys were playing water polo in the pool, flag football and volleyball on the beach, and billiards, ping-pong and darts indoors.
It wasn’t the most eventful outing, but it sure made a lot of memories. My trusty Nikon FM SLR brought home two rolls of mementos for my team to fawn over on Monday.
===
Waiting for me at home was Uncle Butch’s promised graduation gift. I remember he wrote me about it back in my graduation in January, but I pretty much forgot about it until last Sunday.
I really didn’t have any idea of what it would be, but was I surprised to be the owner of a Sony CD Mavica digital camera. With it came a starter set of twenty 8cm CD-Rs and a CD-RW, one of them already loaded into the camera and with three pictures of the Chaingan family dog, Lucy.
It’s not new and it’s rather bulky, but I’ve read the MVC-CD500 was top-of-the-line three years ago, already packing a 5-megapixel CCD array—not too shabby! Unlike my mom’s Canon Digital Ixus 5, itself a 5-megapixel point-and-shooter, my CD Mavica has full manual control (shutter speed, aperture, even focus), a Carl Zeiss 3x optical zoom lens with decent range (~30-100mm), and a five-contact hot shoe for attaching external flash units.
It was just a shame it didn’t arrive in time for the outing. Many thanks, Uncle Butch! I’ll put this thing to good use.
===
Looks like I have enough money left over to buy some nifty stuff and have savings too. Suddenly that MG God Gundam doesn’t seem so far away.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Appearances can deceive
The longer I interact with my officemates, the more I learn about them and their personal lives.
Well, maybe that’s not something that should be considered out of the ordinary. However, I was in for a surprise when I learned some of them were not as I had assumed.
It was only yesterday that I learned that Mark, our resident guitarist and ladies’ man, took a vacation leave last week on his birthday. It turns out it was a week-long leave because he got married to his longtime sweetheart and had their honeymoon in that time. And he’s less than a year older than I am.
Over lunch this afternoon, I spotted a picture of a young girl inside my team lead Mylou’s wallet. I had innocently asked if it was her in her younger days. She replied that it was her nine-year-old daughter. I was frankly very surprised—I never heard a peep from her about having a daughter of her own before this. Mylou is just three years older than I am.
All the time I was practicing jamming along with Mark and our other bandmates for the company summer outing, playing badminton and joking around with Mylou, for the life of me, I had never ever expected them to have such serious commitments.
===
This leads me to wonder. I’m now twenty-three. I’ve had just one serious relationship. By and large, I’m still an egocentric entity existing in the world of anime, fast cars and giant robots. I tend to run away from problems or avoid them altogether. I don’t have much of a fortune I can call my own, nor do I have anything much to go on at the moment since I just got my first salary.
My folks were right: I’ve had too sheltered an upbringing and because of that my street smarts are close to nil. No matter how independent I think I am, the fact of the matter is I’m still chained to this invisible umbilical cord, and I’m probably too scared to cut it off and grow my own navel and mark my maturity.
How ready am I to face the world?
How ready am I to meet its challenges and disappointments, yet continue to grin and bear it?
How ready am I to commit to something as serious and irrevocable as marriage?
How ready am I to even think of having kids of my own?
The fact of the matter is, I am immature and everyone knows it—it’s written all over my face. I still haven’t grown up...at least not in the way the world expects me to have grown up, given my age. It’s a crappy feeling, me always thinking that I was better than everyone else...when actually, everyone else saw something a lot more important to surviving life in the long run. All the while, I just kept on missing the whole fucking point and continued indulging myself in my delusions of grandeur.
An old teacher friend of mine in high school once wrote me that she’d remember me as the guy who was always in a hurry to grow up. (Incidentally, she’s been married for a few years now.)
Hmmm.
I wonder what the fuck happened to me along the way.
Well, maybe that’s not something that should be considered out of the ordinary. However, I was in for a surprise when I learned some of them were not as I had assumed.
It was only yesterday that I learned that Mark, our resident guitarist and ladies’ man, took a vacation leave last week on his birthday. It turns out it was a week-long leave because he got married to his longtime sweetheart and had their honeymoon in that time. And he’s less than a year older than I am.
Over lunch this afternoon, I spotted a picture of a young girl inside my team lead Mylou’s wallet. I had innocently asked if it was her in her younger days. She replied that it was her nine-year-old daughter. I was frankly very surprised—I never heard a peep from her about having a daughter of her own before this. Mylou is just three years older than I am.
All the time I was practicing jamming along with Mark and our other bandmates for the company summer outing, playing badminton and joking around with Mylou, for the life of me, I had never ever expected them to have such serious commitments.
===
This leads me to wonder. I’m now twenty-three. I’ve had just one serious relationship. By and large, I’m still an egocentric entity existing in the world of anime, fast cars and giant robots. I tend to run away from problems or avoid them altogether. I don’t have much of a fortune I can call my own, nor do I have anything much to go on at the moment since I just got my first salary.
