Random Thoughts: October

This ain't one of them rant posts I've done in the past. I've had enough fretting and fuming last night when I lost my cellphone (oh yeah! I did, AGAIN) inside an Internet café, thanks to the nimble hand of a gangster-type kid. I just wish I had implanted a mini-bomb inside it so I could just blast the thief's hand away. Seriously, I'm the vindictive type, so pardon me for being so macabre with the punishment. But OK, enough with the gory wishful thinking.

So today's October 12, 2010. Nineteen days to go and I'm back to the life of a vagabond. Perfect timing, right? I can hardly imagine myself cellphone-less at a time like this. I expect myself to be penniless in the next few days because the company will be holding off my next salary, since I am just rendering thirty days of work for the transition (oh no I'm ranting again).

I just thought of setting off for a journey, to somewhere far and paradisaical, all by myself. Human life is like a phoenix's-- I guess there's always a point in a person's life when he build himself a funeral pyre, consume himself with the stressful flames, ultimately being reduced into ashes, and the ending could either be him dead meat forever or born again from the same ashes. And I'm exactly in the phase wherein I'm preparing myself for my own ritual cremation. Maybe I can board a random bus and be taken off to an equally-random unheard-of place, or ride a ferry sailing to the remote islands of the South China Sea. Or if the budget will allow, I can take a plane and fly to Batanes with just a map, and enough courage.

All these, of course after I get myself a new phone. Ugh.

In Between

I just realized that I had so much fun times in my academic in-between. I define academic in-between as the time when I was out of school, dedicating almost entirely my then pure and innocent life to the call center world. Rough times, most especially in financial terms, pushed me to peg my sanity away to earn the money, donning headsets and frying my eyes thanks to my everyday encounters with the computer monitor. I thought I'd left the world of fake accents and everyday fastfood lunch as soon as I went back to school-- but I'm still here, and I'm more than thankful to have this job as it helps me fend for my school expenses.

I can still recall my first successful application stint. I got a job as a Sales Rep in Telus (it was called Ambergris in the good old days) and I was excited like hell. The pay was not bad for a guy who just landed his first job, knowing that a boy typical of my age back then resorts to applying in fastfood chains and coffee shops. I met a wonderful team of call center neophytes whom I all quickly become good friends with. On our first payday, we decided to go to Cubao to celebrate this important chapter of our lives. I can still remember how happy I was when I bought my learning-Latin book from National Bookstore with my first hard-earned salary.

I have to admit that I applied on several centers before I got hired in Ambergris, but when you already have even a bit of experience working in one, it won't be hard for you to land another. After 4 months, I decided to move to TeleTech Cainta, which is closer to our house.

The batch I was with is full of first-timers too, but I didn't tell them that I know a few know-hows in the industry. So I treated myself as one of them novices too, anyway it was a brand new role as a Technical Support Rep in an equally brand new workplace. Within my year-and-a-half stay in this company, I met some of the awesomest people on Earth. I developed some sort of attachment to the company that tears welled up in my eyes the moment I was bidding my teammates farewell. That's when it hit me: in this kind of business people come and go, and it happens so damn fast.

The next call center I worked in attracted probably the best apples from different BPO orchards. 24/7 Customer offered a very generous compensation package, that's why I decided to transfer. I was humbled when I learned about the work experience the people in my batch have-- in here, everyone's an expert and highly technically-knowledgeable. Despite the attractive pay, I resigned after 6 months and decided not to work in a call center anymore-- the nature of the job was so stressful that I had bad cases of tonsillopharyngitis every once in a while.

Luckily, I was hired as a Financial Voice Writer/Editor at McGraw-Hill. I was informed that the job would start no sooner than 2 months, so for the mean time I worked in another BPO company as an E-mail support agent at LWS Media. The pay was surprisingly high compared to other centers, but I didn't take the job seriously despite the stress-free environment. After more than a month, I went off to train as a voice writer.

