I like to begin it with what happened tonight, just tonight. I watched Soapdish band perform in PADIS South Station for the Rock Fest at the Grill. They sang "Ewan Ko" and I suddenly realized that this is also the date when I first heard that song eight years ago. Yes I almost cried. This is like a gift for September 25. I always expect something good to happen every Sept 25. The date deserve to be dubbed as the Day of Serendipity.
I am still staying here in Las Piñas. Today is the birthday of Gino and of course little Lianne but none of them received my greetings personally. I wasn't able to come to their respective birthday celebrations because of tiresome works in the office. The truth is, Gino never had a celebration earlier because he still is sick. How unfortunate that he is sick on his very birthday. Most probably we will move the celebration to another date.
Whence for the professional life, it is probably the main highlight of September. However tiring it may be, the point that I have something to accomplish later and a salary waiting for the month of October makes this things worthwhile. To challenge myself to reach new heights is one that makes it even more exciting. The opportunity to meet new people and befriend them is another savory experience for September.
Watching an independent movie always has an impact to ones weekend or vacation days. I happened to view "Mga Alaala Ng Tagulan" in Gateway Cineplex and I enjoyed it. A lot of criticism can be given to the acting parts of the casts but the cinematography and the quality of presentation can never be outmentioned.
The experience of rain and wetness of roads is inevitable for the month of September. I always have this temptation of not going to work because of the bed and bad weather but I have to believe it is here to stay and be a discourager for every one who wants to improve, may they be students or professionals. All will have this temptation for absence.
At some point I may ask myself why the heck do I still need to work harder. I can just sit and look around. There are lots of people who accept me and love me even without a degree or a profession. I can just go on with life being sustained by people who believes that it is their vocation to support me financially. Still, I continue to fight in a metropolitan forest. I continue to strive and reach my highest potential.
--Because this is something that tells me I am worth the respect. This is part of me building my dignity. It validates me!
One time, as I was walking on my way home, I met a child collecting garbage on the road. He is a chubby one and he doesn't look like a street children or a beggar. He looks like he is from a middle class family and he has parents who are sending him to school. But still he has this cart and collecting trashes from house to house while it is night, raining. There must be a reason behind avoiding starvation. And if that little boy who must be around 10-11 years of age has reason to work at 10pm while it was raining collecting the garbage, then pity me if I don't have one noble reason.
September allowed me to enjoy experiences. More than that, September taught lessons from life. Lessons which will eventually prepare me for that wonderful future awaiting us. If there ever are better ways to culminate September then let it happen. With open arms we are praying for more happiness while learning the value that this new world must cultivate.
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Defenseless Against Violence
I know I may be the last person to write about what's happening around for the past days. Still, the thoughts count. For many, the world doesn't seem to be a better place when they cannot open their facebook accounts. Unfortunately, there are issues and concerns that are far more than that. There is crisis in Syria and here at home we have insurgencies in Zamboanga. A promising advertising manager was found dead in Silang Cavite and we are seeking justice for her. Justin Bieber's naked photos leaked in the internet and Miley Cyrus can be stopped from twirking. Seems like everything has gone wrong.
World governments are too busy quelling the military issues that will threaten national and international security but cases of poverty and crime doubled in number for the past week going unnoticed because of these big headlines.
There was a time when hopes are high with the Arab region. 2011 served as a year of liberation and new dawn for Arab governments who for the longest time were slaves of tyrannical governments. The youth, assisted by the social media, turned their nations 270 degrees by giving birth to a new rule. It was thought to be a rule by the people. Now it all looks like shattered dreams of mobocracy.
There was a time when we were so hopeful about Mindanao that we thought end is near for rebels to stop pestering the government. Just last year, the Bangsamoro group and the peace panel team of Malacanang signed a new memorandum of agreement before the Prime Minister of Malaysia for the formation of a new region which will soon be a sub-state. Now MNLF group shows their exceptance of the treaty by firing. The violence is contained in three brangays of Zamboanga. Still, the Department of Social Welfare and Development declared this phenomenon as a humanitarian crisis.