My folks were right: I’ve had too sheltered an upbringing and because of that my street smarts are close to nil. No matter how independent I think I am, the fact of the matter is I’m still chained to this invisible umbilical cord, and I’m probably too scared to cut it off and grow my own navel and mark my maturity.
How ready am I to face the world?
How ready am I to meet its challenges and disappointments, yet continue to grin and bear it?
How ready am I to commit to something as serious and irrevocable as marriage?
How ready am I to even think of having kids of my own?
The fact of the matter is, I am immature and everyone knows it—it’s written all over my face. I still haven’t grown up...at least not in the way the world expects me to have grown up, given my age. It’s a crappy feeling, me always thinking that I was better than everyone else...when actually, everyone else saw something a lot more important to surviving life in the long run. All the while, I just kept on missing the whole fucking point and continued indulging myself in my delusions of grandeur.
An old teacher friend of mine in high school once wrote me that she’d remember me as the guy who was always in a hurry to grow up. (Incidentally, she’s been married for a few years now.)
Hmmm.
I wonder what the fuck happened to me along the way.
Saturday, June 17, 2006
I am worth my salt
My first-ever paycheck finally arrived on Thursday.
Now I realize just how much effort I have to put in to receive my salary every fortnight. In trying to budget my expenses, I feel I should be a lot more restrained in the things I buy if I want to make sure I have something left over for my lifetime savings venture.
At least I can still afford to drive myself to work everyday.
===
As I type this post, Bianca will have graduated already. My mom and dad are over there at the PICC Plenary Hall right now, probably sleeping through the thousand-odd graduates claiming their diplomas and tokens; such is the monotony of a DLSU commencement exercise.
Boring it may be, it’s still a pretty special event. Congratulations, sister.
===
She may have graduated and finished her studies, but even after 5 years of me ferrying her back and forth to wherever she has to go, I’m a little disappointed Bianca hasn’t learned the lesson of punctuality.
Someone has to get it into her head that the world is not going to wait for her. I just think it would be better if it were up to me or my dad to teach her that. At least that way, she wouldn’t have to risk learning the value of punctuality the hard way.
===
So what did I buy with my first salary?
The very first thing I got was a golf glove. It’s a Father’s Day present for my dad. Immediately following it were an air cleaner element for my car and an emissions testing certificate.
You see, except for dinner and PhP200 plunked down on Timezone, I haven’t really bought anything for myself so far.
I do have to say, I enjoyed the time I spent on Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2. Damn, I missed that game. Getting perfect drifts in my black Mazda RX-8, with armfuls of opposite lock applied and sweat funneling down my temples in concentration—that’s my idea of serious fun.
Now I realize just how much effort I have to put in to receive my salary every fortnight. In trying to budget my expenses, I feel I should be a lot more restrained in the things I buy if I want to make sure I have something left over for my lifetime savings venture.
At least I can still afford to drive myself to work everyday.
===
As I type this post, Bianca will have graduated already. My mom and dad are over there at the PICC Plenary Hall right now, probably sleeping through the thousand-odd graduates claiming their diplomas and tokens; such is the monotony of a DLSU commencement exercise.
Boring it may be, it’s still a pretty special event. Congratulations, sister.
===
She may have graduated and finished her studies, but even after 5 years of me ferrying her back and forth to wherever she has to go, I’m a little disappointed Bianca hasn’t learned the lesson of punctuality.
Someone has to get it into her head that the world is not going to wait for her. I just think it would be better if it were up to me or my dad to teach her that. At least that way, she wouldn’t have to risk learning the value of punctuality the hard way.
===
So what did I buy with my first salary?
The very first thing I got was a golf glove. It’s a Father’s Day present for my dad. Immediately following it were an air cleaner element for my car and an emissions testing certificate.
You see, except for dinner and PhP200 plunked down on Timezone, I haven’t really bought anything for myself so far.
I do have to say, I enjoyed the time I spent on Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2. Damn, I missed that game. Getting perfect drifts in my black Mazda RX-8, with armfuls of opposite lock applied and sweat funneling down my temples in concentration—that’s my idea of serious fun.
Monday, June 12, 2006
Showing my true colors
 | JM took the free ColorQuiz.com personality test! "Hopes that ties of affection and good-fellowship w..."
|
I never knew a simple color test would tell so much about myself. Creepy.
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Of quizzes, finances and dating
At work, Kaye and Vlad got us a few time wasters over email to pore over. They were mostly Excel spreadsheets made into interesting quizzes and games, such as the Name Game (guessing common first names of celebrities), the Jologs Quiz (tests your memory of Pinoy pop culture from the 1970s onward), and the Epol Apple test (how well you can translate Filipino words into English).
