survey says...

Got this from java junkie's post, you guys are "it!" enjoy! :P
1. Nervous Habits:walk around, tap fingers, bang on table
2. Are you double jointed:nope
3. Can you roll your tongue:yep! :P
4. Can you raise one eyebrow:i try, but it only goes up by 1mm /:)
5. Can you blow spit bubbles:no, but making spit bubbles...
6. Can you cross your eyes:yep! :D
7. somebody deleted this...wonder why???enh?
8. Do you make your bed daily:yeah, an OC habit
hey, #9 is missing!!
-- CLOTHES --
10. Which shoe goes on first:right shoe in
11. Speaking of shoes, have you ever thrown one at anyone?nope, i have big & heavy shoes, so they might cause a concussion :(
12. On the average, how much money do you carry::-$
13. What jewelry do you wear 24/7:watch & college ring during the daytime
14. Favorite piece of clothing:a good shirt w/ a good tie :>
-- FOOD --
15. Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it?i cut it and scoop it up
16. Have you ever eaten Spam:of course! :D
17. Favorite ice cream flavor:mint choco, and the occasional wasabe ;)
18. How many cereals in your cabinet:none, a rarity here in the republic of bagoong, bananas, and binalot
19. What's your favorite beverage:STARBUCKS COFFEE, iced tea
20. What's your favorite restaurant:Cibo, itallianis, starbucks, mongolian grills, arias, hey jude!, chef d' angelo, sushiya, yellow cab, rumpa, gerry's, dencio's, outback
21. do you cook:does toasting bread count? :P
-- GROOMING --
22. How often do you brush your teeth:2-3 times (too much info...)
23. Hair drying method:wipe with towel, lather on with gel
24. Have you ever colored/highlighted your hair:nope, but i had an unfortunate incident with a fix hair washer... :-s
--MANNERS--
25. Do you swear:the hell, of course not! >:P
26.Do you ever spit:yep, but i try to limit it at the bathroom :-"
-- FAVORITE --
27. Animalnot really particular, but i like my pet dogs :P
28. Food:pizza!!! :D
29. Month:december, when the cash comes in (and unfortunately out too) :P
30. Day:weekends :P
31. Cartoon:the simpsons, spongebob, ranma (does that still count?)
32. Shoe Brand:i'm particular to nike, but any brand would do :P
33. Subject in school:investments (since i got a 1.0 even if i got locked out of the room)econ (i got a 1.0 even if my BA118 that same sem was a 4.0, so i wasn't a total idiot)comm1 (fr. nudas)
34. Color:dark corporate IBM blue :-B
35. Sport:a bit of golf + the gym
36. TV show:friends, west wing, carnivale
37. Thing to do in the spring:avoid allergic rhinitis :(
38. Thing to do in the summer:vacation!!!
39. Thing to do in the fall?avoid the leaves :P
39. Thing to do in the winter?:wear a sweater
-- IN AND AROUND --
41. In the CD player:old eraserheads hits
42. Person you talk most on the phone with:bambs! :P
hey where'd #43 go?
44. Do you regularly check yourself out in store windows with mirrors? honestly?of course! i'm very vain :P
45. What color is your bedroom:beigish
46. Window seat or aisle:window to see the clouds & the takeoff & landing
-- LA LA LAND --
48. What's your sleeping position:flat on my back
49. Even in hot weather do you use a blanket:yes, since i use the aircon
50's missing
51. Do you sleepwalk:nope
52. Do you talk in your sleep:yeah, dreams carryover... :P
53. Do you sleep with stuffed animals:nope
54. How about with the light on:it's hard, but it happens when i'm too tired
55. Do you fall asleep with the TV or radio on:no radio, maybe TV when i'm tired, it's on sleep mode. but i usually turn off the TV because if i leave it in sleep mode, i might end up sleeping with my glasses on :P
56. Last interesting person you met:enh? :P

notoriously neutral

How evil are you?

i'm not exactly surprised, since i am relatively bland... but in the evil scale, i'm more evil than java junkie? really now? he3x! :D

musical memories

From Kitty Litter’s post!: Here’s the thing: go to this site Look for the search box on the left. Fill it in with the year that you graduated high school. Click open the first search result – it will have a 100 songs. Now cut and paste that and comment on the songs from your wasted youth, and react to them one by one!

