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Posted by Mabie
over a century ago, rizal diagnosed the nation with the disease of cancer. entering into the first decade of the new millennium, i would have to beg to differ and give my own diagnosis, without, of course, precluding that i am in the same league as rizal. i say that it is not cancer that is beleaguering our society, it’s alzheimer’s, the forgetful’s disease.
we have forgotten that heroism is not necessarily exclusive to one individual alone, but with a people – a nation – working together.
we have forgotten that rising up as a nation against a dictatorship is not the end of the fight, but only the beginning of the struggles we need to overcome in order to patch up the cracks that infiltrated our subconsciousness.
we have forgotten that we are a young democracy, and as such we should not let it get to our heads and push the meaning of freedom to the fringes of extremeties. that the freedom we enjoy is not for free, even in its absolute sense, and must be worked hard for. that the government is not the only one responsible for ensuring that this is made secure and available for all. that we only got lucky that the heavens sided with us that one, fateful, yellow day two decades ago, and that we should not boast of knowing it all when it comes to democracy. Read the rest of this entry »
cheated on by vincent
Posted by Mabie
last night sir mark broke my heart.
fresh from my creativity and problem awareness class, i was left reeling and in dire need of red horse beer — grande, please — upon the discovery of the “possibility” that vincent van gogh may not have been the crazed maniac i’ve always romanticized him to be.
this is my favorite painting of his, my favorite painting ever, actually:
in last night’s class, all that was romantic about this painting was ripped and shredded to pieces right in front of me. and all i can do was to don on that glazed, stone-faced mask to keep the tears from falling. i would have been very hard-pressed to explain to the class what the fuck i was crying about, first of all. Read the rest of this entry »
We change, we wait
Posted by Rem
I am now back in the office – sitting on my chair, looking at my laptop and the stack of paperwork I left behind. The past few days went by like a blink but every song ends, is that any reason not to enjoy the music?
The travel started last February 28. Five college friends were at the airport waiting for a flight to Cebu. All were sleepy and somewhat tired from the tedious pace of their respective yuppie lives. The theme of the trip was an unspoken universal truth that all of them needed a vacation badly. After all, they are young and they could disappear for a while or could afford to lose a day or two.
I have to admit that I am not a big fan of flying – I’m willing to drive for hours or ride a boat for days, as long as we don’t need to board a plane. It also didn’t help that we got cheap tickets from the airline formerly known as Asian Spirit. I’ve heard the jokes (you fly an Asian, you arrive a spirit had been tossed around a lot), but surprisingly Zest Air was ok: a good 8-out-of-10 in my book. The little airline could deliver on-time flights, short check-in queues, roomy planes, smooth rides and Zest-Os. Yay for Zestos! Read the rest of this entry »
I hate summer
Posted by Rio S.
It’s 2 AM and I can’t sleep. It’s too damned hot, even with all my windows thrown open and with the fan going full blast. I hate summer. It’s only March 4 today. Summer should only be rearing its scalding head at me, but it looks like it decided to put in an early appearance this year.
I hate summer mainly because of two things: the blasted heat that seems to like working hand in hand with my insomnia like tonight; and the blasted warm air that causes my lungs to go on strike. (Let me tell you something, asthma is more of a bitch during summer; some nights I have to sleep sitting up on a baking night so I don’t wake up at 4 in the morning gasping for air.)
Back when I didn’t have asthma (I got asthma only three or four years back), I rather liked summer. I didn’t do so bad in school and never had to spend a day in summer class. I used to spend my summers in Bulacan where there were always rivers to swim in, fields to fly kites in, and ponds to catch fish from. Back then, I didn’t hate the heat so much; I left it to the adults to worry about how sweaty I got or how dark my skin became.
See what summer has gotten me doing now? It has got me remembering. Read the rest of this entry »
Yuppie Experience: The exam
Posted by Rio S.
A few months back, I realized that if I didn’t get an office job soon, I was going to starve (that and run out of money to buy cigarettes and pay for my internet – my priorities, go figure). Off I went to find somebody willing to pay me a steady income and maybe, just maybe, I’ll be able to freelance during hours when I’m supposed to sleep. So anyway, during my search of employment I was invited to a PR agency to take their writers’ exam.
I like taking exams, what I hate is filling out application forms as they keep asking during what years I was in high school (high school has been properly repressed, dammit). On the same day Rica had her interview and subsequent run in with the HR person, I had to drag my ass off bed to Makati. Mercifully, I was scheduled for a 2pm appointment as it usually takes two hours and two mugs of coffee to wake my brain up.