The Filipino-English translation quizzes were the most appealing to me. One of them even mocks you for mistranslation, saying things such as “Bobo!” or “Pilipino ka ba?!” Of course these quizzes are not a formal benchmark, but our difficulty in translating these common words correctly shows just how our language skills have deteriorated as we got older. We’ve gotten used to speaking Taglish that our proficiency in either pure English or Filipino has suffered a great lot.
My personal favorite, though, was the one about Filipino advertisements and taglines. It’s had me scratching my head, trying to match the slogan or tagline with the products and brands.
See posters and print ads for details, indeed.
===
My first paycheck is due this Thursday. I can’t wait.
I’m still trying to work out just how much of that initial pay-out I’m going to save, and how much I’m going to spend on stuff I like or need. This time I’ll have to take into account how much I spend for gasoline and my weekly expenses. I have to be a lot more prudent this time, especially now that I know first-hand just how hard it is to earn any money.
The last thing I want to find myself in is in massive debt. For heaven’s sake, I’m not American.
===
At least I’m off to a good start: I saved up enough money from my allowance last week to buy myself an oil filter wrench and oil filter for my car by Friday. I even treated myself to some Mongolian take-out after four days of bringing my own lunch, and I still had some money left over for the weekend. All this was after I had set aside my substantial weekly deposit.
Not too shabby, I should say.
===
After a month or so doing little things, I’m starting off doing my real job on Tuesday. I will do what I was paid to do: be a professional nitpicker.
===
Looking back at the girls I’ve taken a liking to over the years, I find myself asking “Why did I ever like her anyway?” Sure, they all had places in my heart, but time has afforded me another look at things and I can now honestly say most of them weren’t eternal beauties or an ideal fit with my personality. Some of them even had the most irritating of personality quirks: Followers of this blog know how I despised the unfounded jealousy of my ex—and I’ve never cheated on anyone.
I really want to start over.
Angiela told me over dinner two weeks ago that girls like to “tame” unpredictable guys, that they like it when guys don’t pay them too much attention. That way they’d get the guys to notice them.
Hmmm. If that’s true I think I’ve been doing things the wrong way all this time. So my ill-temperedness and cold-shoulder demeanor are actually positive traits in the dating game?
I’m not too keen on making mistakes...but it seems I’ll have to embarrass myself at least a few times before I get to that point where I can avoid them entirely.
The Filipino-English translation quizzes were the most appealing to me. One of them even mocks you for mistranslation, saying things such as “Bobo!” or “Pilipino ka ba?!” Of course these quizzes are not a formal benchmark, but our difficulty in translating these common words correctly shows just how our language skills have deteriorated as we got older. We’ve gotten used to speaking Taglish that our proficiency in either pure English or Filipino has suffered a great lot.
My personal favorite, though, was the one about Filipino advertisements and taglines. It’s had me scratching my head, trying to match the slogan or tagline with the products and brands.
See posters and print ads for details, indeed.
===
My first paycheck is due this Thursday. I can’t wait.
I’m still trying to work out just how much of that initial pay-out I’m going to save, and how much I’m going to spend on stuff I like or need. This time I’ll have to take into account how much I spend for gasoline and my weekly expenses. I have to be a lot more prudent this time, especially now that I know first-hand just how hard it is to earn any money.
The last thing I want to find myself in is in massive debt. For heaven’s sake, I’m not American.
===
At least I’m off to a good start: I saved up enough money from my allowance last week to buy myself an oil filter wrench and oil filter for my car by Friday. I even treated myself to some Mongolian take-out after four days of bringing my own lunch, and I still had some money left over for the weekend. All this was after I had set aside my substantial weekly deposit.
Not too shabby, I should say.
===
After a month or so doing little things, I’m starting off doing my real job on Tuesday. I will do what I was paid to do: be a professional nitpicker.
===
Looking back at the girls I’ve taken a liking to over the years, I find myself asking “Why did I ever like her anyway?” Sure, they all had places in my heart, but time has afforded me another look at things and I can now honestly say most of them weren’t eternal beauties or an ideal fit with my personality. Some of them even had the most irritating of personality quirks: Followers of this blog know how I despised the unfounded jealousy of my ex—and I’ve never cheated on anyone.
I really want to start over.
Angiela told me over dinner two weeks ago that girls like to “tame” unpredictable guys, that they like it when guys don’t pay them too much attention. That way they’d get the guys to notice them.
Hmmm. If that’s true I think I’ve been doing things the wrong way all this time. So my ill-temperedness and cold-shoulder demeanor are actually positive traits in the dating game?
I’m not too keen on making mistakes...but it seems I’ll have to embarrass myself at least a few times before I get to that point where I can avoid them entirely.
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Much ado about...pond scum?!
It’s funny how something that looks so much like fermented piss or pond scum has people my age outdoing one another for the last drop in the office pantry.