Man, I’m this old??? :(

1. Gangsta's Paradise, Coolio – from dangerous minds! Michelle pfieffer was in this video!
2. Waterfalls, TLC – they’re on the MTV classic cd now :(
3. Creep, TLC – I don’t think this is the Creep alternative song
4. Kiss From A Rose, Seal – one of the few good things that came out of the Batman Forever movie: a good soundtrack. I remember a classmate commenting on the medieval strumming at the beginning of the song could be a reference to the Dark Knight (hi ria!) :D
5. On Bended Knee, Boyz II Men – one of the better BIIM songs
6. Another Night, Real McCoy – eh?
7. Fantasy, Mariah Carey – forgot this one
8. Take A Bow, Madonna – eto ba yung “say goodbye” sa With Honors?
9. Don't Take It Personal (Just One Of Dem Days), Monica – probably R&B, was more into metal/rock back in the day
10. This Is How We Do It, Montell Jordan – yep, just know the title & the beginning lyrics
11. I Know, Dionne Farris - nada
12. Water Runs Dry, Boyz II Men - nope
13. Freak Like Me, Adina Howard – hmm, there’s a song now with those lyrics in it
14. Run-Around, Blues Traveler – I vaguely remember the band
15. I Can Love You Like That, All-4-One – eh?
16. Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?, Bryan Adams – don juan de marco!
17. Always, Bon Jovi – the day when bon jovi had long hair, not yet an actor, and not yet a Democrat
18. Boombastic / In The Summertime, Shaggy – Levi’s commercial!
19. Total Eclipse Of The Heart, Nicki French – turn around (na paulit-ulit)
20. You Gotta Be, Des'ree - nope
21. You Are Not Alone, Michael Jackson – the dying embers of the Michael Jackson express
22. Hold My Hand, Hootie and The Blowfish – man, I thought they were gonna be big, but only eked out 2 hits
23. One More Chance-Stay With Me, Notorious B.I.G. – eh?
24. Here Comes The Hotstepper, Ini Kamoze – wha?
25. Candy Rain, Soul For Real - nope
26. Let Her, w Hootie and The Blowfish – see 22
27. I Believe, Blessid Union Of Souls – is this the song with the black dude falls in love with the white girl?
28. Red Light Special, TLC - nope
29. Runaway, Janet Jackson – forgot this one
30. Strong Enough, Sheryl Crow – Sheryl crow was already singing then?
31. Colors Of The Wind, Vanessa Williams – Pocahontas!
32. Someone To Love, Jon B. - nope
33. Only Wanna Be With You, Hootie and The Blowfish – oops, 3 hits pala… he3x! :D
34. If You Love Me, Brownstone – brownstone? Sounds like ….
35. In The House Of Stone And Light, Martin Page - nope
36. I Got 5 On It, Luniz - nada
37. Baby, Brandy – 15 pa lang si brandy non?
38. Run Away, Real McCoy – um?
39. As I Lay Me Down, Sophie B. Hawkins – the follow-up to Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover!
40. He's Mine, Mokenstef – hmm?
41. December, Collective Soul – not September by Earth Wind & Fire?