I came to a point where I decided to settle down with the job as it paid pretty well and I was a part of wonderful team. But Fate is a playful element, and I eventually learned that that year was my last chance to enroll in school. Otherwise, PUP won't accept me back in EVER. So I had to give up the wonderful opportunity to go back to school.

And here I am, albeit I almost cursed this type of job. I'm working alongside a team of cool and wonderful people and they make a year of monotony bearable. But in more or less a month from now, I will finally have to lay my headset to rest. And the good old refillable plastic binder that I use in school for 2 years. Did I have any regrets? Not a bit. Noticed that I used the word "wonderful" a couple of times?

Sa loob ng mahigit-kumulang tatlong taon na tumigil ako sa pag-aaral, dito ko nakilala ang mga taong tatatak sa puso't isip ko. Wala akong pinagsisihan, ni-gapatak. Naging masaya ako at mas naging mature at responsableng tao dahil sa mga taong nakilala ko sa aking in-between. Kaya sa inyong lahat na nakilala ko sa aking in-between, maraming salamat sa lahat ng suporta at encouragement na nanggaling sa inyo para ipagpatuloy ko ang aking pag-aaral.

I'll save my thank-you graduation speech for next year ;)

Random Thoughts: August

Kelan lang, nagkaroon ako ng lagnat na nag-last for 5 days. Akala ko nga dengue na, dahil bukod pa sa on-and-off na lagnat ay nagdugo pa ang ilong ko nung nakasakay ako sa LRT papuntang school, nakakahiya tuloy. Buti nalang na ngayon, OK na ako. Pangalawang araw ko nang walang lagnat, at dahil dun hindi na ako nagpa-check up sa doctor. Sana nga eh simpleng trangkaso lang yun dahil sa pabago-bagong panahon.

At sa wakas ay natapos na ang mga kalbaryo ko sa school. Pasencia na ma'am Tina, pero hindi na po ako aako ng isang mabigat na responsibilidad next time hehehe. Mahirap talagang pagsabayin ang trabaho at pag-aaral, kaya sa mga estudyanteng balak umalis sa pag-aaral at gusto na lang magtrabaho, THINK AGAIN! I learned it all the hard way.

Medyo nae-excite na ako sa Hotel Practicum namin sa darating na 2nd sem. At the same time, nalulungkot din ako dahil iiwan ko ang isang trabahong naging second home ko for a year. Yes, I will have to say goodbye again. Ilang beses na nga ba akong nagpaalam sa mga taong natutunan ko nang pahalagahan? Ganun yata talaga ang buhay, wala talagang nagtatagal. Pero syempre, hindi matatapos ang pagkakaibigan namin sa resignation ko hehehe. We'll see to it na may mga gala kami every once in a while.

Masyado pa yatang maaga para mag-emo....

Random Thoughts: July

So ayun nga. Wala akong blog post for June. Sa sobrang busy ko sa school at work hindi ko na maasikaso ang aking cyber life (LOL ang jologs). Well... ano pa nga ba ang ipo-post ko dito eh recently medyo monotonous ang mga araw ko. Aral sa umaga, work sa gabi. Nahahapo na nga ako. Isa pang bagay na medyo kinaiinisan ko this month eh yung fact na hindi ko nabisita ang dagat. Meron pa naman akong tendency na ma-demotivate kapag hindi ako nakakapag-out-of-town. So I really need to plan an impromptu trip ASAP. LOL. Ang oxymoronic no? Buti nalang meron akong mga kaibigang laging game, hehehe. Matapos lang 'tong paghihirap ko, I'll just hop on a random bus and get lost.

Recently I've been trying to reevaluate my life. Day by day, I'm starting to feel how superficial my world has become. I'm starting to realize how my daily routine has thrown me into a vacuum of conformity. I'm slowly becoming mainstream. I'm not saying that being in the mainstream is bad-- it's just that, the mainstream is putting me into a mold, a confined space, a pattern which does not fit the contours of my twisted mind.