Several political analysts are saying that this happened only to cover up the heat of Janet Lim Napoles issue because the pork barrel saga includes names of senators whose political career may be damaged by the controversy. So before the rope crashed behind the walls, they are cooling it off with a more palpable sensation. What could be worse than political issues but a military one. Something which concerns humanity's safety.
The Vatican called for a one day of prayer for Syria. Amidst the threat of bio-mass distruction, fear of loosing people's lives in a highly diplomatic age is something that horrifies our future. The same thing is true with what is happening with Zamboanga as the Archdiocese of Manila begged the entire Filipino nation to pray for the release of the hostages and cease the battles between the rebel force and the military.
I am consoled by the fact that no one seem to associate this violence to religion. People have learned to respect Islam through the bloody experience of the past. No one seem to discriminate religion of any kind which should be the case indeed. Syrian crisis of today has nothing to do with the Muslims. It is a battle of political ambitions and never of religion. The same is true with Mindanao. MNLF is not fighting for Muslims. They are simply fighting for their ideology. The fact is, Muslim people in Mindanao are calling for the end of this morass.
Perhaps no other news about violence can top this segment than what happened about Kae Davantes, the young account manager of MRM digital group of McCann Phil. who was found dead one morning in Silang Cavite. While reading Kara Ortiga's column I learned that
"She was 25. She worked as a senior accounts manager for the digital group MRM under McCann Philippines. I used to work as an accounts manager for more than a year in an advertising agency, but I continue to surround myself with friends who still do, and the lifestyle paints a picture that is niche, specific and familiar. I do not know Kae, but I find it easy for me to slip into her everyday shoes.
"Her last Friday night, as time-lined through the details obtained by police investigators, would actually look exactly like mine. Hers would begin with a late clock-out from the office at 9:36 p.m. I would leave mine at around 7 p.m. Kae would proceed to enjoy Friday’s hot nightlife in the city, probably enjoying a few rounds of drinks with officemates, a weekly cap-off that is normal behavior in the advertising industry. I waited that same Friday night for my friends (girls still working in advertising as account managers) to finish their work, so we could catch up. Her Friday nights, I would imagine, included shared sentiments about agency life: frustrations about clients, rants about workload, lots of witty inside jokes. Her officemates said that Kae spent a night with them in a bar at the Fort Strip. I met up with my friends at a small restobar in a side street in Makati, one of our favorite after-work places.
"At around 1 a.m., three of her friends reportedly escorted Kae to her car in the Fort parking lot. She would drive off in her metallic beige Toyota Altis at exactly 1:06 a.m., according to police. I would leave with my friends from the restobar at around 2 a.m. We would first see my friend off to her condo unit across the street, and then separate to our respective cars parked somewhere at a view’s distance. The last Kae’s family would hear from her that night would be via text message that she was on her way to their home in Las Piñas. Meanwhile, mine didn’t even hear from me. I received a text message from my father asking me to come home that night, but I didn’t reply. Ninety-eight percent of my father’s texts to me ask, “Where are you? What time are you coming home?” I only reply to him about 50 percent of the time. The rest of the time, he would go to bed without hearing from stubborn old me. But he should find me safely in my bed the following morning, as he would that Saturday, the morning after.
"But that Saturday morning, Kae’s parents would not find her in bed. She would not come home that night, and her family would frantically be filing a report at 10 a.m. on Saturday, looking for signs of her from the Bonifacio Global City Police Community Precinct.
"Instead, her body would be found somewhere else, under a bridge by the riverside in Silang, Cavite; her mouth gagged with a “branded” handkerchief that didn’t belong to her, her hands tied using a car seatbelt. Police believe she was strangled with an electric wire, and stabbed with a six-inch kitchen knife, which lay beside her body. Autopsy results show no signs of sexual assault, and her clothes are reported to have been intact. Her possessions were nowhere in sight."