42. I'll Be There For You-You're All I Need To Get By, Method Man-Mary J. Blige - nope
43. Shy Guy, Diana King – “have mercy mercy mercy!”
44. I'm The Only One, Melissa Etheridge - enh
45. Every Little Thing I Do, Soul For Real - nope
46. Before I Let You Go, BLACKstreet - nada
47. Big Poppa / Warning, Notorious B.I.G. - zilch
48. Sukiyaki, 4 P.M. – ah, the mutated Japanese song!!!
49. I Wanna Be Down, Brandy – eng?
50. I'll Make Love To You, Boyz II Men – like you want me to…
51. Dear Mama / Old School, 2Pac - nope
52. Hold On, Jamie Walters – hold on what?
53. Keep Their Heads Ringin', Dr. Dre – pre-slim shady
54. The Rhythm Of The Night, Corona - nope
55. Roll To Me, Del Amitri - nada
56. Scream / Childhood, Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson – ooh, a Jackson duet!
57. Freek'n You, Jodeci - forgot
58. I Wish, Skee-lo - ern
59. Believe, Elton John – sir Elton was still making songs?
60. Carnival, Natalie Merchant - nope
61. You Don't Know How It Feels, Tom Petty – I thought he was in the 80s
62. Back For Good, Take That – light song63. Tootsee Roll, 69 Boyz - hmm
64. You Want This-70's Love Groove, Janet Jackson - nope
65. Tell Me, Groove Theory – still no66. Can't You See, Total - nope
67. All I Wanna Do, Sheryl Crow - none
68. This Lil' Game We Play, Subway – nyet
69. Come And Get Your Love, Real McCoy – band sound familiar
70. This Ain't A Love Song, Bon Jovi – then what is it? :P
71. Secret, Madonna – forgot!
72. Player's Anthem, Junior M.A.F.I.A. – wha?
73. Feel Me Flow, Naughty By Nature – sounds similiar
74. Every Day Of The Week, Jade - nope
75. The Sweetest Days, Vanessa Williams - nada
76. Short Dick Man, 20 Fingers Featuring Gillette – ooh… he3x! :P
77. Brokenhearted, Brandy - nope
78. No More "I Love You's", Annie Lennox – still a bit gothic
79. You Used To Love Me, Faith Evans - hmm
80. Constantly, Immature - nope
81. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me, U2 – batman forever song!
82. 100% Pure Love, Crystal Waters – I remember this beat, the lyrics would go too fast
83. Ask Of You, Raphael Saadiq - nope
84. Sugar Hill, Az - none
85. Good, Better Than Ezra - forgot
86. Brown Sugar, D'angelo - nope
87. Turn The Beat Around, Gloria Estefan – a remake?
88. 'Til You Do Me Right, After 7 - hmm
89. 1st Of Tha Month, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - none
90. Like The Way I Do If I Wanted To, Melissa Etheridge – eh?
91. I Live My Life For You, Firehouse – isn’t this from miss Saigon?
92. Dream About You-Funky Melody, Stevie B - nope
93. Cotton Eye Joe, Rednex – somewhat familiar
94. Thank You, Boyz II Men – your welcome!
95. I'll Stand By You, Pretenders - hmm96. I Miss You, N II U – eh?
97. Give It 2 You, Da Brat - nah
98. Best Friend, Brandy - nope
99. Misery, Soul Asylum – I remember runaway train
100. Can't Stop Lovin' You, Van Halen – he still made songs then?

