The Arian Heresy

2011-12-29T00:45:00.001+08:00

Am suddenly sad, tired and sick. The low-grade anxiety over the work permit; leaving Bacolod, Pag-asa, Dasmariñas, Las Piñas; saying goodbye to friends and family; finishing up my thesis; packing my stuff has blossomed into a cough. It also has kicked into a higher gear of panic because I have to uproot myself in a couple of days and I have yet to book my flight because of the permit.

Oh well... nothing to do but to do what I need to do despite everything... need to breathe deeply for a couple of minutes... then back to work...

Before I go to sleep... last day... night in Heng Keng

2011-11-30T00:34:00.001+08:00

My phone's camera leaves a lot to be desired... but I like it's panoramic mode...

The 18something Heritage site...

Harbor City, Ocean Terminal

Harbor City, somewhere near lunch...

Red with flash...

Blue without flash...

At the base of the clock tower...

Hong Kong at night

Early Morning in Heng Keng

2011-11-29T11:16:00.001+08:00

It's day 3 here in Heng Keng and we've yet to leave the hotel. Day 2 left me pretty drained with all that walking. Disneyland was magical... it was my first time to go to a Disneyland...

Whilst wielding my old but reliable second hand Nokia e52 (in a city that may no longer no what physical non-querty keypads are for), I went around the area near our hotel here in Heng Keng. Here's what I saw...

Feeling panoramic...

Maganda ang early morning sun on the water...

Sayang ang panoramic shot with Bruce Lee... bukas uulitin ko.

Friday Magic Madness (Nov. 18, 2011)

2011-11-19T09:27:00.001+08:00

The view from how I spent my morning yesterday. A lonely passenger in the middle of the plane with three aircraft personnel huddled in front.

___________________________

I finally got a chance to see Mayon Volcano in person... although may a hundred kilometers away but still a good view. The shape of the volcano is certainly awe-inspiring.

___________________________

This was my flight route from 6:45 am to around 12:30pm

Back to Blogging...

2011-11-18T21:53:00.001+08:00

I've been meaning to this for quite some time... this shall serve as my first post after a long, long time.

Next post will hopefully be written very, very soon.

Ok? Ok.

The Week That Was... part 1

2010-03-13T17:25:00.000+08:00

Just wanted to write a short chronicle of the week that was...

I haven't been myself the last few days and I don't mean it in a I'm-acting-like-another-person-crazy-kind-of-way. It's just that things have started to get hectic.

It'll be nice to go back to this a year or so from now...

Monday, March 8

The week kicked off spectacularly... waking up at 2:45am just to be ready to leave the house to get to the airport by 3:55 so I could catch my 4:55 plane back to Bacolod. My vehicle reservation, due to the recent migration from sheets of paper to Excel worksheets, was electronically migrated from 6am to 6pm. Good thing Chef Friday was in the airport in a USLS van picking up the sommelier for ICA. They circled around the airport parking lot and turned around to pick me up and get me back to La Salle just in time for breakfast.

After breakfast, I had to prepare for my last class with 7C. I managed to conduct the class aerobically despite the sleep deficit. 7C was nice because I knew when I was doing well and when I wasn't. 10D was more a struggle... it was like reining in 40++ horses going in different directions.

It would have been nice to be a saint come 10am because I had to attend a board meeting for La Salle Victorias and conduct class with the horsey 10D. The distance from the board room to 10D is considerable. Rollerblades would've been the perfect accessory for such a situation.

The rest of the day was a blur since I was almost in a zombie-like state. I managed to log in some time on the exercise bike but that would prove to be the last time I could get on it for the whole week because the next day would be the beginning of the Grade 11 overnight Pre-grad retreats... 4 sections one after the other... 8-|

Random thoughts

2009-11-18T18:02:00.000+08:00

Warm Bacolod nights = mahirap matulog.
Unfortunately for me, I've never lived in a Brothers community that had airconditioned bedrooms. For the last few nights, I've kept my bedroom door open so that the cool air from the outside would come in. There has to be a better way of building our houses that'll keep us relatively cooler.

Cheering indeed is life.
I've been going around watching all the cheering practices here in the Integrated School. It's so interesting to see how cheering manages to bring about so much change in the way people behave. My cheering experience started in Grade 5... but let's not get into too much detail since our teachers foisted "Rambo Grade 5" as our theme... I'll talk about that some other time. But if you ask anyone from the Class of 93 to sing our Grade 5 theme song, I'm sure they'll be able to sing more than just a few lines. It was that "memorable". Hay. We've reached a point where nerves are frayed to their finest, thinnest shred and there are still a couple of practice days until the big day arrives. It'll be the first time I actually get to watch the whole contest so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that no one gets too frazzled and that no fights erupt among the different batches... Cheering has that effect on people.

Telling Stories...

2009-11-15T05:32:00.000+08:00

Br. Ceci was fond of telling stories. The stories he told were mostly about real people living real lives... messy, riddled with mistakes but still full of hope and humor. I made a promise to myself to make his mission mine... but I still have a long way to go and a lot more stories to collect. So while I do that... here's what I'll do first...

About two months ago, Mrs. Tina Jurado, an active parent in the IS Parents Association, met with me to ask if I could help them out in their story telling project. I said yes and yesterday, due to all sorts of prior engagements, amidst all the meetings and other requirements, I was in the grade school library at around 145pm for my first ever storytelling session.

It was a good first experience, I have to say, but there's still a lot of room for improvement. I could still stand a bit more loosening up... you have to unlearn years of trying to act correctly and properly in order to be able to produce all those strange sounds and facial expressions. Then there are the books that insist on using alliteration... Zeb the Zooming Zebra Zip Zip Zipping along the Zoo...

But I guess this is one way for me to pay it forward... not just for the stories that Ceci told us but also for all the stories my father and mother and aunt (Damai) read to me while I was younger and all the other wonderful stories many people in my life have shared with me.

Next Friday, I will return to the library... hopefully, armed with a good book full of fantastic colors, shapes and sounds...

A Most Excellent Wednesday

2009-11-11T17:43:00.000+08:00

I look forward to Wednesdays because I don't have to worry about my two Christian Living classes. Two less very major things to worry about. I can focus on trying to get work done in the Vocations Office. (However, that doesn't mean that my task check list for Wednesdays is tons lighter... the list is still daunting and anxiety-inducing.)