I took a shower. It somehow washed away the unintelligible voices in my head. Then I studied myself in front of the mirror. I saw my soul. It's gray-- a sign that I've been living a predictable life. Again, the little voices are back. I banged a block of ice heavily into the wall, the thud echoed through the night. I put these shards of crystal into a glass of elixir, lit a cigarette and smoked all my worries away... the voices began to peter out. I closed my eyes and wished that I'll have a beautiful dream.

Random Thoughts: May

Nakakalungkot na isiping nagsisimula niyo pa lang buuin ang pagkakaibigan nyo'y kukunin na ni Lord yung tao. Pero wala naman tayong magagawa-- hiram lang natin ang mga buhay natin. Yung bago kong ka-team na si Rocky, maagang kinuha ng Maykapal sa edad na 22. Nasagasaan ng isang iresponsableng driver ng SUV sa pagtawid lang ng building na pinagtatrabahuhan namin. Sana, kahit na maaga kang namaalam sa pisikal na mundo ay na-enjoy mo ang iyong buhay. Kung nasaan ka man ngayon aming kaibigan, sana masaya ka. :) At sa mga taong nabubuhay pa, live your life to the fullest ;)

Anyway, I was able to visit 2 beaches na this month alone, 2 beaches din last month. Masusundan pa yata bago matapos ang buwan, pero hindi pa sure. Matabungkay Batangas nung May 8, at ang latest addition? Puting Buhangin beach sa Pagbilao, Quezon! :D

Dumiretso kami doon pagkatapos makisaya sa Pahiyas sa Lucban. Sobrang saya netong trip na 'to dahil sobrang daming nangyari sa loob lang ng 2 araw na paglalagi sa Quezon!

Beach Bumming

I love beaches. Kapag nakaupo ako sa buhangin sa tabi ng dagat, nawawala lahat ng pagod, puyat at problema ko. Nakaka-kalma ang tunog ng alon na pumapalo sa buhanginan, ang preskong simoy ng hangin at ang bughaw na langit na nakikipagtagpo sa bughaw ding tubig ng karagatan.

Enough of the Balagtasan style of writing.

Sobrang saya ko na I was able to hit two beaches in just one month, namely Aurora and Zambales. At gusto ko pa uling pumunta sa beach! Mukhang mapapadalas ang dalaw ko sa dagat dahil sobrang nag-enjoy ako kasama ang mga kaibigan ko, pero minsan ita-try ko ring magpunta sa dagat ng mag-isa. Ano kayang feeling nun? :)

So eto ang listahan ng mga dagat na nasa Luzon lang na gusto ko puntahan. 'Wag muna sa Visayas at Mindanao dahil malaki-laking ipunan yun hehehe.

1. CALAGUAS ISLAND, Camarines Norte.
(photo from rycerocks.multiply.com)

2. CAGBALETE ISLAND, Quezon Province.(photo from gurlastig.files.wordpress.com)

3. JOMALIG ISLAND, Quezon Province.
(photo from expat-blog.com)

4. MAGALAWA ISLAND, Zambales.
(photo from flickr.com/vinson010986)

5. BALAKI ISLAND, Pangasinan
(photo from lantaw.blogspot.com)

So hindi nyo naman napansin na gusto ko sa mga pulo no? Hehe. So what are you waiting for? If you wanna go to these places, just hit me up and let's plan our trip LOL

A Love-Hate Relationship

A typically boring and hot Sunday afternoon: there I was, sitting beside the window with a lit menthol cigarette in one hand and a tumbler of iced coffee in the other, staring blankly at a wall awkwardly positioned beside our house, insipidly glaring back as if telling me to get a life and do something more worthwhile than beholding his holy humdrumness. How I wish I could Mr. Wall, for a flat-broke idler like me has got nothing better to do.

That's when I felt her presence.