Violence, a deviance in culture which we all assume to be our safety's enemy. We are moving into a more violence friendly environment. A generation of new violent values. How our value system has gone wrong in the last two decades is evident in what Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus want to do and portray. But how about justice and peace? We are seeking peace in Syria and Zamboanga. We are seeking Justice for Kae Davantes and justice for what Janet Lim Napoles did with our taxes. It may not be so obvious that some of those who sympathizes with Kae Davantes would want her fate be transferred to Jeanne Napoles, the daughter of the Scam Queen.
World governments are too busy quelling the military issues that will threaten national and international security but cases of poverty and crime doubled in number for the past week going unnoticed because of these big headlines.
There was a time when hopes are high with the Arab region. 2011 served as a year of liberation and new dawn for Arab governments who for the longest time were slaves of tyrannical governments. The youth, assisted by the social media, turned their nations 270 degrees by giving birth to a new rule. It was thought to be a rule by the people. Now it all looks like shattered dreams of mobocracy.
There was a time when we were so hopeful about Mindanao that we thought end is near for rebels to stop pestering the government. Just last year, the Bangsamoro group and the peace panel team of Malacanang signed a new memorandum of agreement before the Prime Minister of Malaysia for the formation of a new region which will soon be a sub-state. Now MNLF group shows their exceptance of the treaty by firing. The violence is contained in three brangays of Zamboanga. Still, the Department of Social Welfare and Development declared this phenomenon as a humanitarian crisis.
Several political analysts are saying that this happened only to cover up the heat of Janet Lim Napoles issue because the pork barrel saga includes names of senators whose political career may be damaged by the controversy. So before the rope crashed behind the walls, they are cooling it off with a more palpable sensation. What could be worse than political issues but a military one. Something which concerns humanity's safety.
The Vatican called for a one day of prayer for Syria. Amidst the threat of bio-mass distruction, fear of loosing people's lives in a highly diplomatic age is something that horrifies our future. The same thing is true with what is happening with Zamboanga as the Archdiocese of Manila begged the entire Filipino nation to pray for the release of the hostages and cease the battles between the rebel force and the military.
I am consoled by the fact that no one seem to associate this violence to religion. People have learned to respect Islam through the bloody experience of the past. No one seem to discriminate religion of any kind which should be the case indeed. Syrian crisis of today has nothing to do with the Muslims. It is a battle of political ambitions and never of religion. The same is true with Mindanao. MNLF is not fighting for Muslims. They are simply fighting for their ideology. The fact is, Muslim people in Mindanao are calling for the end of this morass.
Perhaps no other news about violence can top this segment than what happened about Kae Davantes, the young account manager of MRM digital group of McCann Phil. who was found dead one morning in Silang Cavite. While reading Kara Ortiga's column I learned that
"She was 25. She worked as a senior accounts manager for the digital group MRM under McCann Philippines. I used to work as an accounts manager for more than a year in an advertising agency, but I continue to surround myself with friends who still do, and the lifestyle paints a picture that is niche, specific and familiar. I do not know Kae, but I find it easy for me to slip into her everyday shoes.
"Her last Friday night, as time-lined through the details obtained by police investigators, would actually look exactly like mine. Hers would begin with a late clock-out from the office at 9:36 p.m. I would leave mine at around 7 p.m. Kae would proceed to enjoy Friday’s hot nightlife in the city, probably enjoying a few rounds of drinks with officemates, a weekly cap-off that is normal behavior in the advertising industry. I waited that same Friday night for my friends (girls still working in advertising as account managers) to finish their work, so we could catch up. Her Friday nights, I would imagine, included shared sentiments about agency life: frustrations about clients, rants about workload, lots of witty inside jokes. Her officemates said that Kae spent a night with them in a bar at the Fort Strip. I met up with my friends at a small restobar in a side street in Makati, one of our favorite after-work places.