This Wednesday was particularly nice because it was back to the Institute of Culinary Arts - De La Salle after several weeks of absence. I dropped by lunchtime to check on the group that was preparing for their grand buffet but they were due to arrive later in the day pa. Though I didn't get to see them prepare I was treated to one of the best lunches I've ever had.

Rachel Ray (Oprah-funded and adrenalin-fueled hyper talk show host) started her TV career with a show that featured good tasting meals cooked in 30 minutes. I had one of the most satisfying pasta experiences in life and all it took to cook it was 3 minutes.

Ibang klase talaga ang powers ni Chef Richard. I realize that good pasta is a good way to remind people how wonderful life really is... then again, the same can be said about Choco Caramel Praline and white Toblerone and a really expensive magazine sold a P75 in Booksale...

We (names withheld) also had a nice conversation after lunch about how strange it was that we all found ourselves working in La Salle. Just like many of the CL teachers in the IS, La Salle was never part of our childhood ambitions. But even if it wasn't, we were led to La Salle found ourselves happily fulfilled... difficult jobs, yes but fulfilling nonetheless.

The ICA Midway Grand Buffet was the nice ending to this most filling and fulfilling day. After several months, the students of the morning class finally had a chance to show off their skills to their parents and friends. All in all, it was a good buffet... some things needed to be improved but I think they did pretty well.

So, thanks again, Chef Richard!

To blog... again...

2009-11-10T16:12:00.000+08:00

Expressing myself through words is one of my better talents. If you compare the way I put words together with the way I move, then my first statement would be more than correct. That's how underdeveloped my kinesthetic intelligence is.

Anyway, I haven't been blogging for quite some time and I'm still trying to work out why. But while I do, I guess it's best that I go back to sharing random thoughts with faceless people for the sake of, and I thank my batchmate, Br. Richie, for this term, self-care.

Throwing words into the great sea of information that is the internet can be therapeutic... as long as I am able to catch myself before my therapy starts impinging on other people's dignity and reputation. (That's the morality teacher in me speaking... by the way, I still am quite the rookie when it comes to teaching morality but that is a topic for another day.)

So I will make a pledge to write down a couple of words and send them across the universe. I promise to try to keep it positive although I already foresee a several less-than-positive entries... I will speak about the small miracles that come my way and the many happy accidents that aren't really accidental in hindsight. But I guess I will also have to write about sadness, being overwhelmed and feeling like a failure. I will write about my journey... the fumbling, the stumbling and all the grumbling included.

I will write to find my voice... to make it clearer and more confident. Never mind that I'm not always going to be correct or certain or that I will come across as smart, intelligent or witty... although that's always the goal. :)

Tonight, I begin anew... which is what is cool about being alive... you always have a chance to start over again.

Talaga naman...

2009-08-09T06:56:00.000+08:00

Meanwhile, as we were praying and mourning for Cory, our current president was doing this...

Br. Ceci

2009-06-21T20:49:00.000+08:00

I don't exactly remember when Br. Ceci came into my life. Sometime after Br. Felix, Br. James and Br. Bernie. [Hopefully, there will a batchmate from Zobel Class of 1993 who can help me out.] You see, we didn't really have too many Brothers growing up in Zobel but Felix and Ceci were OUR Brothers... they became the representatives of a congregation that we didn't really know a lot about. (The only other Brother that figures prominently in my early Zobel memories was Br. Rafe but I think that was because he landed in the football field in a helicopter and the whole school was lined up in the corridors waiting for him like rock band groupies complete with banners and streamers.)

Felix was the Brother of a young student in Zobel. Up until Grade 3 or 4, students would find themselves constantly drawn to his office because he had all sorts of cards and games. Yes, we'd all find ourselves in his office for our birthdays once a year but his office was the domain of the young grade school students.

Ceci was the Brother of the older Zobel students. I remember the girls of our batch going to Br. Ceci because, in him, they had found the person who could tell them about the ups and downs of teenage life. Ceci became the reliable older uncle for many a high school student in Zobel. After an initial outpouring of teenage angst, Ceci would take over and talk one through one's seemingly endless depression.

And boy, did Br. Ceci talk. His life was full of stories of so many different people in so many different places but they were stories that we could all relate to. He was a favorite resource person because he would pluck stories from his databank to suit any group or occasion. He'd talk about athletes, musicians, college students, former students, parents... and, little by little, you began to realize that all these people were, just like you, people he called his friends. And that was a large part of his magic, that he made you feel that you were now part of his world, part of his family and that somehow you would figure in one of his stories someday.

Several years ago, Br. Ceci discovered the magic of digital photography... a piece of modern magic that allowed him to speak in a very different way. If you go through his multiply site broceci.multiply.com, you will see how he found a very different medium to continue his mission of telling people's stories.

I have a hard time thinking of Br. Ceci as dead because I know that, right now, I'm not the only one dealing with this sudden physical separation... that in a special way, Ceci has not left us. We all carry him in our hearts and by we, I mean a whole galaxy of people linked together by the tapestry of stories woven by the great Br. Ceci.

Ceci (and Felix) were my Brothers as a student, my Brothers as an employee and alumnus of Zobel and they were my Brothers as a De La Salle Brother. Their influence in my life has been subtle but constant and I am only beginning to realize how profoundly affected I am by the way they touched the hearts of the people they were given to as blessings.

I often kid that my idol in the Brothers is Ceci because he's managed to dodge the thankless but necessary role as mainstream, hard-core administrator and because he once patrolled the corridors of a La Salle school on his bike (and in shorts) as principal. But, death has this sobering effect, has a way of making us confront things more urgently and I realize that Ceci really is one of my Brother idols... not only because of his free spirit but mainly because he really went out of his way to be with the students. He may not have been the apple of the eye of the more organized and the more serious but he was there for the students. He may have been in a hurry to leave because he had another place to go to but you knew that Ceci was a shared commodity and that his leaving was to fulfill a promise he had made to another Ceci friend; a promise that he made to you too.

