The New Year

All I wanted for Christmas was a magical bokeh filter. Not! (What I wrote on my wishlist was a fake moleskine notebook, courtesy of a national book store, and a novelty necklace. I am a cheapskate after all.) The holiday season, of course, meant technicolor lights and explosions in the sky, apart from being the season of giving and love, actually.

On Christmas, while everyone in the house was busy preparing the traditional noche buena and playing their part in the family tree – the gift giver, the choosy receiver, the grinch, I wandered around and took delight on the wonderful effects of christmas lights and out-of-focus images.

On New Year’s eve, before the big spenders and fireworks, I gathered the kids, my younger cousins, and taught them light drawing. One drew a snout of a pig, while the other made it Jackson Pollock-y. Very creative. I also tried, in vain, to write a “Happy New Year”, but only managed a “happy”, “2010″, and “happy 2010″, which were not that bad at all – considering that you have to do it backwards.

A day after, I hopped onto a bus and was on my way back to the grindhouse. The moon was lovely in our part of town. The talking head on the boob tube said that it was called a blue moon, and it is going to happen twice this year. All I want to say, though, is happy new year everyone!

May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you’re wonderful, and don’t forget to make some art — write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself. ~Neil Gaiman

More pictures here.

Off to Marinduque

The town of Boac, as well as other neighboring municipalities, in the island-province of Marinduque has an old-world charm, kept, maybe by old town sensibilities, respect for local architecture, or just plain distance and location. From Manila, you can get to Boac by taking a four-hour bus ride to Lucena City in Quezon, followed by a one-hour and a half trip by fast craft to the port in Banacalan, and finally, by jeep, which takes around an hour, to the town proper. Travel time takes eight hours or more and departure and arrival of sea-faring vehicles are set, so it is a must to know the transportation schedules. Another option, though, for travelers is an airplane ride from Manila.

Boac’s old houses, mostly with Spanish-style influences, surround the Casa Real, a municipal hall in the 19th century, and the open plaza. These infrastructures make you think that the town is quite a version of the old city of Vigan in Ilocos Norte except that Boac does not have souvenir shops in every door. Families still live in the old houses, where the second or third floors have wide open windows that attract attention from passers by. Then there’s the old stone church atop a hill and overlooking the town proper. From the outset, you could immediately notice the church, sturdy and colossal, and its perimeter walls made of stone, too. There is no need for you to take a tricycle or jeepney. You can walk around the poblacion at your own pace.

Concert Fever

The Event:

The Reservation:

The Ticket:

is waiting at the SM Customer Service counter. I am going to watch THE KILLERS live in MANILA on JANUARY 31, 2010!

Edit: I am seriously disappointed. Who knew that a week before the big day, the guys cancel their appearances “due to unforeseen circumstances”?

Lights Show

Saturday night, I witnessed giant technicolor explosions in the sky. Carla did have a really explosive birthday, a fitting celebration to her XXth year on earth. At the Fort Open Grounds, I craned my neck whilst holding a camera under a small umbrella with another person: Gelay. Rain poured through the night, and the sky was just above our heads.

After (failed) attempts at night photography, I just surrendered. Making mental pictures of the fireworks display is better.  The lights show goes by so fast that being behind the lens disables you from capturing the ephemeral, the wondrous reality of experiencing the magic of fireworks and music. Before the night ended, I have wished upon a million pixie dust.

More pictures here.

Goodbye, September

Hide and Seek, Vigan City, September 2009

1. Yeah, right, I say

“Although a lot of things in your life might seem to be a little off target and in need of serious “tweaking”, you are coming into a period of a few days that will give… you a glimpse of freedom that you have not had for a long time, Virgo. So many of the situations that have cause delays and obstacles to your progress are about to fall aside and make room for your progress. So many of the people who have wondered how and when your plans would succeed are about to be shocked, and during the next few days, you may even surprise yourself: do not marginalize any of your ideas, or forget to follow up on your plans. This could be the beginning of a new life.

Personal changes should be made during the next four weeks, Virgo. Anything having to do with change of appearance, such as hair styling, cosmetic surgery, rebuilding a wardrobe… or getting rid of bad habits will be very favorable. In fact, because Saturn is so powerful right now, quitting a bad habit or old style of dress or hair is a perfect use of this energy. Your popularity is bound to be high at this time, but people can be infamous as well as famous. With the planetary configurations in power now, chances are very good that the old patterns holding you back will be broken and you will take advantage of this wonderful combination.”

