Nothing Bad about It

Got an e-mail from mom:

TO ALL PINOY KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 50's, 60's, 70's and early 80's!

First, some of us survived being born to mothers who did not have an OB-Gyne, smoked and/or drank San Miguel Beer or Syoktong, while they carried us. The manghihilot was the cheapest way to deliver babies. Dinala ka ba ng nanay mo sa pediatrician for DPT? While pregnant, they took cold or cough medicine, cortal or medicol, ate isaw, and didn't worry about diabetes or cervical cancer.

Then after all that trauma, our baby cribs were made of hard wood covered with lead-based paints, pati na yung walker (andador)natin, matigas na kahoy or rattan at wala pang gulong.

We had no soft cushy cribs that play music, no disposable diapers (lampin lang), (noon cloth or rattan duyan lang tied to the posts or ceiling, babies fell asleep sa sobrang hilo) and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, no kneepads, sometimes wala pang preno yung bisikleta.

Take-out food was limited to Ongpin's pansit or Aling Toyangs pre-cooked ulam in kalderos. No pizza shops, McDonalds, KFC, Subway, Jollibee; and, coffee was just kape hinde ga-mahal as in Starbucks.

As children, we would ride in jeepneys libre pag kandong,hot un-airconditioned buses with wooden seats (yung JD bus na pula), or cars with no airconditioning & no seat belts (ngayon lahat may aircon na)

Riding on the back of a carabao on a breezy summer day was considered a treat. (ngayon hindi na nakakakita ng kalabaw ang mga bata) Did you make your own saranggola and pasted bubog on the strings?

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle purchased from 711(minsan straight from the faucet or poso) walang 711 noon, sari-sari store ni Mang Akong to buy sarsi, suntan, RC cola or choco-vim.

We shared one soft drink bottle with four of our friends, and NO ONE actually died from this or contracted hepatitis.
We ate rice with star margarine, pampatangkad daw, took raw eggs straight from the shell, and drank softdrinks with real sugar in it (hindi diet coke), but we weren't sick or overweight kasi nga......

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, and get back when the streetlights came on. Sarap mag patintero, tumbang preso, habulan at taguan.Tandaan mo ba PIKO, step-no-step- yes, trumpo, garter & mala-ahas sa haba na goma? Kung naulan, jackstones, pick-up sticks or sungka, bahay-bahayan, tinda-tindahan, titser-teacher- an or swimming sa baha or kangkungan.

No one was able to reach us all day (di uso ang cellphone, walang beepers). And yes, we were O.K. Sipol lang ni tatay ang meron noon!

We would spend hours building our wooden trolleys (yung bearing ang gulong) or plywood slides out of scraps and then ride down the street, only to find out we forgot the brakes! After hitting the sidewalk or falling into a canal (sewage channel) a few times, we learned to solve the problem ourselves with our bare & dirty hands .

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 100 channels on cable, no DVD movies, no surround stereo, no IPOD's, no cellphones, no computers, no Internet, no chat rooms, and no Friendsters, Facebook. MSN etc. ...... ...WE HAD REAL FRIENDS and we went outside to actually talk and play with them! TV viewing was a treat, kilala mo ba si Popeye, Gumby, Betty Boop & followed the bouncing ball in Melody Tunes? That was karaoke then, LOL!
We climbed walls and trees (to get aratiles and catch salagubang & tutubi - tied them on the neck with a string), fell out of trees, got cut or "bukol", broke bones and teeth and there were no stupid lawsuits from these accidents. The only rubbing we get is from our friends with the words..masakit ba ? pero pag galit yung kalaro mo,,,,ang sasabihin sa iyo..beh buti nga !

We played marbles (jolens) in the dirt , washed our hands just a little and ate dirty ice cream, fish balls & inihaw na baga. We were not afraid of getting sick or germs in our stomachs.

We had to live with homemade guns, gawa sa kahoy, tinali ng rubberband , sumpit , tirador at kung ano ano pa na puedeng makasakitan, pero masaya pa rin ang lahat. We made up games with sticks (syatong), and cans (tumbang preso) and although we were told they were dangerous, wala naman tayong binulag o napatay... paminsan minsan may nabubukulan lang.

We walked a lot, rode bikes, or took tricycles to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them to jump out the window!

Mini basketball teams had tryouts and not everyone made to the team. Those who didn't pass had to learn to deal with the disappointment. Wala iyang mga childhood depression at damaged self esteem ek-ek na yan. Ang pikon, talo.

Ang magulang ay nandoon lang para tingnan kung ayos lang ang mga bata, hindi para makialam at makipag-away sa ibang parents.