Where’s my metallica? My guns & roses??? i was such a dork then (even more so than now, if that's friggin' possible) that i couldnt even associate a good memory from these songs... hay... :(

desperate depressing diaspora

(I hate to spoil everyone’s Monday, but here goes…)

Everyone’s leaving. This Filipino diaspora has been going on for years now, but it gets worse & worse. Personally, it hit my family when cousins & aunts & uncles began going to the US for as long as I can remember. Heck, my mother’s siblings & parents were already there before I reached the age of reason. Then, it was my father’s relatives. Then, it became weirder, since my classmates & friends were leaving. Correction: my classmates & friends are leaving. It has become too noticeable that on every get-together, a substantial number would be absent because this number was in the great califor-ni-a (or the big apple or the british isles or the land of oz or what not).

I remembered what my fellow blogger said as a reason for leaving: he wanted to leave before he learned how to steal. Then it hit me: the reason why I was so reluctant to leave in the first place. I have become part of the system we so despise. Heck, I even make excuses for it now, saying that’s how life is. But it shouldn’t be.

The ones who are leaving would’ve had a decent chance to succeed here if it weren’t for the constricting socio-economic-political conditions that resonate in this republic of bananas, bagoong, & binalot. Namely, if you don’t know anyone, you can’t make it good. Of course, everywhere else, knowing someone gives you an advantage; but here, you have to know someone to survive. Abroad, you can work hard (or not-so-hard, if you’re used to audit), and still get all the material furnishings that would take a lifetime to achieve here (plus knowing people).

In addition, living abroad is a sure-fire way to test your independence capabilities; somewhat like dumping an infant into the pool, forcing him to swim. Here, you’d still have to contend with your parents and your relatives. It takes a very strong will not to ask them for anything, and an even stronger will to refuse their offers for help. With the distance, it forces you to live on your own wits.

I’ve been putting off doing stuff, like taking my masters, living alone, and what not for the longest time. I don’t know why, then suddenly, everyone has left me behind, and I’m inching towards the 30s. I don’t know if thinking about the US is one of my impulses to do something now to my life. Of course, I realize that going abroad must be a holistic decision, not only because your significant other’s there. (If the goals meet convergent paths in the US of A, it would help though.)

What’s my point? I’m just depressed that everyone’s off for their better futures while I’m still twiddling my thumbs. I should do something, something that would make me achieve my goals. What goal, I only have a faint idea of getting rich; otherwise, I dunno. Fact is, I’m content, but i know my condition would change. I really have to prepare for what I want to achieve, but I have to know what exactly what I want first, or at least have a more specific idea of what I should become.

driving decisions

Pare, di na mag-start yan
Buti pa kakain na lang tayo
Ah, gusto mo ng, ah, tahong?
Gusto mo ng labong?
Spaghetti?
Patitocini?
Bananaque?
Nilagang suso?
Tahong Chips Ahoy?
Gusto mo ng tapoy?
Burokoli?
Peanut britul, na may pecan?
Gusto mo ng, ah, kapeng barako?
Blue marlin?
Panga? Durian?
Shalinga?
Peanut kisses?
Ah..champuy?
Lomi?
Shawarma?
Buko pie?
Humus?
Hot sauce?
Ox brain? (kelangan mo nun)
Leche flan?
Kalderetang kambing?
Pinatuyong itlog ng kabayo?
Silicon implant?
Ginataang manok?
Ginataang gata?
Ginataang niyog?
Sarap no?
(Di mo nasabi yung susi)
Ginataang susi

suddenly showbiz

i was watching the news reports this morning on p/supt michael ray aquino's capture in the US. he was accused in the killing of pr guy bubby dacer & his driver. at any rate, they were showing file footages of aquino in the US, one shot walking with his wife, the other walking with a reporter.

this reporter was the husky lar santiago, or kuya lar santiago, showbiz reporter.

what the heck??? is that how muddled the lines are between politics and showbiz??? he3x! :P

goodbye good grass

haydee yorac, 67
raymundo punongbayan, 67
raul roco, 63

juan ponce enrile, 81
ernesto maceda, 70
imelda marcos, 76

why are the good ones taken away from us so early, without having fully realized their plans to improve the country, while the not-so-good ones still linger on, extending their tentacles of decay on the republic of bagoong, binalot, & balot? :(

(the title refers to the filipino saying "Ang masamang damo, matagal mamatay." / "Bad grass does not die easily.")

gift glitches

i remember this old season 4 episode from Friends, where chandler is in love with kathy, joey's girlfriend. it was kathy's birthday and chandler wanted to give her this:

instead, joey wanted to give her this....

what a great episode... hehehe! :D

legislative lambasts and literacy labels

let me start off with the usual political rant unique to the republic of bagoong, bananas, & binalot: yup, she'll be politicking more than governing now. it's useless to look for economic targets, since she'll be using her powers to pay her debts to those who had supported her and will continue to support her until 2010. dang.

