You don't know what true sadness is until you experience the cheesy airport scene. Mine was on a gloomier than usual January day at London Heathrow. I was leaving, for good, for now. The new year has just set in, and finally I was getting out. Off to America I was. Off to New York to a new job, a new environment, a new life. When I got the email from the United Nations informing me that I bagged the job, I was ecstatic! But on the day I was actually leaving, there at the airport saying goodbye to the person I loved the most, I knew what true sadness was...and it ripped my heart apart.
The flight was to take 7 hours and 45 minutes. That gave me 7 hours and 45 minutes to ponder our parting words. "We can make it work," we assured ourselves, "that's what cellphones and laptops are for."
(to be continued kasi inaantok nako...)
Monday, January 4, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
My most priced possession...
...digitally remastered in stereo for superior sound quality.
All albums feature deluxe packaging with expanded booklets including rare photographs and notes.
It also has Past Masters, a 2-CD collection of non-album singles and EP tracks.
It also has the Mini Documentaries DVD, featuring 13 mini documentaries about the making of each album in the words of The Beatles themselves and George Martin, containing rare footage and previously unheard dialogue.
<3 <3 <3
Friday, January 1, 2010
Resolutions...
1. Reflect. Think. Write it down if it helps. They say over-thinking leads to paralysis. But not thinking at all just keeps you stuck in limbo, which I think is worse. In a state of paralysis, at least you have your thoughts. In limbo, you have nothing, and you're floating in nothingness.
2. Sleep by 1 am at the latest to be able to wake up by 7 am at the latest to be able to be really productive. Remember that noon marks the day half done, and so must your tasks be.
3. There will always be grey areas, but that doesn't permit you to not pick a stand. And don't take so long to choose. Usually, the first instinct is the better choice.
4. Pay for your own ticket. Avoid asking favours. This will leave you with dignity and less strings attached.
5. Don't just meet expectations. Exceed them. This is the true mark of excellence.
6. Do not bite more than you can chew. Manage your resources and live within your means. Credit cards are one of the world's oldest and most successful scams. So just use them for emergencies and fixed overheads.
7. What other people think about you does not matter. What you think about yourself does.
8. Right and wrong are the easiest things to distinguish. Do the right and do the good to the best of your abilities always.
9. Discipline is one of the most difficult values to maintain. But strive for it (gym leche gym. 3x a week at least. you gained during the holidays all that youve lost in 4 months. crap)
10. In case of doubt, don't.
2. Sleep by 1 am at the latest to be able to wake up by 7 am at the latest to be able to be really productive. Remember that noon marks the day half done, and so must your tasks be.
3. There will always be grey areas, but that doesn't permit you to not pick a stand. And don't take so long to choose. Usually, the first instinct is the better choice.
4. Pay for your own ticket. Avoid asking favours. This will leave you with dignity and less strings attached.
5. Don't just meet expectations. Exceed them. This is the true mark of excellence.
6. Do not bite more than you can chew. Manage your resources and live within your means. Credit cards are one of the world's oldest and most successful scams. So just use them for emergencies and fixed overheads.
7. What other people think about you does not matter. What you think about yourself does.
8. Right and wrong are the easiest things to distinguish. Do the right and do the good to the best of your abilities always.
9. Discipline is one of the most difficult values to maintain. But strive for it (gym leche gym. 3x a week at least. you gained during the holidays all that youve lost in 4 months. crap)
10. In case of doubt, don't.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Happy New Year take 2 (slightly better than the crap i wrote last night)
"Give me time," says the traveller, "and I shall see the world with my own eyes."
"Give me time," cries the author, "and we shall make masterpieces that will be talked about for years on end."
"Give me time," begs the student, "and I shall learn and master my field of study."
"Give me time," pleads the ambitious, "and I shall acquire wealth! Position! Power!"
But ironically, time is the one thing we waste with reckless imprudence thinking we are rich with an unending supply; and then once out of it, we seek it and beg for it like a desperate beggar. Unfortunately for us, time is an efficient thief who comes quickly, leaves quickly, and once gone, never returns. He is also a deceptive merchant to takes our words and actions, granting us no opportunity for redress, and leaving us with nothing but regret.
That is why we must make each moment count by milking it for all its worth so there is nothing to regret. That is the only way we can have an upper hand over time.
And so the traveller must go and see the world while he can. The author must write, the student must learn, and the ambitious must acquire everything...while they still can.
I hope to do all that.
Hello, 2010!
"Give me time," cries the author, "and we shall make masterpieces that will be talked about for years on end."
"Give me time," begs the student, "and I shall learn and master my field of study."
"Give me time," pleads the ambitious, "and I shall acquire wealth! Position! Power!"
But ironically, time is the one thing we waste with reckless imprudence thinking we are rich with an unending supply; and then once out of it, we seek it and beg for it like a desperate beggar. Unfortunately for us, time is an efficient thief who comes quickly, leaves quickly, and once gone, never returns. He is also a deceptive merchant to takes our words and actions, granting us no opportunity for redress, and leaving us with nothing but regret.
That is why we must make each moment count by milking it for all its worth so there is nothing to regret. That is the only way we can have an upper hand over time.
And so the traveller must go and see the world while he can. The author must write, the student must learn, and the ambitious must acquire everything...while they still can.