"At around 1 a.m., three of her friends reportedly escorted Kae to her car in the Fort parking lot. She would drive off in her metallic beige Toyota Altis at exactly 1:06 a.m., according to police. I would leave with my friends from the restobar at around 2 a.m. We would first see my friend off to her condo unit across the street, and then separate to our respective cars parked somewhere at a view’s distance. The last Kae’s family would hear from her that night would be via text message that she was on her way to their home in Las Piñas. Meanwhile, mine didn’t even hear from me. I received a text message from my father asking me to come home that night, but I didn’t reply. Ninety-eight percent of my father’s texts to me ask, “Where are you? What time are you coming home?” I only reply to him about 50 percent of the time. The rest of the time, he would go to bed without hearing from stubborn old me. But he should find me safely in my bed the following morning, as he would that Saturday, the morning after.
"But that Saturday morning, Kae’s parents would not find her in bed. She would not come home that night, and her family would frantically be filing a report at 10 a.m. on Saturday, looking for signs of her from the Bonifacio Global City Police Community Precinct.
"Instead, her body would be found somewhere else, under a bridge by the riverside in Silang, Cavite; her mouth gagged with a “branded” handkerchief that didn’t belong to her, her hands tied using a car seatbelt. Police believe she was strangled with an electric wire, and stabbed with a six-inch kitchen knife, which lay beside her body. Autopsy results show no signs of sexual assault, and her clothes are reported to have been intact. Her possessions were nowhere in sight."
Violence, a deviance in culture which we all assume to be our safety's enemy. We are moving into a more violence friendly environment. A generation of new violent values. How our value system has gone wrong in the last two decades is evident in what Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus want to do and portray. But how about justice and peace? We are seeking peace in Syria and Zamboanga. We are seeking Justice for Kae Davantes and justice for what Janet Lim Napoles did with our taxes. It may not be so obvious that some of those who sympathizes with Kae Davantes would want her fate be transferred to Jeanne Napoles, the daughter of the Scam Queen.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Sure We Do
Oh What's with you September 08?
Wasn't I suppose to be in Pangil Laguna to attend the town fiesta? What happened? It rained. And rain poured heavily giving us a cold and wet Sunday. It disrupted my schedules for the day.
Isn't this the birthday of the Virgin Mother? Yes it is. What happened? I woke up early to watch the reflection for the Sunday readings and intended to attend the mass at 8am but it rained and I postponed it to 9.30am after the phone call of Hildergarde and after watching the homily at Studio 23.
It is so nice to have DC at the house. The ambiance makes us even younger with the baby spirit hovering around the leaving room where his crib stays.
And to top it all, it is Mei's birthday. Unfortunate it was that if not for the text messages of my co-trainees I wouldn't even remember. So I texted her happy birthday and she thanked me back. I won't erase the sms I swear. I am truly glad that it is Mei's birthday even if I cannot celebrate it with her. She just doesn't know how much I feel for her as a friend and guide.
An icing on the cake is the absolutely stunning performance of Patti Austin and Lea Salonga at the The Voice PH. Oh it is really epic!
By the way, Geoffrey and I exchanged text messages earlier as well as Mae and Seph whose CCT will start tomorrow. Good luck to them. Hildergarde also called and texted. Oh as if this is the only way I spent my day. Oh wait. I bought myself a copy of the PDI broadsheet so I can read also and not just text all day.
It's rainy what can I do but watch and text? The news about last night's Star Magic Ball broke out in the news. They were heavenly with their gowns and suit.
And yesterday was a great Saturday with Lorraine as we went to 7 Eleven and toured the Liliw Poblacion while the sun is up.
How I miss Mei and how I miss my friends in Las Pinas. Aizee and the rest.
And we will stay happy the entire September
Sure We Do
Wasn't I suppose to be in Pangil Laguna to attend the town fiesta? What happened? It rained. And rain poured heavily giving us a cold and wet Sunday. It disrupted my schedules for the day.
Isn't this the birthday of the Virgin Mother? Yes it is. What happened? I woke up early to watch the reflection for the Sunday readings and intended to attend the mass at 8am but it rained and I postponed it to 9.30am after the phone call of Hildergarde and after watching the homily at Studio 23.