Horoscope of the Day

2. Life in status updates:

… has improved her typing skill, but still fell short of a thousand words. She wonders how she could ever expound this single thought: a yearning for mores in a setting far, far away, and not appear desperate about this long-standing desire, her everyday day dream.

…vented out her frustrations, real and imagined, and felt really, really good afterwards. The beauty of pouring out all your pent-up emotions on paper is that you do not have to bother anyone, but with someone who is willing to listen, it comes with well thought-of replies.

… failed to articulate what she wanted to say, and almost got lost in her thinking process. She over thinks all the time, and sometimes, cannot keep up with her mind. She needs to shut her mouth first and then please, let her speak – freely. Don’t mind her hand gestures, too.

… frets over the fact that she was not able to know you even if your very essence was presented by your veritable nearness. Your scent, your taste, your contour escapes me now, too. Distance, which is usually my defense, became a weakness. Regrets do always come late.

… watched a movie, a Pinoy comedy flick, twice on the big screen. She thinks that this hints of the likely: a need for a quick comic drug on her already flailing emotional system. Escapist tendencies aside, she thinks that Eugene Domingo deserves more acting roles.

…thought that she has seen, or experienced, the worst for typhoons are a natural occurrence in the typhoon path she calls home, but last weekend, crashing in the second-floor unit of her aunt and watching homes and cars get submerged below, she believed otherwise.

…(secretly) loves dancing, or flailing her arms and jumping around to the beat of happy music. Her body rhythm acts up immediately when in the company of shiny, happy people, around complete strangers, singing, shouting, and perspiring, and after a few drinks, or a bottle of beer.

…toys with the idea of becoming a permanent vacationer, or being employed at a vacation destination, after October. Question is: Where to? I am also seriously considering going back to Bicoland,  and find a work there (and stay at my parents’ house).  I am confused again.

3. I turned 24, but I like to believe that I am still a teenager, so that I can have all the excuse in the world. It’s time to get the err, groove, back on and get rid of the Peter Pan Complex, or Arrested Development phase though.

Ramble Grumble

From an old college notebook I kept:

Points to Ponder

1. Fantasies always fail in the realm of the real.
2. Desire is not after attaining the desire, but to reproduce it .
3. Narcissism is crucial to the achievement of desire.
4. Desire is to avoid coming in full contact to the real.
5. Presence of demand acknowledges the lack of something.

Some people have suffered the burden of my ramblings, the unmistakable hint of my daily humdrum misery and the inescapable impact of everything banal, which may have left them hanging on the edge of their seats with the question “What is it again this time?” or made their eyes roll, coupled with “Oh no, not again.”

I am thankful that those people have always tolerated me, though, given that they are my friends, whose sole obligation in my life is to appease me when I am in the mood to throw in the proverbial towel; to risk what is already there and provoke what is out there; to rant on and poke fun on everything stupid and frustrating, especially people.

Here I go again. The dilemma: WTFAIGDWML? Hello cheesiness. Hello Rick Warren, I need a copy of your goddamn book, which I have yet to consider as part of my to-buy list. Hi author of the book that sits on my bookshelf, the one that has been titillating me with his gaze, I think I am a perfect guinea pig for your broken social experiments.

Surely, this is what I have asked for in 2008.

An escape from the so-called soullessness, the vacuum that sapped the energy out of me, while in the confines of corporate despair hood, of the eight-hour daily shift, cluttering the World Wide Web with pages upon pages of information that will only be proved meaningful by Technorati, et al.

Or: the laissez faire lifestyle that freelancing endorses, but not guarantees, of the hundreds of hours inhabiting the living room, feeding on mind-numbing drivel coming out of the TV, the vacuous ness of 24/7 internet frenzy, and the long intermittent hours spent on kjdskadjskadskajdska.

Am I a Change Junkie?

Further questions loom.