One thing I regret is not having a written copy of all the stories that Br. Ceci kept in his head. We used to kid him about writing, about recording his stories and putting them together in a volume (or two or three). I wish we could put all the Ceci stories we have in our possession and try to put them together as a tribute to him.

It really is an end of an era. It is like losing Felix all over again; losing a piece of yourself. Generations upon generations of students from Zobel (and other La Salle schools) could rely upon the memory of having been touched by Brothers like Ceci and Felix. Now, the young have only our memories of these Brothers. And I think it is only but fitting that we keep their stories alive; that the succeeding generations of Lasallians will also know who these Brothers were and why they were so important in our lives.

There were some things that I didn't quite understand or like about Br. Ceci but they are quirks that can be easily overlooked... especially because he was my Brother and he didn't make it hard for me to love him as a Brother.

The last time I was with Ceci was in his car on the way to a big meeting in Green Hills last June 13. I was reeling from the effects of a really bad cough and I was struggling to listen to him talk about the tomorrow that was to be. He was discussing the next day's schedule with Mang Vic, his long time driver and sidekick. It was going to be a typical Ceci day with multiple engagements in many different places. A mass here, a game there, another game here, another meeting there. I think at the back of my head I was asking, "how long can he keep this pace up?"

I thought he could keep it up longer and I was looking forward to celebrating 100 years of Lasallian presence in the Philippines with Br. Ceci annotating the event... me listening to him point out the different personalities and events and giving a short side story about them with a perspective that could only be truly his. But sadly, he has moved on.

Part of me is sad. Sad for myself but I guess also very sad for the hundreds and thousands of people who are still trying to convince themselves that he is really isn't with us physically anymore.

But Ceci would not have wanted us to be sad for too long. If you know him as I know him and I know many of you do, you can probably picture Br. Ceci half-saying and half-laughing, "Wag na kayong umiyak, nandito lang naman ako."

So go to your nearest music store and look for his favorite Pinoy artists, Asin, Bayang Barrios, Joey Ayala, etc. Go out into the street and buy a balut or two, go to your grocery store and buy a bucketful of butong pakwan. It's okay to drink that sugar-filled glass of Coke. Wear a green shirt and shorts and hang a camera around your neck. Look for a handkerchief that will show people how much you love them or a pencil that will symbolize your life here on earth.

Spend time remembering, talking and laughing with the other Ceci friends of your generation. Talk about Ceci. Spread the good news that he is alive in our hearts and that we will keep on telling his stories and that he will never die.

Goodbye, Ceci. See you. Thank you, Bro.

2009-03-23T17:17:00.001+08:00

had an interesting day. Not quite sure how I feel about it but interesting nonetheless.

???

2009-03-23T16:07:00.000+08:00

Today was a particularly trying day.
(Not because of the Quiapo trip... it actually helped me get a grip on how I was feeling.)

I won't go into details but allow me to vent a bit and shout out to the universe my frustration... ... :-P ...
(There, I'm done... for now...)

I'm dealing with my current state of yuckiness far better that I have in the past. Metaphorically, before it would've been equivalent to a major migraine (the kind that send people on their backs, useless for days). Now, I'm still bothered but I think I can think my way through this.

Spent a bit of time in the Quiapo Church, asking God for help in dealing with this current state of emotional dis-ease.

I need a dose of Mitford.

2009-03-22T23:12:00.001+08:00

is back from LSGH. 1 down... DLSASMC (26), SJS-LS (27), USLS-IS (27), San Benildo-IS (28), DLSC (28), DLSJBC (30), DLSL (April 3) to go...

2009-03-22T13:10:00.001+08:00

will be making his way to LSGH... amidst the burning summer heat... will attend his first ceremony of the 2009 graduation season...

2009-03-21T20:11:00.001+08:00

just came home from Batulao after spending 1 1/2 days with the MOVE-EL peeps of DLSU-M... had a great time... tomorrow GH graduation...

2009-03-19T23:55:00.001+08:00

would like to thank Class 2009 of LSGH for helping him fulfill one of his greatest dreams in life... to be a graduation applause conductor.

2009-03-19T08:25:00.001+08:00

is saying goodbye to Lipa (temporarily). Will be in LSGH this afternoon, DLSZ this evening... Batulao, Batangas tomorrow.

2009-03-18T11:25:00.001+08:00

(still in Lipa) will be attending the aspirancy ceremony of 5 DLSL students. Amen. Let's pray for more Brother aspirants...

2009-03-17T10:11:00.001+08:00

(still in Lipa) is going crazy trying to finalize his travel schedule... last minute graduation notices are coming in... aaarrrrgghhh...

2009-03-16T20:43:00.001+08:00

is in Lipa... watching Aldo get dumped by Betty for Armando with Br. Richie... the sadness... the pain... the Betty...

2009-03-16T11:14:00.001+08:00

is still in Lipa. Refuses to budge until tomorrow morning. Rest muna. :)

2009-03-15T12:46:00.001+08:00

brought to a close "Sleepless Week 2009" with the DLSLipa IS Grad Ball and the 1st ever Purple Pupil Parade...

2009-03-14T17:42:00.001+08:00

is in Lipa... finally. Was in Dasma this morning with around 15 or so contacts and aspirants... DLSL-IS Grad Ball tonight.

2009-03-14T07:20:00.001+08:00

is awake (barely). Will take the jeep to Dasma from Zapote. Pray for me. :)

2009-03-13T18:21:00.001+08:00

is in the geelage. Going out to meet some of the Canlubang seniors.... party time. :)

2009-03-13T13:49:00.001+08:00

is leaving for Manila on the 340pm CebuPac flight. Will be with some of the Seniors of Canlubang tonight. Tomorrow, Seniors of Lipa.

2009-03-13T02:30:00.001+08:00

finished his last graveyard shift for the class of 2009!!!! Have to pack pa for my flight tomorrow to Manila... hay...

2009-03-13T00:34:00.001+08:00

is on his 5th day of being awake at this unholy hour... 11A is proving to be noisier than the rest... hay...

2009-03-12T01:10:00.001+08:00

has been awake at this time (1am-ish) since Sunday and may be awake this time until this coming Sun. Hindi naman ako call center employee.

2009-03-11T23:02:00.001+08:00

is not liking the new iPod shuffle too much. Too small. Too lose-able. But 4GB! Galing!

