Water

One day in September, when I stepped out of the building after my shift, I witnessed Heaven’s Punishment. I forgot my umbrella at home. The sky flashed and roared and cried for so long that I have to seek shelter from a popular and unreasonably expensive coffee shop (I preferred to stay there ‘coz it had, and most of the time has, the least number of tambays compared to the neighbouring Jollibee; I hate people). I just bought a whole set of The Chronicles of Narnia books that day, so I had something to do until someone would appease the rain god. But it had been over an hour when I was beginning to be impatient and wanted to go home. I couldn’t concentrate on reading anymore because there were more chattering people who had come in and sought shelter too. So I left the shop.
At least it was just drizzling while I was waiting for a jeepney. When I was able to get on one and got out along Pasong Tamo to wait for a second jeepney towards home, there was a shallow flood that soaked my leather shoes. I hate being wet when I’m not supposed to be wet. What made it worse was that seemingly all jeepneys to home were full. So I had to walk home in my squeaking shoes while the drizzle turned into rain again.

I still haven’t learned. Heavy rains and the consequent floods are to be always anticipated during this season in Manila. I now live on concrete grounds, probably below sea level, polluted with undisciplined people’s litter clogging the city’s already poor drainage “system”. When I tell others where I live when they ask, they reply, “Pasong Tamo??!! Diba nagbabaha doon?” I don’t anymore keep count of the people who gave this reaction. “Hindi ka ba lilipat?”, they ask. No, because that is already the seventh place where I moved to. Let me list the places where I’ve lived and why I left:

The first was in that crappy, infested apartment house when I just moved here. I mentioned this in my previous post.

The second was in a new apartment building in Guadalupe suggested by Citi after they found out how terrifying the first one was. However, during the first few weeks, there was a little conflict among some roommates. So when some of my schoolmates who also worked in Citi decided to move out of that apartment, I joined them. I did not take sides (I even tried to be a peacemaker) though I was an unfortunate witness; but I assure that after we lived separately, all of that was over and we became each other’s family here in this harsh city.

The third one was in a more homelike apartment unit in San Antonio Village, still in Makati. It was managed by a Filipino woman with her German husband. Both are retired… and racist against Jews. The woman was a chatterbox. Every time I had to see her to hand the rent payment over, she’d always talk about her life with her husband in Germany. She mentioned that although she was against the Holocaust, she agrees that the Jews are not to be trusted – that they are uncivilized thieves. Such a stupid Nazi bitch. We stayed there just for three months. We moved out primarily because the Makati floods are worst in that area. But an additional reason (just for me) is because of her narrow-minded remarks during our conversations. I and my then roommates parted ways – one moved to Quezon City to live with her family; one moved back to the same Guadalupe apartment; one lived with another work colleague in an all-girls dormitory; and I moved again for the fourth time in a place with my other schoolmates.

The fourth one specifically was in an apartment building along Vito Cruz Ave., in the City of Manila. My two schoolmates already lived there for a longer time, but they wanted to leave after a week (before the next rent would be due) because the landlady pissed them off (same case with my previous residence).

And surprise! I again moved, for the fifth time, also back to the same Guadalupe apartment (but in a different unit), which I suggested and they chose. Another schoolmate joined the three of us there. But after four months, two left their jobs (in separate times) and returned to Zamboanga City. Since the two of us remaining couldn’t afford to pay the unit rent by ourselves and since we couldn’t find somebody we know and trust as our new roommates, we parted ways.

I moved, for the sixth time, to far-flung Las Pinas City (but still part of Metro Manila) to live temporarily with my Aunt and her kids. It took me over four months to endure the long and expensive travel to and from work and to finally find a suitable place in Makati where I don’t have to find roommates and where I can have privacy.

And that’s how fate brought me to the seventh place where I now reside, in a condo unit, where strangers share it, but have their own rooms. The condo building stands near Pasong Tamo. Only very shallow, tolerable flood (barely a flood) occurs in that area and happens only during heavy rains. There’s ankle-deep flood only along the way to the condo. But I don’t mind it. It will take more than that to force me to move again. I’ve sworn to myself that I’ll move only to a reasonably better place or to somewhere permanent. Furthermore, the longer I live here, the more household possessions I obtain, which will make it harder to leave or bring stuff when moving.