Sa-sa-sagada

Without missing a heartbeat, I easily said “yes” to my friend Carla when she invited me to come with her to Sagada. I only had little money left in my wallet (It did not even occur to me how I could ever survive once I came back to Manila), and I was supposed to put my mind into “something” but I just did not want to let the travel opportunity be swept aside. I have always wanted to go to Sagada, which is located in Mountain Province, and as a first-timer, I got what I wanted and more in that lovely mountain community – fresh air, picturesque scenery, delicious food and warm folks, among others.

Three days is not enough to experience the real Sagada. Yes, I went to the tourist spots: St. Mary’s Church and Echo Valley, Bomod-Ok Falls, and Lake Danum, among others and ate at Masferre Cafe, Yoghurt House, and Rock Inn Farm and Orange Orchard, but being in a tour does not equate to travel. Plus, I did not get to experience spelunking at Sumaguing Cave. I chickened out, was dead tired, and was suffering from intense headache that needed immediate sleep. I will come back for more, including spelunking, that is for sure. Never mind the ten-hour trip via treacherous, dangerous mountain roads.

More pictures at my photo fridge.

Somewhere Only We Know

I left my old blog because I felt weird about it, no kidding. I begun hating the domain name (seriously, what was I thinking?), and I became uncomfortable publishing personal posts because, just because.

Yesterday, I was thinking of scrapping my old blog completely and leave this online avenue known for pimping psychological prostitutes. Yes, I do consider blogging as whoring yourself to everyone. But lo and behold, I just made another account.

So here’s another foray into the world of blogging. This got to be my nth blog, since I discovered blogging as an incoming college freshman who wanted to file the goings-on in my life, mostly strains of the collegiate life, tales of unrequited pseudo-love, and frustrations of a human beanbag.

I still can’t get enough of the internet and blogging even after so many years. Yes, I experience being burned-out by the whole process – sitting in front of the computer, typing all these words, making sense of everything around me, but blogging still remains a comfort activity.

Blogging or in the strictest sense, writing, is more than practicing my typing speed or in conventional terms, exercising my right arm. Writing, for me, mainly serves as a therapy. My online journal has become my favoured punching bag, well, aside from those people who are just a click, text or a nudge away.

The New Year

January 31, 2009, On the road to San Carlos City

I wish the world was flat like the old days
Then I could travel just by folding a map
No more airplanes, or speed trains, or freeways
There’d be no distance that could hold us back.

- The New Year by Death Cab for Cutie

(Before) November and Everything After

One

Was on an official trip to Lanao del Norte via Cagayan de Oro with Carl last week. Sights: Lush countryside, beachfront properties, hill tops, mountain ridges, famed falls, canopy walks, charming mosques, peace village, check points, armed forces, small towns, busy cities, cement factories, small enterprises, and the ever ubiquitous shopping malls.

Low downs: (1) arriving late at the squeaky clean airport and digging into our own pockets to pay for the rebooking fee, which sucked big time; and (2) the four hour wait for the next flight, maintaining grace under pressure and believing that the worst has happened; and (3) not being able to put into use what I know about the how-tos of surviving great rapids.

Highlights: (1) a four-hour car ride to the provincial capital, passing through Iligan City and other municipalities, including the ones raided by the MILF lost command (yes, I consider that act a highlight, haha); (2) side trips in Cagayan de Oro (read: making the most out of the stay, especially during night time and lull hours); and (3) work, work, work, and did I say work?

Two

Version 1: I’m at an old internet shop in Philcoa, getting annoyed by the minute because of the buzz of multi player online gaming and the insanely cheesy contemporary pop music being blasted by the FM station. I’m outta here after I get to maximize my P15 per hour rental fee. Gah, I miss my old trusty laptop and the unlimited internet connection I used to have.

The afternoon heat permeates the skin and the scalp. Well, the punishment for getting out of the house at noon. I’m not in the mood for vegetating in front of the television, feeding on rehashed noontime variety shows, or testing the softness of my bed cushion anyway. I’m thinking of having my hair chopped. Short. And feasting on Heavenly Mango yogurt. Yum!

Version 2: I’m missing my long locks, a chaotic order and organized chaos; that hair cutter from that Reyes chain butchered my ‘do and deserves a bitch-slap. Sigh. Now I am sporting a shoulder-length bob, quite layered, with a short fringe that does not suit me. Imagine: Combined with the new eye glasses I look like, as somebody said, Betty La Fea. Shit.