Returning to the land I once knew

Starting Monday, I'll leave this Gateway office I love, and move back to Makati. This time, I'll be in Makati Stock Exchange along Ayala Avenue. I'll be dealing and wheeling with clients literally.

So wish me luck. Your boy's got a project now.

No one can escape destiny

Another one

Geez, another interview? And they caught me in a really bad time. As of this morning, my fever reached up to 39 again, but quickly went down after an hour. I hope that this added effort in my part to travel to Makati again doesn't trigger my fever again.

I just came from the clinic...

I had fever. It reached up to 38.5 C, and I slept like an hour there, and stayed there for around three hours until my fever crept down to 37.4.

It's strange though. I slept quite early yesterday, and felt fine this morning. Heck, I even played billiards with my officemates in Puyat Sports Farmers. (score was 2-2-2 in a killers game)

Then this happens, and as far as my health is concerned, I only get sick when vacation time comes (as I call it, ginamit na ng katawan ko ang stress na isinantabi lang).

But it was "fun" staying in the clinic. I got to know the nurse pretty well, and some of my officemates kept on popping in and out and tawanan to the max

The Beginning of the Bat?

So there is a project... and I'm just a phone call or e-mail away from rolling into it. However, I wish that it wasn't true since its work hours are 2-10 pm. This means I don't have any way to get home. The trains are closed by the time I arrive, taxis are dangerous, and all public transportation have undergone their regular human slumber.

I won't have any place to go. I'll be stranded in Makati alone in a damn cold night.

The next big thing?

Just as I was about to close my computer and go home, a new e-mail suddenly popped in my inbox. When I opened it, it told me that I will have an interview 3:30 pm tomorrow.

Now, I am so nervous that I am sweating bullets. Jenica told me, although unsure, that it was something about fitting me in a project. Project, a word I feared the most since it meant changing my whole lifestyle. It could mean that I would be separated from my dearest Accenture batchmates. It could also mean that I have to shift buildings once more considering that I'm still getting used to my new office here in Gateway. Worse, it could mean that I have to be a bat and wake up during the wee hours of the night and sleep in the morning.

Although a project is the next step from where I am, I have to admit that I am frightened. Considering that I have very little IT background, am I really ready to play such an important role in this company?

Here's to probably my last day here in Gateway. And if it was so, to my batchmates from Accenture, I love you guys. I hope we cross paths again someday.

Bad to be good?

After hearing mass last Sunday, I am appalled with what the priest said during the homily. He pointed out that the reason why news such as the person who honestly gave back the missing bag of money to the Japanese reporter appear in the newspaper is due to the fact that it was only a rare moment in our country.

Although such good acts may be a rarity, could it not be that there is another reason why we see good news in the papers? Is our country that hopeless that even the church does not have faith in its own flock?

Could not someone be honest or do good things anymore? If doing good is something that is scoffed upon or planted as an avenue for rumor-mongering, why stay with the right side?

And our batch will rule the world...

I always envisioned that there will come a time when the newscasters, actors, VJs, and other television personalities I watch will be replaced by my batchmates. Now, this vision is slowly happening before my eyes.

I remember my freshman year when we still had Mish Maravilla as our block and coursemate in Fine Arts: Creative Writing. Yes, I admit I developed a little crush on her back then. I remember that another coursemate also tried to court her.

I also remember that this was the first time when this small group within my coursemates turned against me, a strange foreshadowing instance considering what had happened in fourth year. I became a wanderer back then, roaming around the Ateneo vicinity alone. In the process, I became closer to other students from other courses.

This small faction would soon become the dominant one as the years passed, and I had this strange relationship with them. That faction and I had so few similarities that we never saw eye-to-eye in most things, but we usually remained in neutral grounds.

But I digress. Back to Mish, I knew she would be someday on TV or at least in the cover of those fashion magazines. She knew what she wanted, and she took every step to achieve it. Last time I heard before we graduated, she was modeling clothes on ramps in various venues. Now, she's the new Rejoice shampoo model, with the most awkward song and dance steps among the Rejoice commercials. She fits the part, especially with their new "Kinamay lang, umayos na" tagline. However, I love to shoot that songwriter, choreographer and director of that TV clip for making her look so annoying.


Kinamay lang, umayos na model (left) with Kinamay lang, at kinamay pa, at kinamay pa... (right) back in freshman year

Speaking of annoying, after all these years, Lucky Manzano still does not know the difference between funny and downright irritating. At least, he saved his act by bringing in two on-the-job trainees (I think) to give the audience a break from his lackluster VJing. One lady he brought out was Queene Domingo, another former Fine Arts coursemate turned Communications major.

Now, what MYX needs to do is to lessen the airtime of Lucky, and put in new blood like Queene to purify the air. I remember reading an article back then in the Inquirer, and it noted that Heart Evangelista and Lucky Manzano were the worst VJs for that year. However, unlike Lucky, who still lives up to that dishonor, Heart has improved her VJ skills, and appears less "Ma-Heart-te" than before.