That generation of ours has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers, creative thinkers and successful professionals ever! They are the CEO's, Engineers, Doctors and Military Generals of today.

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas..

We had failure, success, and responsibility. We learned from our mistakes the hard way.
You might want to share this with others who've had the luck to grow up as real kids. We were lucky indeed.

And if you like, forward it to your kids too, so they will know how brave their parents were.

PS - The big letters are because your eyes may not be able to read this if they were typed any smaller (at your age!)




I imagine how it's like in the old days and I feel some envy. I love the past - the history, the places, the look, the style, the ideas, the situation, people's motivations, people's experiences.

I always wonder what it feels like to fight for something, fight for a cause. I wonder how it was when life was simple and complicated meant real complication, when different was really different and eccentric was not picked up in the internet.

I shout "Bravo!" to the 50's. 60's, 70's, even the 80's. All the things that happened when I was not even a plan were and are awesome.

It's 2009. Don't you think that the mothers and fathers today are the parents of the kids who's scared of catching hepatitis on isaw, who's paranoid about how dangerous it is outside their homes that they want their kids locked up with video games; aren't they the parents who do not teach their kids how to make kites?

Because it's kind of cliche for me. Mom - I love her the most but she's human. She and my dad and other parents out there are contradictions, just like all the young kids are.

I mean, she doesn't want me out of the house after school, doesn't want me to stay long after class etc. I could have been a real kid too. I could've learned to ride a bike if they weren't so scared to let me. All the real kids from 20's, 50's, 60's and 70's in our home didn't think we had to be real kids. Other kids could be bad influence, streets were scary, playing was unnecessary.

Yes, their generation produced the best risk-takers, problem solvers, creative thinkers and successful professionals; the CEO's, engineers, doctors and military generals of today. And guess what, when they retire and choose to relax, we will take over. We will produce the best as well. :D

The Letter X

I was sitting on a chair in FC 3145 during my 199 class. We were talking about research design that afternoon. My professor, the one I look up to the most, was discussing pseudo-experimental tests.

It was like a movie scene. I'm sitting on my chair; my professor discussing the variables and as she traces the letter x into thin air, trying to make us comprehend the works of a researcher, her voice fades. The view moves from the other side of the room, still focused on the her as she eagerly explains things. I begin to speak in my mind.

I have to remember this moment. When I graduate (and I hope I do), I would miss this. The feeling of having something more to learn and having someone to teach you and expecting he or she is the best and feeling it's okay to commit mistakes. I will miss this. :)

Lightheaded

Can't even think of where to start. Thesis sucks.


Chopped off my hair.


Now my head feels light figuratively and literally.

Is it too Early to Feel Nostalgic?

Because I have a bad feeling.

My head feels light. Really. I am not in a good state. I found myself nodding in class a while ago without even processing the words that enter my ears. Yes, I am just pissed and tired of this kind of things. I'm not failing. I just have to re-focus my study. I just have to find new materials. I just have to start again; not from zero, maybe from 0.5 (or whatever positive integer). Seriously, I wanted to disappear at that moment, or be hit by a car, or go crazy. This is the only thing I have now. I can't fail. This is the only thing I can work on.

My professor sent an e-mail. I do not know if it is out of compassion or just an act to make my life even more difficult. I shall find myself tomorrow. I shall find myself... in the library.

Whatever That Means

Damn it. I was supposed to blog about my dream but I had to do my report and forgot it.

The only things I remember

I was in a cozy pad in some province in the South (how did I know? well, it just felt the South) which had a beautiful garden and a gazebo. The pad was small with white walls, zen inspired furniture and the sound of flowing water from the fountain outside. Yes, very much my type. I was with someone and two other "friends" came ("friends" because I don't really know them, one was a guy Filipino actor, the other I can't even remember the face). I think we spent the afternoon talking about random stuff. We had to sleep in a King sized bed. I had bleep with someone while the two "friends" were sleeping. When I woke up in the morning, the unidentified "friend" told me the actor was dead. I freaked out thinking "oh that's why he didn't wake up when you know". I almost cried, it was so scary. Just when we were about to leave at lunch time, the police were already coming and the place was getting crowded, I looked outside the door and saw an old man reading the newspaper, munching on biscuits with a cup of coffee on his side.

:|

My Mario!

Mario: "UP FIGHT!"

Kuya surprised me with this Mario toy last Saturday. Aww. <3

Indeed, I was surprised! After doing my daily "dreaming" I got up from bed and saw my hero standing on my messy cabinet! :D

Mario: "Yey!"

Hehe he's so cute! Thanks Kuya!

Play Family Computer games on nintendo8.com :)

CDC Fun!