It is so nice to have DC at the house. The ambiance makes us even younger with the baby spirit hovering around the leaving room where his crib stays.
And to top it all, it is Mei's birthday. Unfortunate it was that if not for the text messages of my co-trainees I wouldn't even remember. So I texted her happy birthday and she thanked me back. I won't erase the sms I swear. I am truly glad that it is Mei's birthday even if I cannot celebrate it with her. She just doesn't know how much I feel for her as a friend and guide.
An icing on the cake is the absolutely stunning performance of Patti Austin and Lea Salonga at the The Voice PH. Oh it is really epic!
By the way, Geoffrey and I exchanged text messages earlier as well as Mae and Seph whose CCT will start tomorrow. Good luck to them. Hildergarde also called and texted. Oh as if this is the only way I spent my day. Oh wait. I bought myself a copy of the PDI broadsheet so I can read also and not just text all day.
It's rainy what can I do but watch and text? The news about last night's Star Magic Ball broke out in the news. They were heavenly with their gowns and suit.
And yesterday was a great Saturday with Lorraine as we went to 7 Eleven and toured the Liliw Poblacion while the sun is up.
How I miss Mei and how I miss my friends in Las Pinas. Aizee and the rest.
And we will stay happy the entire September
Sure We Do
Friday, September 6, 2013
Birthday Within Another's Birthday
I stayed home for most of the day. If not for the First Friday Mass I would not leave the house the whole time. We know I have to be there for the mass as to give thanks to God for the wonderful celebration of Kuya Anthony's and Galan's birthday.
There was a time when I used to celebrate September 05 solely for Kuya Anthony's birthday, but when Galan came to my life as if my first daughter; I began to make the day a feast for both of them.
This is quite a long month of celebration. We started August with my NHT under Miss Mei. A whirlwind of happenings together with my IELTS classmates, they became the new circle of friends who coloured my life with vibrant hues. Not only that. While I have my NHT friends, I also established friendship with the PMMS classmates of my roommates. Standing out are Aizee, Kyle, Louie, CJ, Elaine, and Joseph.
This is followed by August 14 2013, which is the date I signed my contract for my job. I have a month to complete the requirements and am working on that up to now. Although August 19 to 22 became a tragic period for people in Manila, Cavite, and Pampanga, the circumstance tested our grips and relationships. it became an avenue for service and heroism. Everything that was wrought by calamities were forgotten when we celebrated the long weekend which is the celebration of our town fiesta and national heroes day. PMMS friends were here in Laguna to celebrate all the fun with us. It is probably the happiest in three years.
August ended with a positive bang as I went to Pasay August 30 to visit the family of my friend Alex. I stayed overnight because we reunited and shared laughter together this time again. August 31 even better as I visited Dasmariñas Cavite again and remembered how much a part of my life is the place. A lot of changes happened in just a span of four years and I am drop-dead surprised. I can't really imagined how Imus and Dasmarinas progressed in just a while and this is something that must have been expected. I just wasn't ready for the surprise. Raine and I watched the Mortal Instruments; City of Bones and enjoyed sight seeing in the mall for the entire afternoon of Saturday. And so August ended. I was happy.
September started with the birth of Daniel Coby, our newest baby, which was a day earlier that the birthday of Geoffrey which is September 02. It must have been better if the birth date fell exactly on Goeffrey's birthday but any date is great so long as the kid is healthy. And yes he is dealthy and cute! My September 1 is a god one although I wasn't there for DC in the hospital. I enjoyed the day sleeping and going to mass in the morning to afternoon then enjoyed the later part with Royce and Bogie and we went to SM South Mall for the 5 day sale. That night, we watched the Bling Ring which is a nice teenage movie I should say. I wnet home last Monday and God really surprised me big time because I didn't spent too much for the fare.