It’s supposed to be iced green tea. Whatever. I’ll gladly take the hot kind, thanks.
===
According to some surveys from my choir’s Yahoo group, I’m 24% fat and just 48% Pinoy.
I always knew I was a misplaced soul.
===
Hangad is just not the kind of music you should be listening to when trying to keep awake.
===
For the past three months, I find myself always looking for Gundam kits to buy, but never with the cash on hand to spend on them. There are still a few kits I’d like to add to my collection, but now I think I see the hobby for what it is: an expensive folly not for frequent consumption. I mean, I really could spend the money on other things, such as my savings and paying for my car’s long-overdue repairs. Ever since I bought the HG Gundam Airmaster Burst and the MG Zeta Gundam Ver.2.0, I haven’t bought anything new.
Only two kits are in my head for now: the MG God Gundam and the upcoming MG Gundam F91, two of the most compact Gundam-series mobile suits ever. Both make do with extensive use of ABS plastic and a minimum of polycaps.
The much-delayed F91 does away with polycaps altogether. It will make for an interesting build, at the very least. It’s due out next month.
Maybe I should be prudent and opt for the MG God for now. At least the dent it’ll make on my wallet won’t be as substantial, and I’ll be able to get it sooner.
===
The insurance claim is under way, thank goodness. My car’s damage was estimated at PhP6,440, and the insurance will pay for more than 2/3 that amount.
Besides the cosmetic damages, my car really is crying out for a thorough suspension repair. Those bouncy rear shocks can only last for so long. I’ll need to save for this so I can get it done ASAP.
It’s supposed to be iced green tea. Whatever. I’ll gladly take the hot kind, thanks.
===
According to some surveys from my choir’s Yahoo group, I’m 24% fat and just 48% Pinoy.
I always knew I was a misplaced soul.
===
Hangad is just not the kind of music you should be listening to when trying to keep awake.
===
For the past three months, I find myself always looking for Gundam kits to buy, but never with the cash on hand to spend on them. There are still a few kits I’d like to add to my collection, but now I think I see the hobby for what it is: an expensive folly not for frequent consumption. I mean, I really could spend the money on other things, such as my savings and paying for my car’s long-overdue repairs. Ever since I bought the HG Gundam Airmaster Burst and the MG Zeta Gundam Ver.2.0, I haven’t bought anything new.
Only two kits are in my head for now: the MG God Gundam and the upcoming MG Gundam F91, two of the most compact Gundam-series mobile suits ever. Both make do with extensive use of ABS plastic and a minimum of polycaps.
The much-delayed F91 does away with polycaps altogether. It will make for an interesting build, at the very least. It’s due out next month.
Maybe I should be prudent and opt for the MG God for now. At least the dent it’ll make on my wallet won’t be as substantial, and I’ll be able to get it sooner.
===
The insurance claim is under way, thank goodness. My car’s damage was estimated at PhP6,440, and the insurance will pay for more than 2/3 that amount.
Besides the cosmetic damages, my car really is crying out for a thorough suspension repair. Those bouncy rear shocks can only last for so long. I’ll need to save for this so I can get it done ASAP.
Saturday, June 03, 2006
Twenty factoids
- I am 5’8” and now weighing 162 lb., which by BMI (body mass index) standards is just below overweight. I have finally started losing the weight I gained three years ago when my ex and I were still an item, thank God.
- Only my relatives call me Michael or Mike; everyone else calls me JM.
- The only place in the Philippines I’ve been to besides the island of Luzon is Bacolod, Negros Occidental.
- Currently my favorite place is Maple Valley, WA—just outside the bounds of Seattle.
- I dislike a number of local foods like dinuguan and sinigang sa bayabas.
- One of the definitively painful phases in my existence was the time I got outcast in sixth grade. I had to contend with being despised, ignored and called “Mr. Bean” by people who hardly knew me.
- I try every which way to conform to other people, but more often than not they seem to conform to me. I guess I’m already at the point when I can’t change anything about my personality anymore.
- Coffee is good. However it’s not worth blowing your wallet on. Hence my dislike for premium coffee establishments.
- Alcoholic drink of choice: Smirnoff Mule.
- Cold non-alcoholic drink of choice: A&W Cream Soda. That stuff will kill me.
- Whenever possible, I will opt to drive to a particular destination.
- I absolutely love salpicao. Bring on the garlic.
- I listened to pretty old music growing up. In third grade I listened to nothing but the Beatles. Soon after, I got weaned on 1960s Motown, the Dave Clark Five, the Zombies and The Doors.
- I used to read encyclopedia volumes as a kid to go to sleep. Nowadays I don’t read that much anymore...not too many novels, anyway.
- Carlos, an old friend of mine, taught me how to sketch people with proper proportions. I am eternally grateful to him.