Who is next? We also see Jerome Sibulo host his own TV show in Solar Sports, Andrei Felix as the model Ahead student, LA Tenorio with his Mobile Addict commercials, and probably a few more batchmates here and there. Soon, we will populate what our forefathers left us. Hopefully, when that happens, the Ateneo education brings forth a better country or at least a better "field", whether it may be media, politics, corporate, etc., for everyone.

Immobile Marion-ette

Marion Raven has a concert tonight along with Kitchie Nadal. I have her album, and listened to her new set of songs, but I do not have a ticket for her concert. Sadly, this Ravenitis I have must go without treatment.

However, I envision that if ever I had a ticket, I would be the one of the few who went there to see Marion Raven and sing along with her. I see that it would turn out to be a Kitchie Nadal concert more than a Marion Raven one even if it was publicized that way. Kitchie is way more popular now than Marion Raven here in the Philippines. Marion's newest single, "End of Me" has not even broken the top 20 of the MYX hit chart while Kitchie's "Same Ground" keeps playing around with the top 5.

I miss Marion Raven, and even Marit Larsen as well. I remember back then when I battled against thousands of people, and endured the pain just to watch M2M in Megamall and in the World Trade Center. I am still a fan of M2M, and even the new rocker chick style of Marion as well.

Probably, if I am just not too exhausted from working 8 hours and enduring traffic for more than 2 hours per day, I would do it over again. However, your daddy is getting older now, and the energy is not as up there as I want to be.

I hope she will be back again, and have another album in the future. To tell you the truth, I am actually worried that this album would not fare as well as her M2M days since it sports an extreme rock make-over for Marion. Considering that their second album as M2M took a rock approach and backed up with a lot of praises from the critics did not fare as well as their first bubbly-pop sounding one, this new rocker-chick image might not suit her. Plus, with all the competition around, especially from the likes of Kelly Clarkson and Avril Lavigne, her album might get lost in the wave of rocker-chicks flooding the music industry.

I hope the charts prove me wrong.

Ang daya

Bakit ganoon?

Isang hinayupak na lumang piraso ng bakal na tinawag nilang kompyuter ang napunta sa akin. Ayaw nitong magpaimbita sa Yahoo Messenger, may topak ang LAN, may topak ang tunog, may problema sa DOS, at kung anu-ano pang halu-halong sakit. Di' ko tuloy makasama itong mga kaibigan ko sa kanilang pangmalawakang paghahalubilo.

Nakakainis! Hindi ko pa kayang ayusin ito. Buwisit. Nagmimistulang itim na tupa ako rito sa amin dahil sa ginagawang pagyuyurak nitong bakal na ito sa aking buhay-opisina. Sana kapag nakalipat na ako, magkaroon ako ng isang tunay na kompyuter, hindi isang kalkyulator na nagbabalat-kayo.

Snail day

Events are going really slow here in the office. I actually reached boredom point before lunch, way earlier than usual. Reading chunks of text online that probably goes back in the recesses of your brain ranks way up there in the boredom scale. Luckily, I have the net to accompany me this day.

My computer is inferior to my fellow officemates here in the room. The CD-Rom has problems, messenger has some too, and more. Kainis!

It comes in threes

I graduate "3" times (Ateneo [Fine Arts], AIM [Managing the Arts], Accenture Training [Basic Cobol]) in the last "3" months.

I moved offices "3" times (6750 Tower, GT Tower, PhilAm Life Tower) in "3" weeks.

I received "3" recognitions during my training here in Accenture (Proficiency in COBOL, Most Improved Student, Best Team [Milo Best])

Crazy Fun.

Graduation # 3

I am going to miss training.

Yes, it has given me numerous headaches and worries that pushed the stress levels over the limit, but it has given me a reason to wake up each day with a mission: to conquer that mindbending case study with my own hands.

Despite the fears that I wouldn't make the cut, somehow, they believed in me that they gave me this certification in COBOL along with a "Most Improved" award to boot. I got a Accenture purse-like bag as a prize.

I think that they were surprised that a Fine Arts student could sometimes manage to finish ahead among the graduates of the computer courses.

Lunch was great: yang chow fried rice, Bicol express, chicken lollipop, chopsuey, lechon, macaroons were all served on the table, all for free. The food was great, the free factor made it even tastier.

I'm going to miss this place too. It has provided me with numerous cups of free coffee, chocolate, iced tea and Milo that an employee working in another company would want in their offices. I remember the time back then in the 6750 orientation that I envisioned that this place would be great for me in many counts, and it has given me those fruits during my stay.

Goodbye to you. I hope I will be back someday.

Night lights

We were supposed to watch the new play of Smarla in Koine, but due to the heavy rain, we never got there in time. We were stuck in traffic, and in the same place for more than hour. In a sense, we just went there to fetch her. We had dinner in Chillis and had this Chicken salad, spaghetti and an overflowing amount of nachos. We also viewed the final game of the San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tournament pitting Reyes against Yang. Due to a lot of costly errors on the part of Efren, he lost his bid for the semi-finals, and eliminated the chance of a sure all-Filipino stint in the finals.