I hope to do all that.
Hello, 2010!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
The world for the taking kuno. But which path do I tread?
Senate | Financial stability... | |
Cool events... Meet lots of people... | Not really what I want to do in the long run... | |
for merchandising | Lower pay but free travel... Use management skills too... | Uncertain future... |
Thursday, December 3, 2009
The year that was (well, the last 11 months)
January
The year begins with celebration and fulfilment: a wedding, an outing, a new car.
February
The month of farewells and promises.
March
On the first week, they leave (a loved friend and a lover). And indefinitely they'll be gone: months, years? Who knows?
On the last week, we leave (the girlfriend of the friend and I). But only for a definite time: a 3-day weekend in Baguio.
April
We break up.
May
My birthday.
June
Hop on a plane and fly to the UK.
Get on a train and go cross country.
Explore, immerse, intoxicate.
July
Reggie the red car crashed.
August
Fitness, college basketball, and the beach while it's raining.
September
Sofitel, Art, and the Great Flood.
October
Boracay.
November
The Land of the Rising Sun.
December
At the threshold of a myriad opportunities and options
2009 IS ALMOST OVER. WOOOO!!!! CAN'T WAIT FOR 2010!!!
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Because
I love being on cars, buses, trains, and air planes. I love the feeling of being mobile, of being in translation; the feeling of going somewhere, anywhere . It doesn't matter if there exists a language barrier, or if the place is slightly dangerous - so long as it is new to me. I love going on adventures, and experiencing things first hand - for pictures can never satiate this lust. I love the feeling of immersion, of being part of something completely alien to me - even if it is only temporary. I love seeing and learning how different cultures do the most normal things.
Isn't it amusing how Americans have a great penchant for small talk? Book store aisles, side walk benches, coffee shop lines...the American next to you would ask how you're doing or talk to you about the weather. The Brits, on the other hand, are less friendly but are infinitely more polite. Even when they're pissed off, they're polite. Even their signs are polite! Remain on your lane vis-a-vis No swerving. Dispose cigarette behinds in rubbish bins vis-a-vis Don't litter.
Germany is beer land. France is wine land. Scotland is whisky land; whisky at 9 am, unbelievable!
People ask me why I went to the top of the Empire State in New York, or the Hollywood sign in LA, or the Eiffel in Paris (may Starbucks dun, winner), or Petrin Hill in Prague (yep the one in the Kundera book), or Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh.
They ask me what the big deal about Anne Frank's house in Amsterdam is (super depressing pota), or what's so cool about the United Nations (hellooo watch The Interpreter...super astig), or what the hell did I go to Liverpool for (BEATLES!)
Isn't it absurd to line up for four hours at the Louvre just to see one painting (the Mona Lisa), or to venture to Versailles just to see if the Hall of Mirrors in King Louie's palace that my history prof was talking about is real and really spectacular? (it is).
I've been asked why I 'wasted' so much money watching Les Miserables and Jersey Boys in London, or the Phantom of the Opera and Mamma Mia in New York.
Why? And I answer, "Because."
I wish I was a good writer who could describe with flowery words all these wonderful places; places with years and years and years of history, places of cultures lost; places where great heroes lived and died; places that inspired novelists and poets and painters; places where these renowned novelists, poets, and painters actually made their masterpieces; places where the masterpieces are displayed and preserved; places we only read of or are only told of. I cannot even think of a single word to describe the feeling of actually being able to go. So for the lack of better term, I'll just say it's surreal.
Isn't it amusing how Americans have a great penchant for small talk? Book store aisles, side walk benches, coffee shop lines...the American next to you would ask how you're doing or talk to you about the weather. The Brits, on the other hand, are less friendly but are infinitely more polite. Even when they're pissed off, they're polite. Even their signs are polite! Remain on your lane vis-a-vis No swerving. Dispose cigarette behinds in rubbish bins vis-a-vis Don't litter.
Germany is beer land. France is wine land. Scotland is whisky land; whisky at 9 am, unbelievable!
People ask me why I went to the top of the Empire State in New York, or the Hollywood sign in LA, or the Eiffel in Paris (may Starbucks dun, winner), or Petrin Hill in Prague (yep the one in the Kundera book), or Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh.
They ask me what the big deal about Anne Frank's house in Amsterdam is (super depressing pota), or what's so cool about the United Nations (hellooo watch The Interpreter...super astig), or what the hell did I go to Liverpool for (BEATLES!)
Isn't it absurd to line up for four hours at the Louvre just to see one painting (the Mona Lisa), or to venture to Versailles just to see if the Hall of Mirrors in King Louie's palace that my history prof was talking about is real and really spectacular? (it is).
I've been asked why I 'wasted' so much money watching Les Miserables and Jersey Boys in London, or the Phantom of the Opera and Mamma Mia in New York.
Why? And I answer, "Because."
I wish I was a good writer who could describe with flowery words all these wonderful places; places with years and years and years of history, places of cultures lost; places where great heroes lived and died; places that inspired novelists and poets and painters; places where these renowned novelists, poets, and painters actually made their masterpieces; places where the masterpieces are displayed and preserved; places we only read of or are only told of. I cannot even think of a single word to describe the feeling of actually being able to go. So for the lack of better term, I'll just say it's surreal.
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