- Over the years my dad has amassed an awesome cassette collection sent to him before piecemeal by his friend Al, while he was still based in New York.
- In the words of my friend Grace, I am transparent. I am physically incapable of hiding what I feel...which makes me a bad liar and a worse poker player.
- The best thing about most journeys is the journey itself. Most times I am disappointed with the destination.
- This list was done while I was feeling sleepy.
- My earnest wish is to be able to live my life without having to apologize for or regret anything.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Keeping "a healthy dose of insanity"
A lot of things have happened.
I have formally resigned as forum moderator for Honda Club of the Philippines, and pretty soon I’m terminating my membership. Lately I’ve been too busy to take a gander at the forums except on weekends, what with the number of banned websites at my place of work. I can’t even check my Yahoo Mail or Gmail accounts anymore.
The fact that I had sideswiped another member on the evening of May 17 and ran away in fear is another reason. While Francis and I have met and come to an amicable settlement, I’m not sure someone like me who lies and escapes responsibility should be trusted with the upkeep of the forum.
The night of the collision, as soon as I got home I tried ripping out the HCP sticker on the back of my car out of great shame. The lower half is still there, but I figure it’ll come off eventually. I feel that avoiding any more damage to HCP’s goodwill is the best thing I can do.
I’m very sad that not one of the current officers or moderators has dropped me a line ever since I posted my resignation last night. No one replied to my posts either. Maybe that’s what I should have expected. The club had moved on without me already.
Shunichi Sakurai aka “Shuni”
January 2003 – May 2006
===
I am so sick of hanging my head in shame whenever I go to the HCP website.
I am tired of constantly looking for tears to cry. Where have my tears gone now that I needed them?
===
“The Da Vinci Code” was...interesting. I’ve never read the book, but the plot is a fanciful way of connecting a lot of real-life figures into a fictional story.
It was also rather disappointing. It relies too much on talk and it’s way too easy to get lost and lose interest. Sad to say, the book—and its ensuing controversy value—seems too big for the film.
===
To keep a healthy dose of insanity, I’ve immersed myself in my work. I still enjoy working with my officemates and I’m very happy that I’ve embraced them this well this quickly. I don’t really mind the work I do, either.
It is with them that I found my laughter again, and I am grateful. It is with them that I learned that yes, I can be Mr. Sunshine once more, if only to give back what they have given me.
I’ve hit the gym with a renewed energy. I was shooting for three times a week, but my body could not take the exhaustion and I nearly got a fever from the nasty chill of my cubicle. (That’s pretty much the only thing I dislike about work: it’s too damn cold in the office.) I’m playing badminton again, too. I’ve managed to lose four pounds without really trying. For once, I’m actually losing the fat I’d put on when I was still dating my ex four years ago!
I am so lucky, really. I never want to leave. I don’t want anyone to leave because at this point I need my happiness.
Now if only I got my paycheck...
I have formally resigned as forum moderator for Honda Club of the Philippines, and pretty soon I’m terminating my membership. Lately I’ve been too busy to take a gander at the forums except on weekends, what with the number of banned websites at my place of work. I can’t even check my Yahoo Mail or Gmail accounts anymore.
The fact that I had sideswiped another member on the evening of May 17 and ran away in fear is another reason. While Francis and I have met and come to an amicable settlement, I’m not sure someone like me who lies and escapes responsibility should be trusted with the upkeep of the forum.
The night of the collision, as soon as I got home I tried ripping out the HCP sticker on the back of my car out of great shame. The lower half is still there, but I figure it’ll come off eventually. I feel that avoiding any more damage to HCP’s goodwill is the best thing I can do.
I’m very sad that not one of the current officers or moderators has dropped me a line ever since I posted my resignation last night. No one replied to my posts either. Maybe that’s what I should have expected. The club had moved on without me already.
Shunichi Sakurai aka “Shuni”
January 2003 – May 2006
===
I am so sick of hanging my head in shame whenever I go to the HCP website.
I am tired of constantly looking for tears to cry. Where have my tears gone now that I needed them?
===
“The Da Vinci Code” was...interesting. I’ve never read the book, but the plot is a fanciful way of connecting a lot of real-life figures into a fictional story.
It was also rather disappointing. It relies too much on talk and it’s way too easy to get lost and lose interest. Sad to say, the book—and its ensuing controversy value—seems too big for the film.
===
To keep a healthy dose of insanity, I’ve immersed myself in my work. I still enjoy working with my officemates and I’m very happy that I’ve embraced them this well this quickly. I don’t really mind the work I do, either.
It is with them that I found my laughter again, and I am grateful. It is with them that I learned that yes, I can be Mr. Sunshine once more, if only to give back what they have given me.