I did recently notice some road reworks being done along Pasong Tamo. Hopefully they were fixing the sewers and will be finished before the next rainy season, when Heaven again will send storms, attempting to cleanse this country of dirt.

Fire

It was near noon when I arrived at the airport, which is in Pasay City. As I walked my first-ever steps in Metro Manila, I felt the unforgiving sun radiate this heat scorching my skin. It was like my skin cells were beginning to mutate into cancer cells and will continue unless I find a shady spot to hide. I didn’t get it. My hometown is closer to the equator, but the metro’s sun is harsher. But then I realized this is one of the most industrialized areas in the Philippines. And industrialization takes it toll from nature (the one that helps minimize air temperature). Ironically this is the Philippines’ land of milk and honey. That’s why I seized the first chance to get here.

After a few weeks, I managed to tolerate the crappy apartment where we were suggested to take residence, at least for the first month. Looking at the bright side, it is somehow at a walking distance from where my first job was, the Makati Central Business District. I was impressed with this particular area in Makati. There, Filipinos manage to obey traffic rules and avoid excessive littering, unlike in the outskirts of Makati City and in most of Metro Manila.

Despite of the apartment being conveniently located near my workplace, it is not worth it. It sits along Buendia and our room is just on the third floor. So the traffic brings noise and pollution through our windows. There were little cockroaches everywhere and rats foraging food from the garbage that piled up near the stairs . The lady guard and her minions were as revolting as the pests. She ripped off money from us at every chance she got. I wished this place had burned down (with no one else hurt, except the pests, including that lady guard, of course) before I came here so that we would have been placed somewhere else more sanitary.

Then the fateful day came. We were preparing our packed lunch in the room of one of our neighbors when I heard girls shrieking. I thought they came from a neighboring room where the female occupants were screaming because they’ve spotted another resident cockroach(s) or rat(s) (or God knows whatever other type of rodent that inhabited that hole). But then the screaming became louder - and frightening. I went out of the room and voila! – a sight to behold: girls wearing their pants and only bras as tops (they were obviously in the middle of dressing up for work/school when this happened) were running along the hallway towards the lobby, screaming “Sunog!” as black smoke began to form behind them. I couldn’t believe this would happen.

After several minutes of confusion, I found myself with several other residents and our belongings right outside and in front of the building’s main entrance. I don’t remember seeing and being embarrassed by curious onlookers from the traffic along Buendia. But I’m sure there were. It was a business day. We were supposed to be at the office at that moment, resuming our Voice and Accent Training. So one of my colleagues called the trainer to inform that we would be a little bit late because there was this room that almost got entirely burned due to the resident(s)’ recklessness in using their gas stove - and so we were really shaken. But actually the fire really wasn’t that bad. God bless that man who bravely put it out with an extinguisher. It just burned the little area where the gas tank was – where it almost burst into hellfire. Still it produced this thick dark smoke that instantly drove most of us out.

Representatives (a woman and a man) from the HR Department of my beloved first-ever employer, Citi, came to pay as a visit in the still-standing apartment building. They told us that of course we wouldn't have to go to training that day. The dark smoke was almost gone but its stench was still in the air. The HR people noticed it, and so everything else horrible in the apartment. They were especially stunned to see that the fire extinguishers were expired and that the fire exit was not safe. The HR woman called someone from Citi and I overheard her saying something like this over her cell phone: “We must move them out first. This place has terrible living conditions.”

For two days after that momentous occasion, Citi paid for our stay (for three rooms) in this very nice hotel called Oxford Suites, while the HR looked for another place for us. They found us this new, clean, fire-safe and secured apartment building in Guadalupe Nuevo that has a great view of the Makati CBD buildings, especially at night. From then on, we knew we were and would be well taken care of.

So the Fire was a blessing in disguise after all.

Unwritten

I stayed up until 3 AM last night reading and editing all the posts below that I imported from my Blogger account for the sake of making this Multiply profile have more content. The previous post was more than a year old. It was published few days before I left Zamboanga City. When I arrived in Manila, I never found the time or gusto (if there is time) to blog until now. I've removed blogging from my priority list considering all the stress for being a new kid in the metro and stress from my first job, which happens to be one of the most stressful jobs in the world – customer service - and for credit cardholders at that!


