Musing randomly

On MRT: Why can't it be logistically efficient when this can be done with sound planning?

On boyfriend-girlfriend exchanging SIM cards: WHY??!!! What for?! I neither find it cute nor sweet. It's annoying.

On blue lady guards: Their incredible patience over impatient, non-abiding customers always amazes me. I wish I have the same.

On gadgets I know I will never own for practical, economic and sensible reasons: But then again, I get to hold them without really acquiring. Talk about perks of being a UP librarian surrounded with kids not knowing the full potential of their educational "toys". Hah!

On pretty girls: How come they still look pretty when they're all sweaty and dirty? It's unfair.

On honor students: Getting a medal for academic excellence doesn't mean one is brilliant. It doesn't always follow, I figured out lately.

Not so perfect timing

I was busy vacuuming our really soiled floor Sunday last week, when Vincent drew my attention over to one short article in the morning newspaper. It says, Switzerland joins Schengen visa protocol.

Too eager to know the details, I snatched the paper from him -- while he just sat there grinning sheepishly, I wondered why so. But after reading the first line that goes: "Starting on November 1, 2008, Switzerland will apply Schengen rules in the issuance of visas...” my enthusiasm died away as quickly as it soared seconds before. Starting November 1 pa. Great. Just great.

For the longest time, Switzerland isolated itself from the rest of the EU member states (literally and principle-wise -- see map HERE), but has integrated some cooperative policies (primarily, trade) to maintain its ties with them. But with this new development in the Schengen agreement, Switzerland can now issue Schengen visa to enable one to move freely across borders into other Schengen-member countries. One doesn't need to secure two separate visas (Swiss and Schengen) anymore.

As if to add insult to injury (although of course I knew for a fact that it was not intended that way), the article stressed on: "But visas issued before November 1, 2008, will be valid only for entry into Switzerland.", in case a few concerned readers still didn't get the point. Fine! I get it alright.

I just wish they broadcasted this bitter-sweet news much later, say, in September, if only to cushion the blow a bit.

Lost for words

I guess this will be my best friend from now on 'til before this year ends, unless I take French lessons this summer, which I am seriously considering. Or else, it's doomsday for me. I just wish UP's still open for the next quarter of French crash course.

On equal footing

They say that no matter what your social status is, everyone smells equal in the toilet.

This thought was floating in my head last week while I was waiting in line at the NSO. Ingliserang sosyal ka man o pobreng matandang ale (whether you are an English-speaking lass or a poor old miss), it doesn't matter. It will never matter when you're at this government office's mercy. It felt like sweet revenge to the rich and self-important, as I watched a lady in oversized shades with hair highlights demand from the blue guard that she be served ahead of others because she's been there since morning, to which the guard nonchalantly replied, "Hintayin nyo na lang po na tawagin ang number nyo (just wait until your number is called)". This obviously pissed the porcelain skin off of her, but just like the rest of us, she had to sit down and wait. I can just imagine how much arrogance she had to swallow after making a scene in front of about a hundred of us patiently waiting for our turn.

At least for once I get to level off with everybody. Never mind the sweat and hassle.

2007 was something big; 2008 is bigger

I haven't been posting anything up here since September last year. I didn't notice that until I checked up on this today. I never failed updating another blog actually, and that gave me the impression that I am updating this one at the same time all along.

Whoa! There's a lot of catching up to do! Honestly, all I can remember is that I've been very busy during the last quarter. Save for one homecoming I had with my Dad in Iloilo last November.

Cake looks fake but it sure is real!

Since I started blogging in 2005, I usually say something about what happened to me in a nutshell at the end of every year and what I look forward to in the New Year. It's the 7th day of the brand new year and usually by this time, as in the previous new years, I've already got loads of recapping stories to tell. Yet, of all the remarkable events, I can only think of my wedding day that happened later in the year. Yep, I'M MARRIED! I'm Mrs. Christine Manglal-lan Abrigo now. It keeps on replaying in my mind ;-) Gano'n pala 'yon (that's how it is). I've been keeping quiet about it for quite sometime. I'm not really a spotlight fan; I never wanted to be the center of attention. But whether I get the attention or not, I couldn't care less now. I'M SO HAPPY!