I then remembered that it is inevitable to meet her during this time of the year. I would imagine her in her usual airy floral dress, sporting a straw hat and a pair of lightweight sandals. Her complexion ever flawless, so radiant that it renders her practically shadowless. She smells like the warm ocean breeze-- the gentle scent of the sea wafted to a garden filled with jasmines in full bloom, then to my nose... oh, how nostalgic.

My eyes, still fixed at the equally bored wall, finally gave out and motioned to the dying stick of poison twiddled by my fingers. A dream sequence played inside my head, and suddenly I was cast to the theater of my childhood memories again. I've been trying so hard to decipher what my id wants my ego to realize, but a single recurring scene haunts me in all of my afternoon reveries: me as a little boy, squatting, back leaning on a faded concrete wall that keeps me away from the sun, snacking on a slice of shabbily-made pizza. Weirdly enough, I always wondered what's with the wall and the sun that they always evoke a sinking feeling when I see them together.

Summer has always been my childhood sweetheart.

Shiyet

So eto na naman po kami ng PUP sa aming mala-wild goose chase na enrollment processes. Susko. Kararating ko lang ng bahay galing sa school at hindi rin ako nakapag-enroll. Andaming proseso na hindi naman inaasikaso ng mga tanggapan na dapat nag-aasikaso. Shiyet lang talaga. Next week ay Semana Santa na at good luck kung meron pang mag-asikaso sa office nun kapag hindi ko natapos to bukas. Pansin ko lang din ha, nung mga nakaraang araw eh puro rants lang ang posts ko dito. Grrrrrrr. Wala na akong oras para makapag-contemplate man lang sa buhay ko.

Early Morning Rant

Haaay. Coffee shop operations na naman come Monday. Isang week na naman akong pagod na pagod. Sa totoo lang eto na ata ang pinaka-ayaw kong parte ng pag-aaral ko ng HRM. 1 week na naman akong bangag, dahil kung hindi ka naman ba ulanin ng malas, nataon na ngang midterms week namin nung unang term namin eh pati ba naman sa pangalawang pagkakataon ay nataon ang finals. Iniisip ko palang kung paano ko ipapasa ang mga final exams ko eh nababaliw na ako. Andami pang requirements na hindi ko naman pwedeng pagsabayin. Bwisit na buhay 'to o. Pagdadasal ko nalang talaga na wala akong ibagsak na subject sa taon na 'to dahil kung nagkataon, chugi na ako sa PUP.

Simba-simbahan

Sa wakas, sa tinagal-tagal ng nilalagi ko sa Manila ay na-Kodakan ko na ang napaka-kontrobersyal na San Sebastian Church sa San Miguel. Actually sinamahan ko lang magsimba si Megs dito dahil gusto nya rin makita ang loob. Ang masasabi ko lang-- wow. Walang katulad sa buong Pilipinas ang all-steel Neo-Gothic architectural style ng simbahang 'to. Nagkaroon naman ako ng pagkakataong retratuhan ang loob ng simbahan kaso boloks naman kaya hindi ko nalang ipo-post LOL. At nag-attempt din akong kunan ang simbahan ng San Agustin dahil sa dinami-dami ng beses ko nang napuntahan 'yun, wala parin akong matinong picture. Resulta? Wala paren hahaha. Hindi talaga photogenic ang lola ng lahat ng simbahan sa Pinas-- pero masasabi kong ito so far ang pinakamaganda sa lahat (lalo na ang Baroque style neto sa loob) ng simbahang nakita ko.

It's such a shame na nagawa ko ngang HDR ang picture ko ng San Sebastian sa taas pero yung "pseudo" effect naman. Hindi ko parin matantsa ang conversion gamit ang multi-bracketed photos. Aaaarrrggh somebody help me!

Sana may furnace yun tutuluyan namin sa Baguio this coming weekend. Parang trip ko yung fireside kwentuhan at inuman with matching lutuan ng DIY smores. Yumm!