I’ve hit the gym with a renewed energy. I was shooting for three times a week, but my body could not take the exhaustion and I nearly got a fever from the nasty chill of my cubicle. (That’s pretty much the only thing I dislike about work: it’s too damn cold in the office.) I’m playing badminton again, too. I’ve managed to lose four pounds without really trying. For once, I’m actually losing the fat I’d put on when I was still dating my ex four years ago!
I am so lucky, really. I never want to leave. I don’t want anyone to leave because at this point I need my happiness.
Now if only I got my paycheck...
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Pride goeth before a fall
My pride has gotten the better of me again. I got into another accident. The damage was mostly superficial (nothing mechanical was involved), but it forced me to ask serious questions about how good I really am as a driver, how fit my car is...and how responsible I am as an adult.
The ensuing guilt trip has basically taken the wind out of my sails for the remainder of the week. It was wrong, blatantly wrong, what I did that Wednesday night. I am fortunate the other party was also from HCP and was amenable to an amicable settlement.
===
I’m just not myself right about now. I’m in a semi-constant mope.
The ensuing guilt trip has basically taken the wind out of my sails for the remainder of the week. It was wrong, blatantly wrong, what I did that Wednesday night. I am fortunate the other party was also from HCP and was amenable to an amicable settlement.
===
I’m just not myself right about now. I’m in a semi-constant mope.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
After, after, after
After three weeks, Gerald, Jho and I are no longer “new.”
This morning we were joined by Jackie and Vlad, the newest addition to our team. Everything went the way it did with us until lunch time came. By then the two newbies had access passes and could log on to their computers. I was somewhat chagrined by that, seeing as the three of us spent a week bored out of our heads, waiting for the same things Jackie and Vlad got in their first day. Oh well.
Still, they seem like a nice bunch. I really do hope they get to enjoy being in BDCN the same way I do.
===
After lunch I went to an ATM to check my account. I was curious to see if I’d already been paid my salary. Sadly my balance still reports I have nothing but a measly PhP100 as placeholder.
I really want to see my payslip...and I really want to see my hard-earned money. At least it’d make me appreciate it more.
===
After leaving my cubicle and my teammates tonight, just before going home I decided to take the elevator a few floors down. I had this crazy idea of visiting where she worked...and I did.
I really, really want to ask her out to lunch or dinner...
This morning we were joined by Jackie and Vlad, the newest addition to our team. Everything went the way it did with us until lunch time came. By then the two newbies had access passes and could log on to their computers. I was somewhat chagrined by that, seeing as the three of us spent a week bored out of our heads, waiting for the same things Jackie and Vlad got in their first day. Oh well.
Still, they seem like a nice bunch. I really do hope they get to enjoy being in BDCN the same way I do.
===
After lunch I went to an ATM to check my account. I was curious to see if I’d already been paid my salary. Sadly my balance still reports I have nothing but a measly PhP100 as placeholder.
I really want to see my payslip...and I really want to see my hard-earned money. At least it’d make me appreciate it more.
===
After leaving my cubicle and my teammates tonight, just before going home I decided to take the elevator a few floors down. I had this crazy idea of visiting where she worked...and I did.
I really, really want to ask her out to lunch or dinner...
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Work...I love it!
As far as summer outings go, my first work-related one should be pretty shambolic.
Rain was already pouring in since Friday morning due to a tropical storm. We had no idea how bad it would become by that evening, when the higher-ups were meeting about whether or not to proceed with the summer outing at Blue Coral resort in San Juan, Batangas. We were e-mailed that the outing was a go.
Imagine the sight at our meeting place at the Makati Stock Exchange, where people had either very optimistic or very realistic clothing. In the chilled wind and rain, a significant number of my officemates were hanging out in their sandos, slippers and board shorts.
Before we even made it to Blue Coral, the telltale signs were staring us in the face. Along the length of the STAR Tollway, billboards were getting sheared into jagged strips, power pylons were being swayed left and right, and the palm trees’ branches were being swept back at an unusual angle all because of the gale-force winds. That Saturday morning, the rain was no longer much of an issue—it was the fierce winds that were the talk of the trip. As we neared our destination, we saw along the shoreline the upturned remains of beachside gazebos and remarkably choppy seas.
One in the afternoon and we had arrived. The resort staff obviously did not expect us to come...and why should they? Typhoon signal #2 was already raised in the whole province of Batangas. They reported there was no electricity, no water and not enough generator capacity to keep all the cottages lit. They were so flabbergasted of our arrival that they hadn’t even prepared any lunch; it had to be prepared in haste. It was clear as day: no one’s staying here overnight.
Nonetheless we trooped back to our two buses in good spirits. I was slightly disappointed our jamming sessions at nearby Audiophile studio were for naught as there was obviously no battle of the bands going to happen at beachside. We made the most out of our current situation by shooting pool with defective cue sticks, cracking jokes, playing pusoy-dos and singing a few tunes on the trip back home. As a consolation, we were treated to an eat-all-you-can buffet dinner at Dads Glorietta, where I stuffed my face with sushi.