=============

we keep on whining about how the 3B republic has gone to the dogs, but i'm not so sure. one indication of this is our literacy rate. it has always been trumpeted in the old days that we have the highest literacy rate, second to japan of course (it's always the 2nd best to japan in the old days). now, most of the illustrados think that the masa is a bunch of unread, money-hungry ingrates waiting for the next hakot fee.

then i take a look at our road signs.

since our leaders are desperate for attention and name-recognition, they always mark their projects with billboards containing their name and sometimes hideous visages. even for construction work, there would be a long label. consider this example (although not the real poster, it's an apporximation; makati workers passing through edsa ayala would recognize this):

Starting January 15, 2005, Makati Avenue from Ayala Avenue will be closed to traffic due to the construction of the underpass, effective from 10am to 6pm. Please take alternative routes.

now this may seem like a short sentence, but consider that this sign takes up 5-6 lines in the billboard so it can be seen by passing motorists. in other countries, a "no entry" sign or the red circle with the white dash would suffice. "No entry, construction ongoing" would be loquacious.

some may say, this is in english, no one would understand this. but consider also the signs of the MMDA:

bawal tumawid, nakamamatay

(or something to that effect).

yes, one may see it as the government expecting too much from people to read the signs. but apparently, reading the signs give a stronger message than just the symbol.

just thinking aloud :P

tie talk

this was another comment i posted on vivaglam's blog last year:

call me too western-oriented & old-fashioned, but ties = professionalism. that's why i always make the effort of wearing a tie, even in the office where it's not necessarily a requirement. heck, i've wanted to wear a tie ever since i was 7 years old, i was that much of a dork :-B

of course, it's not only wearing a tie, but also how one wears the tie (or the shirt in general). a guy would look sloppy & won't belong if the shirt's too untucked and the tie's too long or too short. it has to be just right. the proper wearing of the shirt & tie can mean the difference between a security guard being mean to you or being all polite.

what's the point of all these ramblings? a tie serves as the halfway point between a plain long-sleeved shirt and a suit/snazzy barong. it's not as high up the ladder, but you're getting there.

(i think this is also related to swipe's post about business attire, but i had only read about them a few weeks ago...)

idiotic idiomatic idiosyncracies

i was reading bambi's dispatch from the land of milk & honey when i remembered a similar incident happening on my side of the family:

we were going around the swap meet @ LA when there was a pinoy seller of goods (whom we had previously met) who approached us:

seller: uy! kayo yung mga torres diba?
us: ah, hindi...
seller: oo, kayo nga yung mga torres! pinakilala na kayo sa amin!
us: hindi po, iba po pangalan namin
seller: oo! kayo nga yung mga torres! babalik kayong pilipinas pagkatapos ng bakasyon nyo dito!

ah, tourists!!!

pen prose

this was originally posted as a comment in Vivaglam's blog:

I also have this affinity for nice pens, but not at the Mont Blanc level. I remembered the first good pen I treasured was the Macky parker pen. Oh sure, everyone in the pilot class had one, but it was better than those P5 Uni-Mitsubishi-CSA pens they sold at the bookstore. That is, until I found out that each Parker refill would cost around P60, at that time a hefty sum that would strain a P50-P70 daily HS allowance. I checked with Office Warehouse this week and it's now up to P120.

Still, I yearned for the day I could get a personalized Parker pen (vanity the primary consideration). I tried to have the Macky Parker pen engraved, only to be turned down by the National people (you have to buy the pen from them first). Due to plain stubborness, I kept on asking them intermittently for about two years. Finally, I saved enough for my own all-silver Parker pen, complete with inscription! Unfortunately, all-silver Parker pens are less sturdier than their mestizo counterparts, so this pen conked out in less than six months (the clicking mechanism got jammed).