2009-03-11T19:35:00.001+08:00

came from Bahay Pag-asa, had mass in the Bros House, ate an early dinner and is ready for another sleepless night.

2009-03-11T12:49:00.001+08:00

"3 sections down. 2 to go. Medyo pasaway ang 11C. Am now going to Bahay Pag-asa."

2009-03-10T10:45:00.001+08:00

woke up @ 8. Had breakfast. Went around the IS & now my robe needs to get washed. Hand prints all over. Talked to 11D. 1/2 of Tues over.

2009-03-10T03:01:00.001+08:00

is ready to sleep (at 3am)... again. 2 down, 3 to more to go. Am accepting donations for my supply of Green Tea Lattes from Starbucks...

2009-03-09T21:14:00.001+08:00

bought 3in1 coffee and Mentos from Marby's. Will now take a nap. Will wake up around 11pm then will sleep at 3am. 11D naman tonight.

2009-03-09T09:30:00.001+08:00

finally slept at 3am. Woke up at 7. Did the morning IS rounds at 740. Had blood pressure checked (90/60). Dahil dun nag-breakfast agad...

2009-03-08T10:51:00.001+08:00

is back-olod!!!! :) One week... then off to Luzon... Visayas... Bacolod... then Mindanao... then beyond... pero Bacolod muna...

2009-03-08T06:23:00.001+08:00

is packing. Bacolod, here I come... 5 nights of non-stop Senior retreats... it's coffee time...

2009-03-08T01:05:00.001+08:00

had a great day. Went with Richie to Nazareth House in Batangas then went to LSGH for the grad ball... tomorrow Bacolod...

2009-03-06T06:19:00.001+08:00

"Today Taft and Lipa. Tomorrow Lipa and LSGH. Sunday to Friday, Bacolod."

2009-03-05T23:07:00.001+08:00

woke up at 520 to be in LSGH by 700 to be w the Seniors in their "last" morning ceremony/ went to Zobel/ now am in Dasma/ tom Taft & Lipa

2009-03-03T21:46:00.001+08:00

"To all of Iggy's friends in Metro Manila: Red Cross has run out of Type B+ blood. If you're Type B+, please go to the nearest Red Cross office."

2009-03-03T20:45:00.001+08:00

came from Canlubang... will sleep now... see you in Zobel...

2009-03-02T21:24:00.001+08:00

will sleep after a day of visiting classes in Canlubang. One more day in Canlubang tomorrow...

2009-03-01T21:58:00.001+08:00

is in Dasma. Canlubang tomorrow. Then a bit of DLSU-D, DLS-HSI and Zobel... will find time for DLSU-M and DLS-CSB...

2009-03-01T18:04:00.001+08:00

just came from UP Diliman. Met up with Bernard, Lorenz, Dennis, William and Sidney of DLSJBC. Am now in the geelage...

2009-02-28T20:29:00.001+08:00

is in Dasma with the aspirants and the live-inners... watching Slumdog Millionaire after a good dinner and an aspirancy ceremony.

2009-02-27T22:40:00.001+08:00

was able to teach all the 3rd year classes in Zobel and was able to 3 2nd year English Food Demo classes... sharap! :)

2009-02-26T22:12:00.001+08:00

taught 4 3rd year classes in Zobel today and gave a talk to 4 live-inners in Dasma.

2009-02-25T14:37:00.001+08:00

is in Zobel. Two classes today... many more tomorrow...

2009-02-24T21:34:00.001+08:00

just came from Zobel. Change of plans... Zobel tomorrow & Thursday but will go home to Dasma for the live-in.

Back to Blogging: Reviewing Last Month

2009-02-23T22:25:00.001+08:00

10:00pm / PREFACE:
Am going to attempt to post my first blog entry via Ping.fm. Learned about this website from Pogz of DLSP. It allows one to update a variety of social networking sites and blogs from one place. Will see what kind of tweaking I'll need to do... I'll disable the cross-posting facility of Multiply to Blogger.

Unfortunately, the internet connection just died... wifi is up but PLDT DSL seems to be acting up again...

Will stop blogging at 10:20. Need to sleep.

30 days in the desert... or how I survived traveling back and forth Mindanao and Manila and Mindanao.

There's nothing like traveling to disrupt your habit-forming attempts. Good habits that is. I put together my Guiding Principles for 2009 and I had my ideal day set... however, all the new year preparations were shelved indefinitely the minute I left Bacolod for Mindanao.

I think I left Bacolod January 13... I'm rifling through Facebook and Multiply to verify my whereabouts... photo posts and status updates rock... :) Ngyerk, I'm wrong. I left the Bacolod Brothers' community around 5:45 am of January 14. By 2:00pm of the same day, I had finished a talk with the 2nd Year of LSGH.
The next day I was in Iligan... woke up extremely early to get the first flight to Cagayan de Oro on CebuPacific. My mom didn't want me to fly out of Manila because of the weather in Mindanao but... you know... :)
I had with me the relatively new HD videocam of the Brothers' office and I started my life as a member of the paparazzi in Terminal 3.

Anyway, time for me to sleep... to be continued tomorrow...

2009-02-23T20:45:00.001+08:00

will be in Zobel tom, LSGH Wed morning, DLSU-M/DLS-CSB Wed afternoon, DLSU-D Wed evening, Canlubang and/or Zobel Thu & Friday.

2009-02-23T19:11:00.001+08:00

returned to yoga after heaven knows when... realized how quickly muscles stiffen when not used... Om.

2009-02-23T15:04:00.001+08:00

is sorting out his pictures... and the rest of his life... traveling has a way of unsettling life... but in a nice way... most of the time.

2009-02-22T16:29:00.001+08:00

just came from Zobel with my bros, Didu and Dein. Gave blood [O ang blood type ko], walked around, met up with the Dasma Bros, visited Jeff

2009-02-22T13:18:00.001+08:00

is going to Zobel to give blood. Hopefully, they will accept it... :)

2009-02-22T12:44:00.001+08:00

came from the sari-sari store called SM and splurged a bit... "empowerment" is my excuse... kay Richie na kasi yung "self-care"...

2009-02-22T10:31:00.001+08:00

woke up at 9am!!! Wooooohoooo! Will go around the sari-sari store (SM) and will spend a lazy day at home...