2007 was a challenging year yet again, a trying time for my family. I guess it was even tougher than 2006. And again, I am grateful to God that we were able to overcome as a family. Where there are challenges, there is also an overflow of blessings. I look at my nephew now and realized how much he's grown (he can chase me with his tubby feet!) last year, when in 2006, I was a struggling “Tita-Yaya”. It's so 2 years ago now...I looked at the stove this morning (and oh, how I panicked cooking eggs and hotdogs for breakfast, I used up two frying pans!), gave Vincent a guilty I-messed-up-this-early-Good Morning! smile, and realized that he's my husband now. Big challenges, big changes, all the more that I am grateful realizing how blessed I am with so much.

There is definitely a lot to look forward to this new year.

They are going to Amsterdam!

I was surfing through Google videos when I discovered this new Harold and Kumar teaser. If you've seen and enjoyed Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, you'll probably be equally excited as I am to see the next installment. First was the quest for hamburgers. This time around, they found themselves in deep trouble en route to Amsterdam.

I saw the first movie over cable TV two years ago. That one is a cracker! Vincent and I were laughing in tears! Hahaha. We bought a VCD copy (cheaper than the orig DVDs) when we happen to see one in a video store and made some of our friends watch it. These friends found it seemingly odd that I enjoyed this genre -- rated R: drugs and sex comedy -- not my kind of movie, they think. Of course there were some scenes and languages that were taken out when it was shown on cable. But putting these aside, it was to me, a nutter. Mababaw pero masaya!

For those of you who don't know Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) yet, you can read about them HERE.

Losing my voice and my voice neglected

Everyday on my way to work, an officemate or two would've been on an Ikot jeepney as usual, long before I hail whichever reaches my stop first. One morning late last week, I rode with two officemates and squeezed in right next to one of them. After silently beaming at them, I called out to the driver to hand over him my fare. The surprise jumped in when the words "Bayad po!" which I belted out in full hearing, came out not from me but originated from my officemate's vocal chords. Apparently, what materialized from my mouth was just a husky, dead air with no words. I totally forgot about my bad sore throat. Thanks to her, I didn't have to worry about calling out "Para po!" to the driver because she caught the words across for me.

With storms filing in like August is the only month there is that spells rain, classes were suspended thrice in a row last week. And because I belong to a working class which is just being "dutiful" sometimes, I still have to go to work. In truth, I don't really mind much about this. Not until yesterday came along.

My voice is still husky today. Although not as clear as would my normal tone and volume, it is audible now and I know I will soon have its normalcy back. The only important thing now is that I can be heard, understood and listened to. The thing that struck me yesterday however, was the dawning reality that no matter how far -- even booming -- your voice could go, if you are talking to the hand, you are talking to the hand. No matter how frustrated you are, or how passionate you are with whatever advocacy you support, the hand will not understand. If the owner of the hand refuses to listen, you are likely to face a battle half-lost. And if the owner of the hand pretends to listen and chooses not to understand, your war is over.

These are the very moments when, though they seldom come, I can really feel its thundering blow. Moments when small voices are neglected. These are the moments that make me think twice about my chosen career. These also compel me to evaluate how far my loyalty would go. I have always ingrained in me that I am not going to be a stunted professional. Librarians cry foul whenever they are only regarded as clerks -- "glorified", as I humbly quote my friend, Richard. The society is not to blame for this because this is what it sees. This perception will only change, slowly as it may be but still it will, if we will instill change. I know of some colleagues who have sailed into pursuing a bold cause if only to let the world see that Filipino librarians can actually think. I for one, though not a born writer, am honing my writing skills in order to stir my head to think and then put my thoughts down into words.

That's the good news: that we can always break away, make a difference, and be librarians all at the same time. What is sad and disappointing about this however, are the times when you are so fired up into making a significant contribution in the society and yet you are strapped down in a tight straitjacket that spells the lack of support from those you believe will be the first ones to pull you up and cheer you on. If the strapping will not be let go, there really is no difference between that and those horses in the streets of Manila drawing the calesa. Their only purpose is to run where their powerful kutseros whip them to go because they can't do anything else. They're tied to their calesas with blinders and head onto only one destination.