So now, although I still have around two or three engraved good pens (given as gifts over time), I prefer a Panda pen, since one Panda has always lasted me for months, if not years (unless it gets lost). I would prefer the clicking Panda, since I seem to have acquired from Macky that annoying pen clicking habit.

torturous trap

picture this: you're a respected member of the business community, having a wealth of experience behind you. you can keep on serving your company or retire peacefully.

then the president knocks on your door to ask you to work for her.

you say, i'm happy here, i know what the government's like, please don't drag me in this mess.

she implores, please, for your country's stability, and the ultimate clincher, for the good of the country.

you think about it. what have you done for your country? put some scholarships? paid taxes properly? organized corporate social responsibility efforts? batted for corporate governance & accountability? nothing compared to putting up bridges that lead to nowhere, like what local legislators have done.

but you say, what the heck, i'll do it. but i have to have complete control of my scope to do my job properly.

she goes, of course, of course.

you are confident that she will support you, and the support of the president will definitely give you headway for your change management.

you also forget that being the president, she is a political animal first and a doctor in economics a far far second. she will do what it takes to survive. even to take a credible business leader like you to prop her failing state.

your priority is to change the government. her priority is to survive, in the hopes that she can change the people. but in her quest for survival, the tactics she takes undermine any impetus for future growth.

she assigns people as a sign of political debt payment. the people she assigns is not even comparable to you, to even complement you. they're just there so that the people she owes her political life to can milk your office dry.

you protest behind the closed doors. but she is the president. she can do what she wants.

you leave in disgust.

now, see the people around you. the professionals are leaving and the people with connections stay. it's because the professionals know that this scenario will play over and over and over and over again.

as a consuelo de bobo, the people with connections left here hail you as heroes, send home your dollars, your dinars! we'll waste it even more!

and it has become so pervasive that no one is left here to improve our society. it doesn't even have to be a concerted effort; just decent acts of following the law will bring us further ahead. but no, we don't even have that!

she is here to make sure she survives her political onslaught. once she's removed, it'll still be the same power-grabbing game. of course, politics the world over involve power play, but here it has reached a disgusting point. the politicians have become too greedy, both in money & in opportunities. the illustrados have no outlet to express themselves; a structured professional development is overtaken by the appointment of a mediocre superior. even in the world of entrepreneurship, the gutsy illustrados are being eased out by the child-of-politicians who have unlimited funds to enlarge their businesses.

and the politicians ask why we're in this rut? grrr.....

margaret's memory

it was 1995, the second official day of my college life, and it was 7am. the block was still cursing our luck for getting such an early class. and then, an old man enters the room, asks if this was the COMM 1 class TFQ (i think), then proceeds writing this poem on the board:

Spring and Fall: To a Young Child
by Gerard Manley Hopkins

Márgarét, are you gríeving
Over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leáves, líke the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! ás the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you wíll weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sórrow's spríngs áre the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It ís the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.

he then says, "memorize this entire poem, complete with the punctuation marks. you will have a quiz on this on friday."

thus we were introduced to fr. alfeo g. nudas, s.j.

almost every week we were introduced to a new poem to memorize, mainly shakespearean sonnets; plus "elementary" rules on grammar. 7am of every meeting, on the dot, we would have our quizzes on half a sheet of yellow pad (he didn't believe in using the blue book).

yet, despite our initial fear that he would be a punisher prof, he in fact won us over with his unexpected remarks ("all the boys sitting on one side must be gays, while all the girls sitting on the other side must be lesbians; there is only one normal pair in here [ton & ging]"), self-deprecating humor (clutching his chest when someone pointed to him as "old"), and his low yet melodic voice ("good morning class, good morning")...

he was already an old man that time, probably around 70 plus. as i've mentioned before, he might have died in these past 10 years without me knowing it.