The success or failure of the summer outing didn’t really matter to me. What ultimately mattered was the time I shared with my co-workers. I’m very lucky I got assigned to my current project, because it really is an extension of my very joyous college experience, with new-but-somehow-quite-familiar people. Our team is a very loud, noisy, happy bunch of people that knows all too well how to have fun on a regular basis and doesn’t really give a damn about rank.
I am very, very grateful for my new friends. I wish I could stay with BDCN and never get reassigned anywhere else. I’ve already found my comfort zone and I would really rather not leave.
===
Here’s one of the songs I was supposed to sing at the summer outing. Yes, I practiced, and I was so, so prepared to get rid of my solo-vocalist shyness at the beach. Somehow, I’m convinced I would have done well if it had pushed through.
Sunday morning, rain is falling
Steal some cover, share some skin
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in
But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the road, get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never wanna leave
Fingers trace your every outline
Paint a picture with my hands
And back and forth we sway like branches in a storm
Change the weather, still together when it ends
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never wanna leave
But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do
Sunday morning rain is falling and I’m calling out to you
Singing someday, it’ll bring me back to you
Find a way to bring myself back home to you
You may not know
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning...
- Maroon 5, “Sunday Morning”
Rain was already pouring in since Friday morning due to a tropical storm. We had no idea how bad it would become by that evening, when the higher-ups were meeting about whether or not to proceed with the summer outing at Blue Coral resort in San Juan, Batangas. We were e-mailed that the outing was a go.
Imagine the sight at our meeting place at the Makati Stock Exchange, where people had either very optimistic or very realistic clothing. In the chilled wind and rain, a significant number of my officemates were hanging out in their sandos, slippers and board shorts.
Before we even made it to Blue Coral, the telltale signs were staring us in the face. Along the length of the STAR Tollway, billboards were getting sheared into jagged strips, power pylons were being swayed left and right, and the palm trees’ branches were being swept back at an unusual angle all because of the gale-force winds. That Saturday morning, the rain was no longer much of an issue—it was the fierce winds that were the talk of the trip. As we neared our destination, we saw along the shoreline the upturned remains of beachside gazebos and remarkably choppy seas.
One in the afternoon and we had arrived. The resort staff obviously did not expect us to come...and why should they? Typhoon signal #2 was already raised in the whole province of Batangas. They reported there was no electricity, no water and not enough generator capacity to keep all the cottages lit. They were so flabbergasted of our arrival that they hadn’t even prepared any lunch; it had to be prepared in haste. It was clear as day: no one’s staying here overnight.
Nonetheless we trooped back to our two buses in good spirits. I was slightly disappointed our jamming sessions at nearby Audiophile studio were for naught as there was obviously no battle of the bands going to happen at beachside. We made the most out of our current situation by shooting pool with defective cue sticks, cracking jokes, playing pusoy-dos and singing a few tunes on the trip back home. As a consolation, we were treated to an eat-all-you-can buffet dinner at Dads Glorietta, where I stuffed my face with sushi.
The success or failure of the summer outing didn’t really matter to me. What ultimately mattered was the time I shared with my co-workers. I’m very lucky I got assigned to my current project, because it really is an extension of my very joyous college experience, with new-but-somehow-quite-familiar people. Our team is a very loud, noisy, happy bunch of people that knows all too well how to have fun on a regular basis and doesn’t really give a damn about rank.
I am very, very grateful for my new friends. I wish I could stay with BDCN and never get reassigned anywhere else. I’ve already found my comfort zone and I would really rather not leave.
===
Here’s one of the songs I was supposed to sing at the summer outing. Yes, I practiced, and I was so, so prepared to get rid of my solo-vocalist shyness at the beach. Somehow, I’m convinced I would have done well if it had pushed through.
Sunday morning, rain is falling
Steal some cover, share some skin
Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable
You twist to fit the mold that I am in
But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do
And I would gladly hit the road, get up and go if I knew
That someday it would lead me back to you
That someday it would lead me back to you
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never wanna leave
Fingers trace your every outline
Paint a picture with my hands
And back and forth we sway like branches in a storm
Change the weather, still together when it ends
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never wanna leave
But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do
Sunday morning rain is falling and I’m calling out to you
Singing someday, it’ll bring me back to you
Find a way to bring myself back home to you
You may not know
That may be all I need
In darkness she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning...
- Maroon 5, “Sunday Morning”
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Lacking
Three weeks into my job and I’m learning that I need two things more than ever. Sleep and patience.
Whatever I do, I never seem to be able to get rid of the dark circles around my eyes. I am really jealous of my friends who can survive with barely three hours of kip and still look as fresh as ever. I on the other hand try my hardest to sleep a fitful six hours a day (at least), yet I still look as if I hadn’t caught a wink in years.