Sigh...Thank goodness for this blog. I can now start working again.

Carlos is learning to obey

I got home one night and went straight on to dispense a glass of cold water from the fridge, when I saw a door knob hanger (except that it was not exactly a knob, but an ordinary door handle) dangling in my cousin's bedroom. The header says, "Obedience - doing what I am told to do". Further down it says, "Carlos is learning to obey."

Carlos is Kaloy, my nephew by a first cousin. I published an entry about him twice before; he's 6 years old now and have been a little bit exposed to the outside world. We seldom play cars now, as he has learned to cross over our fence of bushes and congregate with his playmates next door. He's learned how to bargain Playstation (oh yes, game consoles at 6! I know, what the...) times with his mother and father. And yes, he is having a hard time learning to obey now.

When I saw that door hanger, I must admit I too was convicted by the word Obedience. Patience, trust and obedience are three things I am not so good at. I don't personally believe that you cannot teach old dogs new -- sometimes even the old -- tricks, though. In my line of work for instance, I've witnessed how some traditional librarians I know of, technophobes they may be, have been continually struggling to learn new trends to be more professionally effective every single day.

What's my point then? If I want to be obedient, I have to learn and imbibe obedience. If I choose to be patient, I have to learn and imbibe the virtue of patience. If I need to be more trustworthy, I have to be trusting.

I have to learn everyday.

Nanny McME II

I took up my new role as "Tita Yaya" a couple of months back, which indeed proved to be a doubly stressful time for me. My usual routines gone berserk, my luxury being a good night's sleep.

It has been 7 months since then. Although mother and son aren't staying with me anymore, yes, I am still a full-fledged Tita Yaya. I'm just so amazed at how we (my sister and I) were able to cope up with having a baby around. Things have pretty much gone back to normal, the only difference is that we have this adorable little cookie...

...who brightens up our everyday. It's just so awesome!

Big girls don't cry

Apparently, becoming a big girl could be difficult in other matters in some other days.

Green candy

No offense meant to some, but THIS I can never suck nor swallow. Amazingly, I heard from an officemate that it's colored green on the inside (hah!). That doesn't matter much to me, though I am really impressed at how far a person could go just to strike a chord. As if.

Power princesses!

CREDITS: Shrek.com

Ooooh, you better watch out for these kicking ladies!

Going nuts

A short trip out of the metropolis offered me a glimpse of the provincial life once more, which of course I always appreciate. The thing is there's always room to get to learn a thing or two about the simple ways of life -- the back-to-basics. To begin with, there were just the natural elements available all around for survival, long before push-buttoned and mobile technology ever invaded the urban homes. It's only sad that majority of today's "modern" people (including me) either at the very least lack the curiosity of things (how do they do it?) or are simply put: indifferent, as long as the microwave oven in the kitchen works.

This brings me to the main subject of this post (so much for that melodramatic intro). I didn't know how cashew nuts (kasuy) are cooked. Well, I do know that they're being cooked (winks) but I haven't seen how it's done and how a cashew tree looks like until last week. So when I finally got the chance to witness it, I didn't pass it up and documented everything (for the record).

Step 1: Roast cashew nuts on wood fire, atop a yero (galvanized iron sheet).	Step 2: Let it come to flames (oo, susunugin!). Careful not to go too near the fire as cashew oil squirts in all directions.
Step 3: Remove from fire and let the nuts (and the yero) stand to cool for a while.	Step 4: Time to begin the pukpukan session. Peel off the nuts’ burnt shells by lightly pounding it rock-on-rock. The idea is to shell them all off without cracking the bean shape apart.

I would complain at how much I find one pack of kasuy expensive. Supposing that one small pack went through the traditional process, such as the one above, there it leaves me with no more room for kiosk tantrums.