Rereading my previous blogs was entertaining. Not only do they show how immature sometimes I can get, it also brings back memories of college life with all its comfort – financial dependence on Dad, very light schedule, time for recreation and friends, safety of home… It just shows that I’m in a different situation now. Tiene gane yo sueldo pero iyo todo gasta to sustain myself. I spend eight hours (or even more if required) a day at work. I come home exhausted, so nothing else to do but rest or sleep as soon as possible. People around me are new so I have to socialize. And socialization is not exactly my forte. It’s harder now that I’m in a new workplace, though I already made some friends there. I did have close friendship with my teammates from my previous company. It broke my heart when I had to resign just because the call center is not for me. I just miss working with them because we still meet for movies, sometimes videoke, and especially si ta come apuera.


This past year was tiring. Hence there was no time for blogs. There were however somehow interesting events that have happened while I was still starting out here. There was fire, water, air and earth. Now I feel the urge to revive this blog and chronicle small hours of life, however mundane they would be. Just as I recollected the events I have already written, I can look back at the things yet to happen and how they would have changed me.


I shall start with Fire in my next post.



P.S. My Multiply website is not an altar for worshipping the Deadly Vices. I just want to point out that though human beings have the capacity (and encouraged) to be morally upright, we are cursed to err. There are no living saints. So don’t point your dirty finger at anyone. God knows where you’ve stuck it in.

Manny, Manny, Manny...

I will never be able to save myself from regularly blogging irregularly. Get it? Oh well, it's hard to break a habit.

For the sake of breaking the blogging silence, I am again going to talk about my beloved Manny Pacquioa. <-- I know it's misspelled, but I dont care! So he won his last boxing match again. I'm not surprised. Although his last opponent was by then undefeated while Manny had already lost four (not sure) times, the Pambansang Kamao had more wins and knockouts. Congratulations Pacman! I really mean it. By then I got tired of trash-talking about him. I felt the need to stop doing it 'coz it's immature, and it's not fun anymore. Everyone likes him. I think I was the only Filipino who by then hated him to death. I gotta give him credit for representing our country excellently in boxing.

But wait! What's this about Manny running for the Congress?! That's *&^#%@*&!! It's FPJ for politics Part 2! Manny is only for boxing!! It's his ONLY destiny! He can never be good for Congress!

I remember when he was interviewed about what he would do in the Congress if he wins, he remarked first that you don't have to be intellegent to be a politician; that what is more important is the passion to serve the people. And then he specifically stated his gameplan in the Congress: to listen to the bills that would be drafted by the other intelligent people in the Congress, and then vote for the bills that he thinks is good for his hometown, General Santos. Well, that's a job of a Congressman, but that's not his only task! The essence of being a member of the House of Representatives is to author or at least co-author a bill, not just to pretend to listen and understand the other congresspeople and vote for those he thinks is good for the country, General Santos in particular.

When rumors about Manny's plan to challenge the current Congresswoman of his hometown, political jokes about him being intellectually unfit for politics started to circulate. There was this comic strip in a national newspaper where a caricature of Manny was being interviewed by a member of the media. The reporter asked something like, "What can you say about Republic Act... (blah, blah, blah)?" And Manny's answer was something like, "Hello to my fans! Thank you for your support in the fight!" And then there were circulating text messages announcing that Manny was dead because of a politically motivated assassination. That was definitely a joke because unfortunately, he's still very much alive. But now, he's scared as hell that he even beefed up his and his family's security with more bodyguards. I now feel that there is a brotherhood of anti-Manny Pacquiao. Sign me up!

I will just say one thing about Manny pursuing a seat in the Congress: if he wins, I hope that God will destroy General Santos!

May the Philippines have not only an honest but also an intelligent election this coming 14th of May.