2009-02-21T23:21:00.000+08:00

just came home from a wedding... woke up a 430am, got home around 9am, slept, ate lunch, was in the church by 2pm... ready to sleep...

2009-02-21T09:58:00.001+08:00

is in the geelage! Wedding lector duties later. McDo moment to the max... :)

2009-02-20T21:49:00.001+08:00

is a PAASCU best feature, a Kundirana welcome committee member (please watch! For the benefit of Bahay Pag-asa) and a wedding lector.

2009-02-20T19:46:00.001+08:00

is a PAASCU best feature. :)

2009-02-20T08:16:00.001+08:00

is enjoying a relatively lazy Friday. Will be checking out the vocations office for renovation work and other stuff... exciting... :)

2009-02-19T17:12:00.001+08:00

is enjoying his week in Bacolod... will be traveling again soon... hay...

2009-02-19T13:58:00.001+08:00

just had lunch. Will have a class at 220pm with Gr10.

2009-02-19T06:24:00.001+08:00

is alive, awake, alert and more than marginally enthusiastic. Checking out the vocations office here in Bacolod today. Renovation time!

2009-02-18T21:54:00.001+08:00

has a clearer picture of the future (school year)... and is ready to sleep... :)

2009-02-18T15:52:00.001+08:00

will exercise after one month... will most probably have to fight for wall space... handballers abound in Bacolod.

2009-02-18T13:53:00.000+08:00

is feeling the heat... summer is coming... just came from lunch rounds... just had lunch...

2009-02-18T06:17:00.001+08:00

just came from morning prayers. Preparing for breakfast and first morning rounds...

2009-02-17T15:00:00.001+08:00

just had lunch at 245pm. 10A,B,C,E today... later 430pm, talk with 200++ students... slow day. :)

2009-02-17T05:32:00.001+08:00

just woke up. Work day today. Talks in Grade 10 and college.

2009-02-16T16:34:00.001+08:00

crossed the street and had a haircut. Had a cup of coffee (instant lang) and is thinking of exercising but will probably do that tomorrow.

2009-02-16T09:02:00.001+08:00

just woke up in Bacolod! After a month of Mindanao and a bit of Manila...

2009-02-15T17:30:00.001+08:00

is finally in Bacolod!!!! Arrived 6am. Slept a bit. Attended mass at 9am. Slept a lot. Will be watching INSPArasyon. Home sweet home.

2009-02-14T23:41:00.001+08:00

just came from the Zobel prom... masaya naman... in LSGH now... but not for long... will be taking the 455am flight to Bacolod.. Family Day!

2009-02-12T23:07:00.001+08:00

Was in DLSL watching the basketball teams of DLSZ and LSGH. Tomorrow, LSGH to watch the USLS drumbeaters... One La Salle na ito!

2009-02-12T22:46:00.001+08:00

Was in DLSL watching the basketballs teams of DLSZ and LSGH. Tomorrow, LSGH to watch the USLS drumbeaters... One La Salle na ito!

2009-02-11T11:21:00.001+08:00

Today: LSGH / Tomorrow: Lipa / Friday: LSGH / Saturday: Zobel Prom / Sunday: USLS Family Day

Update on Iggy Villanueva: A Letter from his Mom

2009-01-26T16:26:00.000+08:00

January 6, 2009 was the worst day of my family’s life…our eldest son, IAN GABRIEL PICART VILLANUEVA, was initially diagnosed to have ACUTE MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA. It is already the20th of January, and after a 2nd and even a 3rd opinion from different doctors, the diagnosis,sadly is still the same: ACUTE MYOLOGEOUS LEUKEMIA. To aggravate things even, he even has pneumonia. Thus, chemotherapy cannot start just yet. Untreated, he just has 4 months to live…

Treatment plan for Iggy includes at least 3 rounds of chemotherapy and bone marrow transplant! To date, we have already moved from 3 hospitals. Currently we are at National Kidney & Transplant Institute to save on cost.

Though we may belong to a middle income family, the medical expenses that have and are to be incurred is so staggering! The amount needed is about 5 Million …thinking of how many zeroes the figure has makes me want to give up...But I know I wont and I cant! I will do anything or everything to save my son to the best that I could. Sad but true, I have nothing…Whatever is left of our meager savings has all been used up. Time is essential. The bone marrow transplant will be performed 2-3 weeks from now, and I need funds to deposit before any treatment can be done.

I am literally alone…Its just Iggy & myself in the hospital. Friends & relatives come to visit but I cannot compel them to do more. I am a one woman army. Thank God that I have the laptop and my mind as a weapon…

Iggy, is a well rounded individual who I can say is an achiever. From grade school to college he is very athletic: red belter in taekwondo, track & field and basketball. An honor student from pre-school to college, a leader in his own ways.

As a mother, it breaks my heart that such potential should go into waste…He is so young…IT IS MY MOST FERVENT PRAYER THAT YOU BECOME PART OF THE CYCLE OF HEALING…IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE. I HOPE I AM NOT ASKING TOO MUCH. HUMBLY I AM ASKING ANY HELP THAT YOU CAN EXTEND MY FAMILY. WHATEVER MEANS WOULD BE MOST WELCOME. I may not be able to repay your kindness and generosity in this lifetime…but I am confident that God knows…

I am realistic enough to understand how difficult life is today. I am not asking for total dole-out. If at all, any of you are willing to loan me…I would forever be grateful. I promise to pay, although little by little, with interest even. Please…This is already a desperate cry for help… I just cant imagine what is to be…

May I also request continued PRAYERS THAT IGGY NOT GIVE UP, HOLD ON AND BE STEADFAST IN HIS WILL TO LIVE. Likewise, prayers THANKING FATHER GOD FOR THE HEALING.

Thank you very much for taking time out to read this letter. I know in my heart that you will be able to help me and my family one way or the other. May the Good Lord always bless you and your loved ones.

Respectfully,
VIVIEN ‘BENG’ VILLANUEVA
Mother
09176201969

Time Flies...