Lorraine and Dianne wisited me in the evening since I was all by myself in the house. They ate supper and watched a movie and TV shows until 9pm. By September 3, Daniel Coby is home already and I am so glad that I met him for the first time. Just yesterday, Galan blew her birthday candles and was one of the happiest girls in the world. I don't know with Kuya Anthony. I know Geoffrey was really happy during his birthday. I called him. We had a short phone conversation. He is texting me the entire afternoon as well as Aizee. Of course, it is not to say that Aizee is a temporary replacement for Geoff, they are two unique individuals with different vantage points and capacities.
I am liking what is happening in my world though not so much with "the" world. In just a few days I will be starting my work. I am excited for all these and I can't wait for DC to grow up. I wanna be with Galan and Santi. I want to be with Justine and Kenneth. All the persons who make me happy. Just that, Aizee, Elaine and Geoffrey are containing all the happiness and preventing it to burst. This happiness I am radiating to all of you!
There was a time when I used to celebrate September 05 solely for Kuya Anthony's birthday, but when Galan came to my life as if my first daughter; I began to make the day a feast for both of them.
This is quite a long month of celebration. We started August with my NHT under Miss Mei. A whirlwind of happenings together with my IELTS classmates, they became the new circle of friends who coloured my life with vibrant hues. Not only that. While I have my NHT friends, I also established friendship with the PMMS classmates of my roommates. Standing out are Aizee, Kyle, Louie, CJ, Elaine, and Joseph.
This is followed by August 14 2013, which is the date I signed my contract for my job. I have a month to complete the requirements and am working on that up to now. Although August 19 to 22 became a tragic period for people in Manila, Cavite, and Pampanga, the circumstance tested our grips and relationships. it became an avenue for service and heroism. Everything that was wrought by calamities were forgotten when we celebrated the long weekend which is the celebration of our town fiesta and national heroes day. PMMS friends were here in Laguna to celebrate all the fun with us. It is probably the happiest in three years.
August ended with a positive bang as I went to Pasay August 30 to visit the family of my friend Alex. I stayed overnight because we reunited and shared laughter together this time again. August 31 even better as I visited Dasmariñas Cavite again and remembered how much a part of my life is the place. A lot of changes happened in just a span of four years and I am drop-dead surprised. I can't really imagined how Imus and Dasmarinas progressed in just a while and this is something that must have been expected. I just wasn't ready for the surprise. Raine and I watched the Mortal Instruments; City of Bones and enjoyed sight seeing in the mall for the entire afternoon of Saturday. And so August ended. I was happy.
September started with the birth of Daniel Coby, our newest baby, which was a day earlier that the birthday of Geoffrey which is September 02. It must have been better if the birth date fell exactly on Goeffrey's birthday but any date is great so long as the kid is healthy. And yes he is dealthy and cute! My September 1 is a god one although I wasn't there for DC in the hospital. I enjoyed the day sleeping and going to mass in the morning to afternoon then enjoyed the later part with Royce and Bogie and we went to SM South Mall for the 5 day sale. That night, we watched the Bling Ring which is a nice teenage movie I should say. I wnet home last Monday and God really surprised me big time because I didn't spent too much for the fare.
Lorraine and Dianne wisited me in the evening since I was all by myself in the house. They ate supper and watched a movie and TV shows until 9pm. By September 3, Daniel Coby is home already and I am so glad that I met him for the first time. Just yesterday, Galan blew her birthday candles and was one of the happiest girls in the world. I don't know with Kuya Anthony. I know Geoffrey was really happy during his birthday. I called him. We had a short phone conversation. He is texting me the entire afternoon as well as Aizee. Of course, it is not to say that Aizee is a temporary replacement for Geoff, they are two unique individuals with different vantage points and capacities.
I am liking what is happening in my world though not so much with "the" world. In just a few days I will be starting my work. I am excited for all these and I can't wait for DC to grow up. I wanna be with Galan and Santi. I want to be with Justine and Kenneth. All the persons who make me happy. Just that, Aizee, Elaine and Geoffrey are containing all the happiness and preventing it to burst. This happiness I am radiating to all of you!
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