Commencement

A friend sent me a text message during the Baccalaureate Mass last Saturday. Aside from a congratulatory message, she also included in the message an insight about graduation day: Graduation is not the end. It is a beginning. That's why it is also called Commencement Excercise. Commencement means start - specifically the start of another journey, which is the journey towards a fulfilled life. That fulfilled life may include reaching the peak of one's chosen career path, a healthy, happy family that will actually last for a lifetime, or whatever one's deepest desires are.

Graduation, for an Atenean in particular, means leaving the nest of the Eagles so he can take flight and soar across the sky, which is what he is meant to do.

Well this Atenean would like to take a break for several months. I mean, even before the Mother Eagle kicked me out of her nest, I have been trained to fly non-stop for several hours for several times. My wings need a break from all the sleepless nights of finishing work for the thesis/research. Heck! I need a break from 16 years of schooling, from kindergarten to college. Two-month vacations between school years were not enough. I deserve to just lay around and savor nothingness for a while before I spread my wings and fly away from the warm nest to the cold and bitter reality out there. There would be hunters trying to shoot us Eagles down. But hey, we're above them. We can drop shit-bombs to distract them.

But for now, I need rest to muster all the energy I need for whatever career path I will choose. Honestly, I'm torn between a career in Software Engineering/Development and in the Call Center. Both are equally interesting for me. The Computer Science Department Head highly discouraged us from taking the Call Center path and encouraged us to pursue a job in a reputable IT company, which is most probably outside Zamboanga City. But the Call Center Outsourcing company called first and scheduled training this week (it just started this morning). Is it a sign that the Call Center is the path for me, or is it just a test of how much is my desire for a job as programmer, which I should ideally choose 'coz I'm a bachelor in Computer Science? Well, after the training, if ever I pass, I would be awarded with a certification proving that I am worthy to be a Call Center agent. I asked during a one-on-one interview with the trainer a while ago if the successful trainees are bound to pursue a career in a call center agency. He said that they are not. But he encouraged them to do so, as a sign of gratitude for the trainer. The training is free and they don't get profit from the trainees, even when they are already working as a call center agent. But they do get added points (figuratively) for their reputation whenever a call center agent trained by their company excels in work. So I am taking this training to prove if I actually have good oral communication skills as what I have included in my resume. Talk about taking advantage of free stuff...

Or, just like what my sister suggested, I can enroll again, in the same university, to undergo Special Program for Nursing... Nah! I hate the weird smell of hospitals and I think I would instinctively throttle disgruntled patients. But if ever I do enroll for SPN, I would choose WMSU over AdZU. I heard that WMSU has more competent Nursing professors and doctors than in my alma mater. Wait... I don't think we even have competent professors and doctors for the Nursing students in Ateneo - just Clinical Instructors. And I also heard that WMSU has a higher passing rate in the Nursing board exams compared to AdZU. And I also heard that there is a culture of cheating among the Nursing students in AdZU and I have heard that some CI's condone it. But those are just what I have heard. Heard! Heard! Heard! I have to enroll for SPN in AdZU to confirm these rumors. But as what I have said: NAH! I'll just give AdZU the benefit of the doubt. I have good friends who also graduated last Saturday with a degree in Nursing from the same university. I don't want to think that they just spent thousands of pesos just for a crappy Nursing education.

Why am I still typing!? I promised myself that I will be lazy as hell after graduation! Blogging requires typing energy let alone thinking energy. I have to stop now.

Another Resolution Goes Blooey!

So says Garfield to Jon when the latter once again put on pants with its back in the front. The fat cat's remark also goes for me - not for wearing pants like what Jon did, but for unfalteringly neglecting blogging. Oh well, New Year's resolutions are myths anyway. I mean, if you really want to change something, don't wait for New Year! Start now!

As for me, I don't think there is any resolution to late, irregular blogging. It's not in top 10 of my priority list at the moment, so this post is gonna be a short one. Actually, I should be stopping right now lest I will be late for my earliest class again.

Carol of the Bells

Hark, how the bells, sweet silver bells
All seem to say, throw cares away...

Throw cares away?? I just can't, not especially this very Christmas. So many things to finish. The thesis simulation application is not even half-finished. And considering that I'm doing the half of our group's thesis, I have just finished almost one-fourth of the entire thesis. I just hope that my other two groupmates are doing well.