2009-01-24T03:10:00.000+08:00

In my mind, I still see them as the grade 6 kids I welcomed to my first carefully-decorated (with feeling Paul Smith stripes of art paper pasted on old grocery product boxes on top of the blackboard and carefully cut Century Gothic letters forming the phrase "do ordinary things extraordinarily well) advisory classroom. I remember conducting the orientation for my class half-dead... I was sick...

Taken from the entry "Day of the Living Dead part 1" from my arwee.blogspot.blog (link here)
"We're on city-wide blackout and our internet is really fast. That's what you get when you have a generator. Meanwhile, my body's on system-wide red alert and is very busy fighting off an infection. My nose is clogged, my throat is itchy, my chest and head feel like something's very heavy on them and my voice sounds like I am channeling Inday Badiday. Pretty soon, Ate Ludz will take a bow and relinquish her spot to Gollum... precious... precious...

Had a good day with my class... even though I can barely remember what happened. I was just trying to get through the day. I had them for the entire day because, in grade school, you need to review a lot of stuff. I do remember Catie, our one-armed transferee, who was escorted to class crying by her mother... who turned out to be someone else's mother... she befriended Catie because she looked lost. She was the highlight of my day because after several minutes in class [with her newly acquired ambiguously religious, Inday Badiday-channeling, be-hat-ted (in Katipunero hat) cross-dressing white ghost of a teacher] she was already smiling.

My other vague memories are me reaching for my iFlask filled with instant salabat.

Will write more... we're shutting down the generator soon... have to nebulize."

I remember asking them to go to school on Saturdays so we could clean our classroom. We would take the chairs out, sweep, apply floor wax, allow it to dry, "make bunot", fix things up and then I'd ask them to buy Coke and bread and we'd eat on the table outside the Brothers house. Hay. The good old simple days...

So when we had our picture taking and I put together the before and now pics, I find myself nostalgic, amazed and humbled. Many of them are taller (and thinner!!!) than me now. Some have become more serious in their studies. Some are still the same. One has stopped dancing when called to recite in class. Some have moved on to other schools and other countries.

But, to me, in my frazzled but grateful mind, we will always be the late, the great Grade 6 - St. Benilde of 2006.

:)

2009-01-18 - The Mt. Agad-agad Expedition: The Tradition Continues...

2009-01-18T16:13:00.000+08:00

Picture of Team Agad-agad:

Brs. Arian and Rey with the jFSCs (Junior Aspirants) of Iligan: [from the left] Br. Arian, Vincent, Melvin, X, Br. Rey, Paul, Merric, Peter, Mikko, Gustav, MC, Earl and Luis

My birthday is coming up... it's not a big secret since the social networks will display it one way or the other. But, I realized as I was fighting my way up yet another mountain, that it would be the second year in a row that I would be climbing a mountain several days before my birthday.

Last year, I accompanied Br. Marc and his students up Mt. Banoy in Batangas. [click here for pictures] Suffice it to say that I wasn't really prepared for that particular climb... sobrang ulan at sobrang lamig. I should've at least packed a jacket for the rain. That would've kept me a lot warmer than the garbage bag I had wrapped around me.

This 2009, I was with Br. Rey and 11 of the young men from the 3rd year who are curious about the Brothers life. Br. Rey informed me of the impending climb last week and I was a bit skeptical since it had been raining in that area for quite some time. My mother even called me last Wednesday because of the flooding and bad weather in Mindanao. [My subconscious self exerted its subtle influence on me... It didn't occur to me to tell her that we were going up a mountain.]

Anyway, I'm back in the Brothers' House here in Iligan and I'm digitizing the video I took of the climb. Will post video grabs as soon as digitizing finishes. [I had with me the PRV CORE Canon HD camera... am beginning to like video... dangerous hobby since I don't have the equipment for it...]

I enjoyed it a lot but let the lesson be... it's very, very, very hard to climb a mountain when it's raining. What's even harder is going down the mountain when it's raining...

Stay tuned for the detailed coverage of this year's Birthday Mountain Madness...

Bullseye... Ouch... Sakit... McDo..

2009-01-16T08:20:00.000+08:00

Why do they have to make commercials that hit too close to home? :)
The latest McDo ad should be banned! It violates my privacy too much...

Hindi sa McDo nangyari yung McDo moment ko pero nangyari sa akin yun...
...sa tapat yata ng Hagen Daz sa Town Center... masakit pero mas sosy naman.

Pero na-touch ako. Touch. Hay.

To my McDo girl... walang hiya ka... hehehehe... :)

The Last Two Days

2009-01-15T17:22:00.000+08:00

Left Bacolod yesterday around 715am
Arrived in Manila around 815am.
Arrived in LSGH around 930am.
Went around the 4th year level lunchtime.
Visited 4H & 4A around 1pm
Talked to the 2nd year level around 2:30 (was a bit late)
Slept around 8pm after American Idol.
Got a call from Richie around 10pm.
Got back to sleep around 12am.
Woke up again at 245am
Left LSGH this morning around 3am.
Left Luzon around 450am.
Arrived in CdO around 630am
Arrived in Iligan around 9am.
Talked to a 3rd year class 10am.
Had lunch.
Talked to a 4th year class 1pm.
Talked to another 3rd year class
Stayed in Br. Rey's class until dismissal
Plopped on the guest bed around 415pm
Woke up at 7pm
Ate dinner with the community
Visited the Nursing Dorm of LSU in LSA.
Watched the Idol Replay.
Checked email aorund 10pm
Will sleep soon...

Packing... yet again...

2009-01-13T16:19:00.000+08:00

Am in my room... trying to get myself to finish packing my stuff for the next set of visits...
Leaving tomorrow, first flight out of Bacolod, PAL...
Will be in LSGH by 9:00 most probably... will have a talk with the second years around 2pm...

Thursday, am leaving LSGH around 3am to be in the airport by 340am... first flight out to Cagayan de Oro... Will be in Iligan hopefully by 9am. Will be doing classroom visits until Friday then will climb a mountain with the contacts and Br. Rey... pray for us...

Then, I'll probably skedaddle (look it up in the dictionary) to Ozamiz. Am not yet sure whether I'll go to Bislig to complete the tour of Mindanao or go to Manila. We'll see how talks go with the schools...

Just thinking about the next few days is lulling me to sleep...

...that and the Tagaytay-like conditions here in Bacolod...