what's the point of this post? i just want to honor his memory as much as i can.

population proposition, preposition, and postulation

i haven't made comments previously about the current "graying population" issue, but i've been wanting to say this for a long time:

a general trend in industrialized nations is that social security is becoming too burdensome for the younger generation to support their elders, because there are more elders living longer while there are less younger people to support them (either through direct care or through indirect cash payments). as a result, not-so-industrialized countries (e.g. bambi's republic of bagoong) are sending young 'uns by the droves to care for the graying population.

what disgusts me is what the church says about this phenomenon; that God is punishing these nations because of the birth control policies they practiced in the past decades. and that now the old people are also paying for it by not having enough young people to care for them in their old age.

(this caring-for-the-old viewpoint is especially true in the province, where couples give birth by the dozens in the hopes that one of their offspring would care for them when they grow old; an insurance concept. the problem is this view necessarily limits the potential of the offspring, thus subjecting them to the limitations of what their parents have dictated for them to do. but i digress.)

this shift towards increasing social security for the old is a transitional shift. essentially, the industrial nations have experienced a baby boom from the 40s to the mid 60s, then afterwards they practiced responsible parenthood, where less babies were produced. in addition to better medicine, the now-old parents outnumber the succeeding generation, thus burdening the younger ones.

in a score or two, this will balance out, with the rates of population increase leveling out, so that the reduced social security would be enough to support the future older generation.

how about the republic of bagoong? i guess the nurses would be welcome back here, albeit on a lesser salary.

(as for the title, i just liked using the big "p" words after "population," since it was hard to find an alliteration for "population paradigm shift")

a crack in the calendar

it's a friday night and i'm still at the office.

normally, i'd be going to bambi's and making tambay there until 10pm (watching encantadia & sugo). now, i can't. she's abroad for 3 weeks and i suddenly have nothing to do.

my sister also went abroad for a week; it's just perfect timing that they're both gone now.

i try to rack my brain on what i used to do on weekend nights like this one, before bambi came along. let me see...

1. do nothing but watch TV at home
2. go to batangas on friday night, to return on sunday afternoon
3. go watch a movie with my sister
4. if really desperate, attend the rusty gym at the utility company, where no one else use it except for my gym-obsessed friend and some other gym dudes

i guess it's like what i heard about Flowers for Algernon, where the mouse (sorry bambi) was subjected to a stimulant (i think) and the mouse (named Algernon) became more intelligent; then the scientists took the janitor played by matthew modine and made him drink the drug to make him a genius. unfortunately, Algernon died because of the drugs, and this might make matthew modine die as well. i think he refused to stop the drug, because of this:

he has tasted greatness already; he can't go back to being what he used to be.

tick tock, time tremors, & tantrums

(warning: severe self-pity post ahead)

i'm going to celebrate my 10th anniversary of my 18th birthday next week. trust me, it's better than thinking about it as my 15th anniversary of my 13th birthday, or worse, my 28th birthday.

i really feel indifferent towards my birthday. it just reminds me again how little i've done so far. sure, i get to treat my family, officemates, my various kabarkadas, bambi (of course), etc. i don't really mind treating them out, but lately it's getting to be more expensive. but that's not my main beef.

i'm looking at my parents' marriage contract, they were both married at 26. and my dad was already in the forefront of his career by 28; heck he already had an asthmatic toddler by then (me). and here i am, still living at my parents' house rent-free (although paying for some minor utilities expenses), and will live in a house that my parents will primarily pay for. i guess that's the curse of being the son of a great man; it's quite a struggle to even peep out of his shadow. i guess that's partly the reason i didn't want to follow in his career path; i didn't want any more additional comparisons that i already subject myself to.