Now I know who are the players left when we watch tomorrow's game live in Galleria. Watch me on Star Sports TV!

Glowing

Sometimes, life just surprises you with little treats throughout the day. Maybe, it's God's way of saying that he's always there taking care of his people.

A little surprise
It has been two days since my birthday, but the surprises just keep on coming. My mom handed me a memory card for the PS2, saying that it was part of the gifts for my birthday. I found out that my sister suggested that it was something that I would use, so they got one for me. At least now, I would not need to erase my previous save data in my other memory cards. Now if I could find time to play...

Time waits
We all woke up late today. As a result, I got crammed in a MRT train and had to practically run from the Ayala Station to GT tower. Somehow, I arrived there exactly on time, maintaining my clean record. At least, nature didn't challenge me this time by sending her little drops of blessings down on the earth.

Case dismissed
I was expecting a tougher case today since the instructor warned us yesterday about the third case. However, they decided that there will be no case study for today. That was a relief, considering that yesterday, it took me like seven hours just to do one measly program.

The A-Team
And Milo Best was born. After the instructor divided us into five teams, our team christened itself "Milo Best", and named me team lead. Crazy. We had a team-building activity afterwards where we got to know each other through a game of charades. Milo Best, Mane's Angels, Accenture Bugs, Stop Run, and Mga Kawawang COBOL competed for the first in a series of competitions in this training program.

The given topic was cartoon characters, and I was chosen by my team to represent us in the game. While they acted the word out, I was the one who was supposed to guess what the character they portrayed.

After a slow start, Milo Best barged its way through the gate and caught up with the leader Mga Kawawang Cobol, surpassed them and never looked back. At the end of the game, Milo Best outlasted everyone by a slim three-point margin over second-placers Mga Kawawang COBOL and Accenture Bugs.

I guess never letting go of the kid inside me has its perks.

The Highlight
Our lunch-out together with my Atenean friends pushed through. Denise Decena, whom I missed dearly since I last saw her some time in March where I helped her pack her stuff out of Eliazo, and Migs Cortez, my best buddy in college and new-worker in Makati.

We planned this thing since I believe the 25th of May. Through the wonders of technology, texting made this event happen. I remember the short conversation with Denise through text. She learned that I was having a tough time at work, and she encouraged me that, in her own words, "Kayang kaya yan."Thanks, Denise. I owe you one. I learned about her workplace, work hours and probably possibilities of get-togethers in the future.

When Denise arrived, I must admit that I almost did not recognize her at first. I cannot put my finger on why it happened. I was really caught off-guard with something about her, probably something about the way she looked that day. It took me a second to realize that it was Denden before my eyes. I must have really looked stupid that moment, cause I was startled when someone called my name there even if I was expecting her. She just looked lovely in her business attire.

Migs arrived a few minutes after, flaunting his casual wear like it was a rose among the thorns of our business attires. I actually envy him, being able to wear anything he wants to work, while I have to deal with being formal all the time. It gets hot especially during summertime.

I treated them to lunch that day as a mini birthday blow-out to my dearest of friends. Kuwentuhan to the MAX, and an hour together seemed too short for us. I really love those guys. It never gets boring when they are around.

I wish them the best of luck in their careers. I hope that there are many get-togethers in the near future.

Flight
All the lectures and class discussions ended early, so we were given free time to do whatever we want. In this rare opportunity, I bonded with my first buddies at work through this Einstein puzzle where you had to guess where each nationality lived in what house color, drank what beverage, owned what pet and smoked what cigarettes. We never got to finish it though, since when working hours were over, we wanted to get out of GT Tower immediately to enjoy...

Friday!!!
I never thought I would say this after graduating, but I really thank God if it is Friday. After 40 hours of brain-crunching calculations, logic and staring blankly at a computer screen, I need some time to relax, and be a kid again.

After an eon

Bea texted today, wishing me a belated happy birthday. This was the first form of contact since we last saw each other during graduation. I learned that she was jobless, but still was training hard to perfect her clarinet skills. I offered her a hand in looking for an orchestra that needs a skilled clarinetist by going through my contacts in the Creative Artists of the Philippines pool. Hopefully, at least one of them could help Bea.

I hope the lunch tomorrow with Denden & Migs pushes through.

What kind of pie do you like?

I treated all my comrades and instructors at work to different flavors of pocket pies. It was interesting to know that in that room, one of my classmates had her birthday on May 30, one of the instructors on the 31st, and I today. I had to go through oceans to get those pies (it rained pretty hard, and all streets turned into oceans), and almost came in late due to the slow service in Jollibee. However, the birthday spirit took over, and granted me enough strength to complete the case today in COBOL in a short amount of time. I believe I placed second or third today in that case study, a fine feat, considering that I am a fine arts student among the sea of computer science graduates.

My phone was bombarded with birthday greetings, more on the unknown number side. I found out that my sister broadcasted this occasion to her friends, and they spammed my phone. I was wondering all day who these people are, but it was nice knowing that a lot of people cared, even those I do not know. Care for "the other" ala Levinas.