B+ Blood Needed in Manila

2009-01-11T14:49:00.000+08:00

Iggy Villanueva, an alumnus of USLS, now a scholar at CSB, has been diagnosed with leukemia.

He needs B+ blood donors ASAP. He is arriving from Bacolod today and will be confined at St. Luke's.

DLS-CSB Contact:
Meps Artagame
SAO Coordinator
trunkline: 5267441 to 47 (loc. 116, 258, 266)
Email: sao@dls-csb.edu.ph
cel: 09718848818

Friday Magic Madness...

2009-01-09T16:43:00.000+08:00

...refers to the strange phenomenon that occurs in schools all over the nation... when students can hardly be controlled by the teachers because of the inevitable arrival of the weekend.

Today, despite not being able to sleep well because of the coughing, I was blessed with better health and was able to spend a good part of my day at the Integrated School here in Bacolod. I attended the HS morning cermony: I handed out certificates to the live belen winners, "checked" haircuts of the people passing by. Then I had breakfast and did the recess scene as well. Brought my bag to the HS area, did the lunch rounds, had lunch, then proceeded to the library (with my bag) to some office work. Did it so I had a change of scenery and the activity around me kept me awake... hindi rin aman ako puwedeng mag-ingay kasi library eh.

It was on my way to HS library from the Bros house that I discovered Friday Magic Madness. I passed by several grade 3 classrooms where the teachers were having a hard time controlling the kids... some were noisier that regular, some not noisy but extremely restless. I asked the teachers if their behavior was normal and all of them said, "Bro, Friday kasi."

I never really thought about it that way but, at the point, it really made a lot of sense to me. The excitement over the weekend literally sending students to higher levels of kinesthetic and vocal activity.

Capped my day at the IS by watching the CAT session of the Seniors... my first in two years. I realized how lampa my CAT was compared to theirs... all I remember was shining my belt, counting off, doing about about faces and dropping to the ground.

Later, early in the evening, Bern, Earl and Sky Luke helped my change the bulletin board in the Vocations Office near the Coliseum. Checked the office to see what could be done to improve it next year... excited na me.

Now, I sleep... :)

Friday Magic Madness

2009-01-09T16:26:00.000+08:00

...refers to the strange phenomenon that occurs in schools all over the nation... when students can hardly be controlled by the teachers because of the inevitable arrival of the weekend.

Today, despite not being able to sleep well because of the coughing, I was blessed with better health and was able to spend a good part of my day at the Integrated School here in Bacolod. I attended the HS morning cermony: I handed out certificates to the live belen winners, "checked" haircuts of the people passing by. Then I had breakfast and did the recess scene as well. Brought my bag to the HS area, did the lunch rounds, had lunch, then proceeded to the library (with my bag) to some office work. Did it so I had a change of scenery and the activity around me kept me awake... hindi rin aman ako puwedeng mag-ingay kasi library eh.

It was on my way to HS library from the Bros house that I discovered Friday Magic Madness. I passed by several grade 3 classrooms where the teachers were having a hard time controlling the kids... some were noisier that regular, some not noisy but extremely restless. I asked the teachers if their behavior was normal and all of them said, "Bro, Friday kasi."

I never really thought about it that way but, at the point, it really made a lot of sense to me. The excitement over the weekend literally sending students to higher levels of kinesthetic and vocal activity.

Capped my day at the IS by watching the CAT session of the Seniors... my first in two years. I realized how lampa my CAT was compared to theirs... all I remember was shining my belt, counting off, doing about about faces and dropping to the ground.

Later, early in the evening, Bern, Earl and Sky Luke helped my change the bulletin board in the Vocations Office near the Coliseum. Checked the office to see what could be done to improve it next year... excited na me.

Now, I sleep... :)

Friday Magic Madness

2009-01-09T16:23:00.000+08:00

Friday Magic Madness...

2009-01-09T16:00:00.001+08:00

Friday Magic Madness...

2009-01-09T16:00:00.000+08:00

Okay lang, steady lang: Guiding Principle of 2009 No. 4

2009-01-08T17:01:00.000+08:00

Am still trying to overcome the bacterial infection that has sent my upper respiratory tract into excessive secretion creation mode. Didn't even try to do my rounds because I really had to give my body time to rest (because that's number one of my guiding principles for 2009). There was however residual guilt as I was trying to sleep amidst the coughing... guilt over the fact that I wasn't supposed to be sleeping, I was supposed to be up and about, productive and efficient.

I think I will always be paranoid about doing or not doing enough... when can I say that it's my time and when can I say that my saying it's my time is already making excuses for being lazy. Several people (the latest of whom are Richie (my batchmate) and Br. Mike (my ninong in the Brotherhood)) have pointed out that I'm the sort of person who would like to please everybody (the term Richie uses is histrionic... Br. Mike says it's because I'm a 6 on the enneagram). I will not contest their observations.

So, my guiding principle for 2009 for that particular issue is,

"okay lang, steady lang."

Which means that I have to constantly remind myself that everything is going to be alright. That I will have to talk myself down from whatever not-so-right emotional state I'm in... whether it be paranoia, anger, resentment or fear.

In other words, I have to practice positive "self-talk". (click on the word for a good link on the subject matter).

One of the things that my counselor (whom I have to get in touch with) told me that struck me was, "you are not your emotions." It's a very short sentence but it does kick you where it should because oftentimes, we let our emotions control us.

So, in 2009, one of my mantras is "okay lang, steady lang."

So now, after some self talk using happy words, I will equalize... then I will get some sleep :)

First Day of School at USLS-IS for 2009

2009-01-07T16:32:00.000+08:00

Even though I'm feeling very tubercular, I managed to wake up and do my rounds this morning and lunch time at the IS.

(I did the morning ceremony rounds yesterday at LSGH and I managed to survive that... except that I think it sent my bacterial invaders to the next level of invasion... thus making me even sicker. The trip to the Arctic Terminal (Terminal 3) didn't help as well... But that's life...)

So I plopped down on my bed around 2ish and managed to get some rest until around 6:30...

Hopefully, the vitamin C will help...

Gunayt.

2009-01-05 - DLSU-M Graduate School

2009-01-05T14:57:00.000+08:00

Left the house around 10:45 to go to DLSU-M to talk to the new batch of graduate students. Our trisem schools start their third term today.