(Woot)

Was dead tired last night because of the CDC.

First of all, the set of winners:
Champion: FEU
1st Runner Up: ADMU
2nd Runner Up: UP PEP SQUAD!

Second, the comments:

UP's performance was way better last year - that performance gave (and gives) me goosebumps. The colors this year were very neutral, the crowd was asked to wear white. (I wore my old white spandex shirt, ugh it was so tiny) The routines did not amazed me much. But good job to the Maroons! Still managed to be on the third spot :p

Third, the micro story.

We met at almost 2pm. From Gen. Ad., we jumped to Upper B (the half part of the Gen. Ad. area saw me struggling lol.) then after UP's performance we jumped back to Gen. Ad. near DLSU where the drums or the drummers smelled like wet feet. Ew. Mon was there so yes, expect the banners. Come awarding time, most of us were already convinced that the Maroons would not bring home the bacon. And there, it was so quick that Boom Gonzales shouted "The UP Pep Squad!" and all of us were quite sad but immediately held our spirits high by giving our pep a proud applause. It was a good performance. I think it was the best part of this year's CDC for the Maroons. There were no complaints, just praises and support for our pep. :)

On the other hand, the tigers were rejoicing and jeering with the "buti nga" agenda. We were thinking "baka nga bumawi ang gawi" But when the 1st Runner Up was announced, they went silent. The Ateneo Pep won! I wasn't able to watch their performance because we were busy discussing UP routines. I watched it when I went home last night, in my opinion, they deserve it! I must say I smiled and even laughed while watching. They were cute and energetic. Nice dance music and steps. I actually enjoyed the moon walk and the Clocks part. I read from a friend's post: "Anong meron sa skirt na parang Jap paper?" I wasn't able to notice that. All I know is that when Ateneo says cheer dance, they mean short skirts for their girls. Woot! XD

So there, back to the awarding. We felt that the tigers were very nervous. I bet they were expecting FEU but when ADMU came up, they felt they were in trouble (well, just a guess. I am not a tiger to know it felt lol). The UP crowd, the enormous UP crowd, started shouting "FEU! FEU!" We were all laughing and joined the cheer for the tamaraws. It was evident, their routine was clean! I just didn't like the sarimanok much, the penguin dance last year was funnier lol. And there was something in their routine that UP did last year. I do not know what it's called but it was one of my favorite step/stunt of our pep last year. Needless to say, they deserve it.

Just to "alaska" a little. The banner "Amin ang pamantayan" or "Kami ang pamantayan" (I don't really remember the exact words) of UST was ugh, irrelevant? Haha. I think it was sad for them not to bring home anything after all the expectations of winning this year. I have to commend them though, maybe having learned from other schools (including UP of course), to have a theme in their dance. Last year they wore white and yellow, did their routines without even having a theme. Like when you think of UST, you can't associate a word to identify their routine. This year, they were the Egyptians. The Egyptian hands move was nice I must say.

Which reminds me, I told friends that UP's theme was not evident this year. I guess it's because it was more of UP symbols - the Ikot jeep (that UE had as their props as well, maybe called the UE-kot lol), and the Sablay. It was not evident to the audience. I mean all the other 7 universities most probably didn't just get it. because it was internal for UP. I recall a friend's classmate from another school was laughing at a professor who wore a Sablay during their graduation rights because she thought it was a sash. Maybe next year, there'll be a nicer theme. Next year? I won't be at UP anymore (or so I think? lol)

CDC na naman! :))

CDC today! I hope I get in on time. I realized I've watched the CDC for 4 years now. The only exemption was on 2006. I love the UP crowd during the Cheer Dance Competition. The General Admission area is the unwanted part of the dome during concerts and other events but it's the most fun and exciting place during UAAP's CDC. :D

I do hope we would have the same (or more) fun this year.

UP FIGHT! :)

Another 5 Minutes not for Acads

Still not working. Been sitting in front of the computer for hours. :|

Am excited for tomorrow's CDC! What a great way to divert my attention away from acads lol.

I am looking forward to Wed., comments about my work will be discussed. But I hope I'm done with 167 hand outs and report by then. Well, I should be. It's the day of the report, I do not want to come unprepared. So why I am lazy to start working? It's human nature.

Rereading

I want to find old accounts and delete entries. I'm sure I would find things that would irk me lol. Just 5 minutes ago I thought I should delete those posts about the whatever we all call it - shit. But well, I have no energy to exert more effort on that subject matter. Simply put, I'm tired.

Now, what were those accounts and passwords? (doh)

090909

I've been lazy to update this page. Many, as in many, things have happened in the nation.