The invisible world made visible

My current fascination nowadays is looking into Lennart Nilsson's works of microphotography. Well, he has always been around the field all this time. It's just that it was only last week when I got to discover him actually. And before his book, Life (c2006), journeys its way back to our book dealer's warehouse (we only get our hands on reference books for our department), I got to examine it page by page and was awestricken photo after photo.

The thing about his work is that he is able to make us see and understand the universe invisible to us: the anatomy of life. He even has one photo of a toothbrush scraping away at bacteria in the mouth (iiiiwww!!!). But most of his earlier masterpieces deal with the evolution of life in the womb, which are flat-out awesome! Like this one:

A successful sperm

Awesome.

Patayin sa sindak si Ligaya(katulong ang mga Spirit Warriors)

I'm inventorying around 400+ (and 500 more to come, I was told! wah!) moldy but original video titles donated by a very benevolent faculty member. So far of this number, I've inspected just close to a hundred Tagalog titles and man, the titles were already driving me insane! I was chortling the whole time!

And then I found a way to amuse myself with what I'm doing (listing down 900+ titles could get you bored, until it grows on you). I figured, jeez, I can actually come up with my own version of teleserye just by combining and playing with these titles. This string I came up with a group of action film titles. Here's a sample (titles in boldface):

Ang sabi ni Warat, "Bibigay ka ba?"
Sagot naman ng Soltera, "Oops, teka lang…diskarte ko 'to!"
Nagalit ang Largado. Banta nya, "Ibabalik kita sa pinanggalingan mo!"
Pero ang akala ni Resbak, para sa kanya ang banta kaya ang kabig nya, "Babalikan kita!"
Pagtalikod nya, liningun nya pa si Resbak ng isang beses sabay sabing, "Uubusin ko ang bala sa katawan mo!"


Here are other titles that made me go tsk...tsk... (most is pito-pito, i.e., shot in less than a month, sometimes even in just one week!):

Babae sa bubungang lata (my comment: ano ba?!!!!)
Balahibong pusa
Gamugamong dagat
Gawin sa dilim
Hubad sa ilalim ng buwan
Malikot ang agos
Sa iyong haplos
Tuhog
Uhaw na hayop


Wah!

It's just relieving to know that Filipino film buffs have become intelligent moviegoers, most homegrown producers have begged off of cheap movie manufacture, and directors have likewise learned how to remaster their craft and tapped potential talents over time.

Just because

"Scarcely had I passed them
when I found the one my heart loves.
I held him and would not let him go
till I had brought him to my mother's house."

~ Song of songs 3:4 (NIV)

E

The gold-encrusted E is engraved majestically in my forehead; it sweeps me off of my feet as would a magic carpet.

All colors are E.

Nanny McME

Lately, I spell luxury: S-L-E-E-P.


By-the-book nanny

I was "prematurely" introduced to full-swing nanny hood about two weeks ago, when my sister finally arrived home with her little bundle of joy (draining all her energies for 9 hours full of labor pains, ending with a slice in the belly, when all labor inducing drugs seemed to immune her). I couldn't exactly say I've prepared for his coming well enough, yet I did ready myself just the same. As they say, you'll never know how it is like until you get to spend your first day (or night) with the baby.

She being a first-time mother, my sister is grappling with parenthood big time. I being her big sister, had to most of the time pretend that I'm not even half as stressed as she is with baby-sitting; and avoid ending up baby-sitting both mother and son. I may deceivingly look like a mom with my cellulites screaming all over me (shamefully), but frankly, I am totally clueless with baby care. We needed truckloads of parenting inputs to grab.


We're quite fortunate to have relatives -- traditional and modern, to rescue two helpless fledglings. My cousins wasted no time at all in delivering their hand-me-downs to my sister. However, what I consider the best among these hand-me-downs is this hardbound handbook of pregnancy and baby care by Good Housekeeping (GH). One cousin lent it to my sister when she was still in her first trimester of pregnancy, and it has been really helpful ever since. We now turn to it as our baby bible. Although what we have is the first edition (I searched away Amazon.com and discovered that GH has come up with a paperback edition, which makes it literally handy), the principles of nurturing are of course, universal. I especially found the color photographs most practical. I'd secretly consult this book whenever my sister is occupied with other things (I had to pretend I'm no dummy, remember?).