I now have what seems to be a full-blown case of upper-respiratory tract infection... my usual sickness... itchy throat, clogged nose and a cough to complete the trifecta. It's a combination of puyat, Christmas bad habits and the extremely cold weather that hit us just around New Year.

I passed by Watson's to get Strepsils and was nearly overwhelmed at the sudden profusion of Strepsils variants out on the market. Aside from the flavors and no-sugar variants, there seems to be Strepsils for Dry Cough and Chesty Cough...

Got on the bus that was parked by the West Parking lot and fell in and out of sleep... medyo ma-traffic... what usually takes an hour took around an hour and a half.

Went up the Brothers' Community (thanks to Ms. Jenny and the nice people down at the South Gate) and ate lunch. Had to borrow Br. Armin's rabat because I went back to Manila last December knowing that my calendar was clear. It was only last week when Andy S. of the LSPO got in touch with me (via Facebook!) to ask if I could give the Lasallian orientation to the grad students.

We were at the lecture hall already when Br. Bernie came in. He was going to do the welcome address. Last time, I talked to the grad students (last June 2008) after the registrar and by the time I got to them, they were either getting out of their seats or were praciticing their version of deep zen meditation. So I adjusted and gave them the 5-minute version of what should've been 30 minutes.

Thankfully, they bumped us up to the slot right after Br. Bernie so that we could still talk to them while their souls were in their bodies and their bodies were still in their seats.

Good naman ang kinalabasan. I think most of them were able to pick up what we wanted to impart although I could see a couple of people in deep, open-mouthed contemplation. I wrapped up the talk with Gary V. singing "We've Won" and welcomed them not only to DLSU-M but to the entire Lasallian Family in the Philippines.

I returned the rabat to Br. Armin and boarded to the bus to Las Pinas. My reflection during the ride home is that people with upper-respiratory tract infections should bring masks or moist bimpos with them in the bus because the dry air, the dust and the assorted essences generated by the passengers come together and cause one to sneeze incessantly.

Now, I'm home and I'm going to equalize (see blog post on "equalizing") and pack for my trip back to Bacolod (via LSGH) tomorrow.

LSGH, here I come.

P.S. Transferred my primary browsing to the Mac-enhanced version of Firefox. Safari seems to be very sumpungin these days.

Heaven is a Semi-Circular Ceramic Trough and an Aromatherapy Jar Full of Chocoloate

2009-01-04T16:16:00.000+08:00

Proof that my parents still love me even if they've not given me

my 2nd generation 32gb iPod Touch yet.

Masharap yung chocolate ice cream with chocolate chips dipped
in melted chocolate. :)
A Blessed Mess.

Guiding Principles of 2009: No. 3: Equalize

2009-01-04T15:15:00.000+08:00

I'm a profession procrastinator. For the uninitiated, that means I like to put things off until the last minute or until the matter is moot and academic... like blog entries on certain experiences like Cebu-Bohol, Campihan, my Christmas break... etc.

Unfortunately for me, this book that I'm reading has a section for people like me. There are several, really, but I'd like to focus on Chapter 7: Create a Space of Grace.

Guiding Principle No. 3 is found there... and it's encapsulated in just one word:

EQUALIZE.

"Equalize means to do daily maintenance to keep things in their place. It is taking 10 minutes at the end of your work day to clear off your desk and put files away, so you come in to a clear desk in the morning..."

Which also means cleaning my room before I leave so that when I come back, I don't get depressed by the sight of chaos. (My batchmate, Br. Richie, showed me another book called "A Perfect Mess" which sort of describes me... hehehehe... but I have yet to read that book... so now back to regular programming...)

It's what our mothers used to teach us and it's what we've learned to ignore since our childhood. But I'm going to EQUALIZE this 2009. My room, my office (what office), the laptop desktop and hard drive...

But I think I'll starting with the mess I've been making here in my new "house" in the geelage. [More on that... hopefully... pray... :) ]

2009 is anti-entropy year!

Guiding Principles of 2009: No. 2: Happy Words=Happy Thoughts

2009-01-04T04:56:00.000+08:00

I've been reading (and re-reading) this book for the last so many months. It's part of my spiritual / personal development reading because, believe it or not, I am a religious Brother. It's quite substantial and I'll probably need to re-read parts of it again to remind myself. It basically shows you one way of living your own life (in a non-selfish, compassionate, balanced way). Incidentally, there's a website for the book.

The fourth chapter is dedicated to the way you use words in your life. The chapter is called "Purify the Language of Your Life."

I like verbal jousting. It's one of the talents which I managed to develop over the years. The quick quip, the witty repartee, the ability to string together words that sound erudite and funny at the same time. [It's a skill I sometimes wish I had less of in exchange for greater physical coordination and greater self-discipline.] I blame David Eddings, movies and shows like Four Weddings and a Funeral, Whose Line Is It Anyway, Life on the D-List for this appreciation for verbal martial arts. [However, formal/real-life verbal jousting like debates, court cases are just too uncomfortable for a harm-averse person like myself. Okay yung nakakatawa pero yung may halong away medyo hindi ko na ata gusto yun.]

The downside to all of this is that this kind of humor almost always needs a scapegoat to achieve its full effect. The tendency is to make fun of a person or a situation. The tendency is to use language that often is negative or condescending. We often shrug it off and say it's all for fun but there are lasting effects... on the people and situations we talk about or make fun of and on ourselves. Because whatever goes around, comes around. The perspective we use to look at other people inevitably is the perspective that we use to look at ourselves. The book mentions our inner critic and our inner judge who criticize us as well (if not better) as they criticize other people.

Sabi nila, "we are what we eat." The scarier part is "what we often say becomes what we think and what we often think becomes who we are."

So, after this long exposition, no. 2 guiding principle for 2009 is,
"watch what you say... focus on saying the right words all the time..."

In doing so, we replace the critic with the observer and we can use the judge to help us learn from our experiences and not feel crappy because we weren't perfect.

The book points us to a list of virtues that we can use in our daily conversations but I'm doing this step by step by step... hindi ko ata kaya na instant change. Because it's not about being perfect but about changing for the better... day by day.

Naks.