(it doesn't help that he started in the service at 21, which was quite young even for his batch; whereas i had grade 7, a 5 year course, and a board review that made me start work at 24, which is old for my batch.)

then i look at my contemporaries to see if i could see a pattern. i do; it's not the good one. since most of my contemporaries went to audit, they were able to go around the country and even the world, and because of the training, they even landed succeeding jobs that made them travel even more. and they have supervisory & managerial positions.

i look at my non-accounting contemporaries, and they have supervisory & managerial positions and travel around the world too.

of course, by the very nature of my job as a number-cruncher, my ass is planted on the chair to crunch numbers. in addition, i still maintain my aversion towards auditing.

still, it doesn't remove the fact that i'm still dependent on my family, i still am not even starting my masters, a number of my friends are married & have kids, and my work responsibility is only slightly better than when i first entered the work force.

on top of that, i'm 28.

28.

2 x 14.

most advice columns would say, don't keep up with the joneses, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, love what you have, live with what life has dealt you. but i've always felt that that's a defeatist approach to my situation.

i guess if one's stuck to the same process day in and day out, one loses track of time so much that you miss certain deadlines, certain opportunities.

i don't want to be satisfied. i want to do something.

what's the point of this post. i don't know. now i do know is that i have to take a bathroom break.

this sucks.

(as an aside: amando doronila, my favorite inquirer columnist, has been grilled at the commision of appointments for his appointment as ambassador to benelux. this also sucks.)

random ruminations

i thought about reacting to jamby's reaction to the repealing of the Oil Deregulation Act, but she's expected to do rather ditzy things, so i didn't find it in my heart to diss her today.

another idea was to comment on the gloriagate crisis. nothing in the past couple of days made me change her mind about what happened before and up to the point she almost lost the palace: she cheated, but the opposition's a worse option. anything now is just noise.

bambi's leaving soon, so that kinda brings me down. 3 weeks. well, i'd save up on the usual boyfriend expenses, but i'd still be making long-distance calls, so i'd still have some cash outlays. oh well, i'll miss her, and i'll really be happy when she comes back. of course, it'd be better if i had pasalubong!!! (hon, size 9.5, black shoes!) :P

business news? work news? just passing me by. i'll post something again tomorrow, with perhaps a more readable bent. :P

directory of deliverance

maybe i was too charitable when i took this test...

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

canteen comedy

(warning: some segments of this discussion may be exagerrated)

scene: citibank tower canteen

bambi: (in full PMS mode) haynakunakakainistalagayangnasaopisinanamin!
lee: bakit na naman?
bambi: ekasilaginilapinapatugtogmga100xadayyungisangkantalang!
lee: which song?
bambi: hay.... yung kanta ni kitchie nadal, yung wag na wag mong sasabihin. i swear if i hear that song one more time, i'm gonna strangle that guy who sings it...
lee: (belts it out, concert-style) WHOA-WOH-WHOAAH-WOH, WAG NA WAG MONG SASABIHIN....
bambi: AAAARGH!!!! (flips out, jumps up the chair and strangles my neck)
lee: *urk!* na *urk!* hindi *urk!* mo *urk!* nadama *urk!* ito *urk!*... (mental note: call up aubrey & nancy later)

=========================

after bambi lets go of my neck

lee: uy, it's past one na, i have to go (makes the shrug-shake head action)
bambi: ayaw ko pa! want to stay with tihort! (stomps feet while sitting down)
lee: madami pa akong work, i have to go (makes the shrug-shake head action again)
bambi: ayaw! ayaw! ayaw! (pulls down hat so that it covers her face)
lee: hmm... (stands up and hides behind bambi)
bambi: basta! (raises hat up, expecting lee to still be in front of her) tihort? tihort? TIHORT LEFT ME NA! WAAAAH!!!
lee: (snickers, then pokes bambi's nape)
bambi: anakngpatingpuchasinoyon!
lee: mwehehehehehehe! akala mo nawala ako no? mwehehehehehehe!
bambi: (mental note: bribe brad pitt's maid to meet brad)