There are also so many things that can distract me from getting the job at hand done. Whether it’s a sudden meeting, the call of nature or a report of bad news, it’s there and it conspires to impede or basically drive me nuts. I find myself really lacking in adaptability.
I need more sleep and patience...fast.
===
This weekend we’ll be at Blue Coral resort in San Juan, Batangas for our summer outing at work. I’m really considering driving there, if only for the reason that I should be passing by the Batangas Racing Circuit en route to the destination.
Whatever I do, I never seem to be able to get rid of the dark circles around my eyes. I am really jealous of my friends who can survive with barely three hours of kip and still look as fresh as ever. I on the other hand try my hardest to sleep a fitful six hours a day (at least), yet I still look as if I hadn’t caught a wink in years.
There are also so many things that can distract me from getting the job at hand done. Whether it’s a sudden meeting, the call of nature or a report of bad news, it’s there and it conspires to impede or basically drive me nuts. I find myself really lacking in adaptability.
I need more sleep and patience...fast.
===
This weekend we’ll be at Blue Coral resort in San Juan, Batangas for our summer outing at work. I’m really considering driving there, if only for the reason that I should be passing by the Batangas Racing Circuit en route to the destination.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Definitely maybe...
It’s been a long while since I last dated, and the thought of starting anew did cross my mind lately. From the last training gig, I met Carla and I do think she’s very cute. That said, I rather regret that I didn’t ask for her number.
I wonder if guessing her email address would be too hard?
I wonder if guessing her email address would be too hard?
Pata-Team
Lately I’ve been eyeing MP3 players. After years of being told that MP3 players aren’t supposed to be used in school, I find that at the becubicled reality of work, they’re something of a necessity.
I’ve been using my mom’s 128MB Music Stick, a gift from Tita Susan. It’s a nice little gadget, but I wish it had more memory and a rechargeable battery. I was shocked at how quickly an alkaline AAA dry cell got drained with the amount of listening I did. Also, I’ve had a long-running fetish for headphones (I never liked earphones) and I really want the most comfortable pair I can find. Those spiffy DJ-style headphones would be right up my alley, although expensive.
===
Jho, Gerald and I were surprised last Thursday when Robert, our manager, said we were supposed to be at PSE Tower One for Application Testing training instead of at Cybergate. No one had informed us though our newly acquired email addresses, so we got there three hours late.
Jho and I got into one group composed of fellow new-joiners Carla, Jon and Chester, and long-time member Dio. We named ourselves the “Pata-Team,” and throughout the activities of the training session we had amassed the most number of points. Some of them were working at UBP and at Cybergate too. I would love to meet these guys again.
Our seasoned programmer instructors Fiel and Mario were entertaining despite a potentially heavy topic. It was nice listening to their stories, both successes and failures, and from them I got to understand a little about how the IT world works. Thanks to them and their seminar I finally understood my work and had an idea of how it really is to be a tester.
===
Weekends so far have been opportunites for me to grab some shut-eye. Instead of getting up to watch Detective Conan, I slept very early on Saturday night. Instead of playing badminton this afternoon I slept right through the expected 1:45pm departure time. Sheesh. It’s got to be the heat.
I just hope I don’t sleep right through next weekend’s company outing. That’d be a big waste.
I’ve been using my mom’s 128MB Music Stick, a gift from Tita Susan. It’s a nice little gadget, but I wish it had more memory and a rechargeable battery. I was shocked at how quickly an alkaline AAA dry cell got drained with the amount of listening I did. Also, I’ve had a long-running fetish for headphones (I never liked earphones) and I really want the most comfortable pair I can find. Those spiffy DJ-style headphones would be right up my alley, although expensive.
===
Jho, Gerald and I were surprised last Thursday when Robert, our manager, said we were supposed to be at PSE Tower One for Application Testing training instead of at Cybergate. No one had informed us though our newly acquired email addresses, so we got there three hours late.
Jho and I got into one group composed of fellow new-joiners Carla, Jon and Chester, and long-time member Dio. We named ourselves the “Pata-Team,” and throughout the activities of the training session we had amassed the most number of points. Some of them were working at UBP and at Cybergate too. I would love to meet these guys again.
Our seasoned programmer instructors Fiel and Mario were entertaining despite a potentially heavy topic. It was nice listening to their stories, both successes and failures, and from them I got to understand a little about how the IT world works. Thanks to them and their seminar I finally understood my work and had an idea of how it really is to be a tester.
===
Weekends so far have been opportunites for me to grab some shut-eye. Instead of getting up to watch Detective Conan, I slept very early on Saturday night. Instead of playing badminton this afternoon I slept right through the expected 1:45pm departure time. Sheesh. It’s got to be the heat.
I just hope I don’t sleep right through next weekend’s company outing. That’d be a big waste.
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