"Tita-Yaya"

Half-way through my very disheartening (almost 3-foot high) laundry, I paused for a minute and yelled at my cousin (who was at the bathroom at that time), "Waaahh!!! This is not me!!! I want my old me baaaaack!!!"

These two weeks saw major, MAJOR changes in my routines. I've been reporting late for work for 7 days straight to date (late, to mean 20-30 minutes late). I spend four hours at most for laundry chores - which my sister usually does for the two of us every single week. I no longer check the Internet for cable programs to look forward to in the evenings. I haven't come home late from the mall like I used to (although this is not a regular habit) as of yet. My business nowadays is to catch up on sleep while I can, master the 101 techniques of diaper-changing, help out on pinning pediatrician and vaccine appointments, cheer on Sherwyn (our baby!) as he feeds on his mommy's milk.

Wait up. I am the aunt, not the mother. But look at me. I overreact way more than Sherwyn's mom. How much more if it were my own baby? Push me to the door now and shoo me off.

Don't get me wrong. This is all new to me, yes, yet I do welcome these changes embracingly. I perceive it as my pre-parenting dry run. I now enjoy cuddling a newborn, whereas before I was really, really scared of cuddling a fragile baby. I still panic whenever I change his diapers (he might pee again when I'm still not done changing him), but maybe in a few weeks' time I'll do just fine.

Having to take care of this bundle could be so, so exhausting. And yet when I'm in the brink of complaining, he would smile with his eyes shut close and the weariness just magically goes away.

Acknowledging

One of the recurring characters in this blog has been my ordeal with graduate school. I promised myself lately that I won't keep my paper locked away too long in my procrastination chest anymore, as I did in the past. Well, roll the drums for me. After nearly 7 years, I now hold a Master of Library and Information Science degree. FINALLY!

I couldn't have done it all by myself, of course (sidebar: for my research, I developed a thesaurus on gender and sexual and reproductive health and rights for use of local NGO resource centers in Metro Manila). There were so many people to thank for and give credits to. This was my acknowledgment page (let me bore you for 3 minutes):

Being an esteemed member of the elite scatterbrained society, I consider this portion here the most challenging page I have ever written so far; even tougher than putting this thesaurus together and writing five chapters of this paper. This early, I am begging for pardon from those whose names could be unintentionally left out mentioning, but do not necessarily go unacknowledged. You know who you are and I am indebted to you all.

I thank my respondents for taking my research seriously and have made it all possible for me to get through graduate school: Dr. FLORENCE TADIAR and the STAFF of ISSA for this research opportunity; Ms. AIDA ARACAP of DOH Library; Mr. ROBERT ROMERO of NCRFW Resource Center; Mss. EMILYNE DE VERA and NOEMI BAYONETA-LEIS of HAIN Resource Center; Mss. GIGI FRANCISCO, SUSAN ALBAO, REMY GAMBOA and ANA DINGLASAN of WAGI; Ms. TEENA CAMPOS of WCC; Dr. CAROL SOBRITCHEA, Mss. DHANG SIOSON and ARDIS GONZALES of UPCWS; and Ms. LEONNIE DELA CRUZ of UPCSWCD Library. I also thank Ms. ROWENA O. ALVAREZ for sharing her expertise with me.

And to Binsent, for recommending these highly efficient people to me.

My sincerest appreciation goes out to my adviser, DEAN ROSALIE B. FADERON, for believing that I can write good stuff. I thank you for being my perpetual referee. I count myself blessed to have been mentored by you.

SIR ROD TARLIT, for putting invisible pressure on my shoulders. I thank you so much for that huge motivation for me to finish this paper.

And to Binsent, for the added push.

Mrs. AFRICA CASTILLO, for her hawk-like eyes. Thank you so much for reading my paper, never minding our geography. I am grateful for your time.

To the ILIS ADMIN STAFF, for not banging the phones and doors on me whenever I pay them "purposive" visits. Thank you so much.