I get to their office; after a little wait, I was presented with the questionnaire and an answer sheet. The HR person explains the test to me and to the other girl taking the exam, then he leaves the room. I’m sure he wasn’t worried we’d copy off each other, because the test was – tadaaaah! – a creative marathon. Read the rest of this entry »
Yuppie Experience: Recovering from Epic Failure
Posted by Rio S.
Face it, you’re screwed. Your presentation (for the company’s biggest client, no less) was torn to smithereens; your report-slash-plan (that was supposed to be your company’s panacea to survive the recession) was a Hindenburg. Everything was peachy for a while and a split second later, everything’s ablaze and everybody’s running for the exits. You’ve kissed your raise – which was due three months ago – goodbye. Or if you’re a freelance writer like myself, your article was flamed to hell and back. Get my drift?
After failure of epic proportions, what’s the next step?
Take it with grace. Do not go into the light – at least, not just yet. You still have a job, unless of course the plodding creature that is your boss fired your ass on the spot. And no, keep that pointer finger down, looking for a scapegoat is not only cowardly; it’s also a vile, vile practice done by people with no backbones (i.e. single celled organisms like amoeba and your ex-boyfriend). Read the rest of this entry »
Yuppie Experience: The interview
The interview
Posted by Rica
I have always been vexed by job interviews. I love going to interviews so much that I’d rather the cosmos make up some weird event where I’ll end up with a really bad back strain so I won’t have to go. But the cosmos, she’s not that generous. So I go. Go with the flow, drown, and then die. I so love job interviews.
This one particular interview with one of the biggest wireless telecom companies (just guess, you have a 50-50 chance of getting it wrong) I went to had me wishing Friday wouldn’t come. My interview was on a Friday, at 10 in the morning. If Ms. Cosmos couldn’t give me a back strain that day (or a concussion), at least she allowed me to become someone else on Friday. Read the rest of this entry »
I Am
Posted by Rica
I am the Egyptian goddess Mout.
I am the voice inside my own head.
I am the prank caller you want to kill.
I am luuurve.
I am the smoke that floats above your lips.
I am the eyes that will ogle you when you feel alone.
I am the one you need.
I will be the person to despise you.
I am the woman sitting on your left shoulder.
I am bored.
I just want to get this over with.
Hate me.
Because I am.
Nakawala sa kural
Posted by Rem
Sa paningin ko, hindi na natuturing na balita ang trapik sa mga tila-malalawak na kalsada ng Kamaynilaan. Sabi nga ni Kuya Jov, ang paborito kong takatak boy sa Quezon Avenue, mas matakot ka pag hindi trapik, ibig sabihin may masamang nangyayari o kaya katapusan na ng mundo. Tulad ng madaming tao, hindi ko na siguro mabibilang kung ilang beses nakong nahuli sa trabaho o eskwela dahil nagkabuhol-buhol ang lahat ng bagay na may gulong – kotse, taxi, jeep, bus, trak, motorsiklo, bike at wheelchair – sa (ilagay ang pangalan ng kalsada). Nag-iiba lang ang lugar, pero pareho-pareho parin ang dahilan.
Ngunit isang gabi sa C-5, nagbago ang isip ko tungkol sa trapik – newsworthy pa din naman pala ito kahit papano. Linggo ng gabi noon, kagagaling lang naming Laguna at panatag ang loob ng lahat na maluluwag na kalsada ang sasalubong sa amin pagkalabas ng South Luzon Expressway. Sampung minuto matapos makalaya sa SLEX, dagat ng pulang ilaw ang sumalubong samin. Trapik, hindi gumagalaw ang mga sasakyan, yung ibang motorista nagpatay na nga ng makina. “Puñeta trapik, may pasok pako bukas!” bulalas ni Nicky na nakaupo sa passenger seat. Read the rest of this entry »
Willingly suspending disbelief
Posted by Rio S.
While trolling the internet, I found a very interesting idea. In one of her movie reviews, Jessica Zafra said, “… true love is itself a suspension of disbelief.” Enter into the equation Valentine’s season and my apparent ineptitude for relationships and you’ve got an interesting topic – I don’t know where to start.
(The willing suspension of disbelief is basically a theory describing people’s “relationship to art”. You know how when watching a zombie flick, you accept the universe of the movie where an evil super corporation creates a virus that turns the infected into zombies that won’t die unless you shoot them in the head? That’s the willing suspension of disbelief. The theory is, people accept the unbelievable to appreciate the art.)
I’m smart, funny (or at least, I think I am), capable of social interaction, and I obviously don’t have problems with my self esteem. If I was a guy, theoretically, women would want to have children with me. But seeing as I’m a girl, I scare off most guys like the words “commitment” and “fidelity” do. (Most days, I don’t really mind being single, but then Valentine’s Day rolls along and boom! I’m miserable.) Read the rest of this entry »