And then there's still the schoolpaper layout, which I can't finish because of the lack of resources (articles, pictures, other important instructions), the Filipino-lifestyle-themed photography assignment for Humanities 101, and a freakin' PowerPoint presentation for Internet Technologies class. WAAAAA!!! Merry Christmas indeed!

Well, at least I'm enjoying programming the most important of them all, which is obviously the thesis, Chemical Bonding Tutorial and Simulation. As I've mentioned, I'm doing almost half of the system, which is the Simulation. I love OpenGL and my newfound programming language Visual Basic, designed for user-interface-oriented and lazy programmers like me. I just have to make sure that I'll not be too spoiled by VB.

What the hell am I still doing here?? I should be opening the VB workspace and work my ass off.

By the way, the following is my new favorite Christmas song, Thrice's revival of the "Carol of the Bells." It sounds mysterious and dark, which I like. Ironic for a Christmas song, huh? The video version I've found in YouTube shows Full Metal Alchemist clips. I like both the anime and the song, but they seem weird when they are together. There's not even something Christmasy in the video clips, except for the snow...

The Very Christmas to Me

:( Ateneo Fiesta Week will be officially over by the end of this day. I have to refill my academic vehicle's tank with academic fuel so I can drive it, bringing this academic burden without dropping it lest I fail to reach the finish line that is graduation. *sigh* But hey, it was the start of December just yesterday! It's the month of Christmas! We have actually decorated just last week.

But honestly, I have not been excited and eager for this coming Christmas and also for the other Christmases during the past few years. Even though I've been receiving some gifts during this season, it doesn't feel like the Christmases in my childhood. I can still remember those times nearing December when I constantly ask my mother if it was Christmas season already. I just couldn't wait then to bring out the Christmas tree and all the other ornaments from their 10-month storage above the bedroom closet and release them throughout the house so that the spirit of the Holidays would manifest. But the college Christmases were... blaahh... Perhaps it's because there are no forced Christmas parties anymore, with manito-manita. Yes, they may be forced, but a classic Christmas party is one thing that makes me feel it's really Christmas. Kris Kringles were exciting 'coz you get to collect clues for who picked your name, and you also get to think creatively such that your mark is concealed in your gifts.

*sigh* Those childhood and high school Christmases were quite different from the past few Decembers, which were also the times when our old Christmas decorations were deteriorating, actually. We were not supposed to decorate for Christmas this year because we realized that we don't invite Holiday visitors anymore anyway. So who else would marvel at the decorations but us? However, my sister in the States sent us money and insisted us to spend it on new decorations. So there we go - a new Christmas tree around six feet tall, and some Christmas balls and other ornaments to hang around it and around the house. We also recycled a few old decorations that still look decent. But... they didn't revive the Christmas spirit. Hmmm... maybe the decorations cannot find the spirit's remains anywhere in the house.

Therefore, I would just have to look for and revive it myself, and attempt to feel each Christmas as the "very first Christmas to me." Reminds me of the hilarious 'Christmas Who?' episode of Spongebob Squarepants. I like the musical number in it, which fortunately is available in YouTube and is embedded below.

I wonder at what exact age I discovered the very first Christmas to me. I hope I wasn't as overenthusiastic and naive as Spongebob was during his.

It's shaping up to be a wonderful holiday,
Not your normal, average everyday.
Sounds like someone killed my old coral tree.
Spongebob, Patrick, why'd you do this to me?
The world feels like it's in loverly.
Go away before I harm you bodily.
This Christmas feels like the very first Christmas to me.
There'll be shopping, decorating, and plenty of snow.
Hey, Patrick, who's that under the mistletoe?
What? Who, me? Would you look at the time, I should go!
People seem a little more brotherly.
Here's a little something to you from me.
Even all the trash on Christmas it smells so sweetly.
This Christmas feels like the very first Christmas to me.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la (x many times)
What do you want? Can't you see that I'm busy?
Step outside, we've got something for you to see.
Spongebob, take this stuff down immediately!
Chestnuts roasting and burned to the third degree.
Tonight things are as good as they seem to be.
A star on top will complete all the scenery.
This Christmas feels like the very first Christmas to me
This Christmas feels like the very first Christmas to me