Likewise, for Binsent's incredible, incredible patience.

The ILIS LIBRARY STAFF, for the extraordinary help for my extraordinary requests, maraming salamat po.

The late DEAN JOSEPHINE C. SISON, it was always refreshing to capture memories of your quips and smiles. Thank you for letting me experience all of those.

And to Binsent, for his occasional one-liners, sending me off to frantic laughter.

The VL.IR, for taking me to Europe and to my STIMULATE 4 professors and classmates, thank you. SAHDIA KHAN, the most patient program secretary there is, thank you for always keeping our lines burning.

PROF. ALAN HOPKINSON of Middlesex University (London), for his faith in the Filipino scholars.

Mrs. FLOR MALLARI, to me you are the perfect reference librarian. Your professionalism is worth emulating. I am humbled by your confidence in me. Thank you.

Mrs. SALVACION ARLANTE, you inspire me of your big dreams to revolutionize the field. Thank so much for allowing me to think out of the box.

I also thank Binsent for making sure that I not only excel in my career, but also in perfecting my sinigang na baboy.

Many thanks to the entire UPD MAINLIB PEOPLE: My fellow "athletes" at the stroke of 8 in the morning (hehehe); to my GENREF family, thank you so much. I have always been proud of our teamwork; to all my Ate at the ACQUISITIONS SECTION for keeping my stomach full; all my Kuya at the MEDIA SERVICES for keeping the Section up and running; the ladies of the L.O. -- ATE GILDA, ATE MYLENE, ATE VANGIE and ATE MARLENE, for the on-the-house peanut butter sandwiches; and ATE GAY, for her special treatment...Salamat sa inyong lahat.

To the "superninangs": DENISE, YANI, EMANG (gracias tia, for correcting my barok Spanish each time), ATE ELVIE, KLIT and GRACE T. Thanks to GENE and CHITO for accommodating the superninangs. I owe you people.

To ANDO, MARCKY, LEA, AL, and the rest of the PINOYS IN BELGIUM (PSB), thank you for the rice meals and the motherland feel. I also thank ALICIA and MARJ for our friendship made in Sunday flea markets.

Para mis dos mejores amigos del otro lado del mundo -- el Cubano ORLANDO y el Chileno MANUEL, mil gracias por haciendo mi vida en Europa una aventura cada dia. Si me iria por detras, lo hare todos otra vez con vosotros. Os echo de menos, ambos. I will see you two again.

And of course to Binsent, for putting up with all my ramblings. Thank you.

To RICHARD, for the friendship behind the CD collection.

To KRAM, for making me his Ate Christine.

The ABRIGO HOUSEHOLD, thank you for adopting me as one of your own. I thank your big brother Binsent for keeping the coffee jar packed to the brim for me.

My brothers and sisters at the METRO MANILA CHRISTIAN CHURCH (MMCC), for making me see and experience the love of God. You are all precious to me. My heart goes out to every single one of you.

LORNA, for her motherly instincts. You will always be engraved in my heart.

NIMFA and IRENE, we are now walking in the quarter life of our friendship. You are both amazing.

To my COUSINS and PAMANGKINS, I always look forward to our Sunday luncheons. You all make me smile.

To AUNT JAZ for being my surrogate mother.

PAPA, SHERYL and our little SHERWYN, you three inspire me to grow up everyday. I love you guys.

MAMA, I am invincible because of your still presence.

BINSENT. We repel yet we connect. You are so everywhere, everyday, every time. Thank you for being so everywhere, everyday, every time.

Above all, I am overflowing with gratefulness to my FATHER GOD in heaven. No amount of words can ever begin to describe Your perfection. You are awesome. I bring You back all the glory. I love you.

Moonlighting

I imagine fewer sunny days, golden-yellow leaves a falling, perfect hot cups of coffee, and Paris glowing in the night.

My eyes, my thoughts, my heart, they penetrate through the dividing mirror. Catch your aroma, I could. I long to experience the warmth of your biting cold.

Let me, would you please.

Yet again.

Yet again.