Mar backed out from the presidential race. Mikee Arroyo's interview was a mess and was irritating as hell. Erano "Ka Erdy" Manalo of INC died. And just in today, Nonoy Aquino announced his desire to run for president. He said he's "accepting the challenge". OH WELL. Let's see if he knows what he's doing...

I'm not so much inclined to give opinions about this. Hmm. Just updating! lol.

Friday Mall Day

Pam and I decided to watch KimmyDora yesterday. It was so hard to make other friends' schedules meet that we ended up not going with Gel and Ayee again. Good thing Ate Kamille went with us. Pam called her "Ate" Kamille as well that's why I asked thier ages to clear the thing up. Pam was a year older than Ate Kamille hahaha. Sometimes I wonder if Pam gets agitated or pissed when I joke about her age. I do not intend to insult her, I think it's kind of funny and fortunate in her part that she looks (and sounds and acts) the youngest. Lol.

Anyway, KimmyDora was just fine. The audience were entertained so much. Yes, it was kind of a slapstick comedy. Plus I've watched its trailer a number of times that many punchlines did not make me laugh anymore.

There was an unexpectedly huge crowd at the mall when we came out of the cinema. We thought it was a concert or something. Students all over the place from different schools, colleges and universities; there were some older people too. We were puzzled of what was happening so we asked the guard and she said Billy Crawford was the cause of all the commotion.

We went on to eat dinner thinking it really was Billy the crowd came for, talking about him having a huge fan base etc. Ate Kamille brought us to the toy store that sells FroYo. I had NY Cheesecake, Brownies and Graham clusters for toppings. Really delicioso!

We were waiting for the crowd to clear when we saw the photo op downstairs with a group. Just then we realized it was the Jabbawockeez that caused all the fuzz! Lol. That's why a crowd was so big. (As in believe me, it was already irritating to walk among that huge bulk of people, with that smell and all that ugh whatever you call that)

Ate Kamille was still waiting for some friends that's why we decided to play at Timezone for a while. Too bad we run out of credits just when I was about to horse race!

The journey home was a disaster. It's good that Pam and I were cool about it. I think I'm more patient these days. :)

"Woot!"

This sickness is making me agitated. I wish I get well soon! Haven't watched Kimmydora yet.

I just realized that I had enough entries about youknowwho. So there, I'm stopping here. Everything stopped between us, again there's no point in hanging on. :D

I finally used my new number just this afternoon. Woot! Now that's the finish line right?

On to more happy days!

The nth Summer Morning

I sometimes feel I cannot get through this. I still daydream of things with you, or remember happy moments. Then I think about how you think of me - that what I did was ridiculous, stupid, silly. I do not feel respect in those words. Who did not listen to who? It's too late now. I'm too pissed and frustrated. I did it, you did what was for me, the most painful; and you did not mind. Becuase for you it was not wrong. For you. And for him. It was the only thing important. I do not want to play the arguments all over again. You did not want me to leave but things were never the same again. I do not like how you treat me, think of me, talk to me. I cannot think of anything that makes me want to stay near you except the fact that I (you know what). But everytime I think about you I remember what you did, I question why can't you just do whatever would make me forget, why can't you understand that pain cannot be rationalized and all I want is for you to respect the pain you gave me, that I tried to endure. Respeto lang dun sa six years. I just wanted to live without seeing the very cause of my suffering. But you kept on insisting there was nothing wrong. You did me wrong, why should you set the parameters of what I should feel just because you think "there's nothing wrong"

Bottom line is, as what you've said a few weeks ago, it's too late.

I wish you didn't tell me you didn't want me to leave. It made (and perhaps, makes) me think twice. You are that someone. But again, you have your own life now, own plans and priorities. None of which I am a part of. How can I be your person?

That was my favorite picture of us by the way. I wish we could have stayed together, happy like those days. (Ugh. Shut up.)

Just a Little Push

I'm sick. I wish it goes away. is this the price of not attending my classes? I promise not to be absent, as much as possible. I do not want to be sick. It sucks! Sick sucks! (My brother is sick as well. Maybe because of non stop studying)

Anyway, I'm still struggling to feel ok about my plans. Just this afternoon, I seriously considered working out of the country. It may be a nice way to start and of course to earn money haha. I never thought about it because I always had someone in mind. That if that someone wants to migrate or work somewhere abroad, that's the only time I'd consider leaving this country. Of course that's never going to happen now. Oh, I can remember how I planned to decorate our space, how I asked if she wants to, how excited we were. Not! Ok enough. It's not good to think of those now. I must consume my prepaid credit so I can finally change my mobile number. Ciao!