Isterling

"Isterling"

Ang mahiwagang gusali ng Sterling sa Chicago
Kung saan natutulog, nagsasama at nagkukuwentuhan
Maraming nangyayari, maraming nagmimilagro
Maraming bagay na di ko talaga maintindihan

Bakit kami nakukuryente sa handles ng revolving door?
Bakit laging may puting aso na nakabantay sa aking pintuan?
Bakit amoy pritong isda tuwing bababa ka sa 15th floor?
Bakit nga ba talaga dito madaming nagkakatuluyan?

Bakit may kanya-kanyang paraan ng pagyosi?
Bakit sa gym na ito naisipan magworkout ni Goldberg?
Bakit habang nagbubuhat ay nanood siya ng “The OC?”
Alam nyo bang walang ka-rhyme sa Tagalog ang “Goldberg”?

Ilan lamang ito sa mga pinagkakatakahan ko,
Bakit araw araw parang parati na lang may sunog?
Bakit ba mga tao ayaw magpagupit o parating nagpapakalbo?
Bakit yung mga Polish cleaners marunong na magtagalog?

Mahiwaga nga naman talaga ang gusaling ito
Maraming kakaiba at magagandang alaala
Iba iba ang itsura at isipan ng mga tao
Ngunit bumubuo ng isang malaki at masayang barkada

Nges Hu

Got this one from Jaye... thanks! :P

Minsan, umuwi ng maaga si Mister para sorpresahin ang kaniyang kabiyak. Dahan dahan siyang pumasok sa kanilang bahay at hinanap ang kaniyang Misis. Nakita niya itong abala sa pagluluto at di namalayan na siya ay dumating.

Maingat siyang lumapit sabay takip sa mga mata ni Misis sabay sabing "NGES HU!!!"

Sabi naman ni Misis, "Lintek, nges-hu, nges-hu ka pa diyan ikaw lang naman ang ngongo dito!!"

Arnie and the Solutions Factory

The average height of people in the US is 5-8 to 5-10. I’m just basing it on observation and not on any scientific fact so you statistics geeks can back off. People here are tall. Some are er… wide. In other words, compared to the Filipino onshore people here (sans Enrico), these guys are giants.

The onshore people here are a happy crowd – always laughing and singing even without Debbie’s karaoke mic thingie. Some dance in their own weird way. Me? I dance with two staplers in my hand usually after resolving a job failure.

A bunch of short people, singing and dancing while working for this big company in a place known for chocolates for people taller than them and eats disgusting (to others) stuff like fried shrimp paste.

"Oompa Loompas"… :P

(Go watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory if di nyo na gets :D)

Random Thoughts

One of the best ways to annoy the people in your office is to turn up the volume of the speakers and ask lots of questions from your friends through AIM, Yahoo and MSN. Once your friends all reply back almost simultaneously. You will be labeled as an instant nuisance. Apparently the sound of IM’s coming in already has a instinctive effect on people very much like hearing the text tone of your cell phone which makes you automatically grab for your phone even if you already know it’s not for you. Hey I haven’t done this before but I was sure wrongfully accused for it once.

~~

I was able to catch Chronicles of Narnia early this week, the movie that I was anticipating ever since I saw its trailer early this year. (note: may contain spoilers ahead). Since it’s based on a children’s book, I’m not expecting the storyline and the acting to be somewhere similar to Lord of the Rings. Most critics loved the performance of the main characters though I didn’t. I thought it was kinda cheesy but I think maybe because the child in me didn’t come out when I was watching it. A few funny/interesting scenes though…

• The heroes were given weapons by… Santa Claus/Father Christmas?!? Compare that to how Harry Potter got his wand or how Aragorn got the Anduril Sword. After that scene, I was honestly expecting Humpty Dumpty walk on by with AK-47’s or Mother Goose with molotov cocktails.
• The polar bears pulling the witch’s chariot looked familiar. Weren’t they drinking coke just a few minutes ago?
• Near the end, Susan shot the witch’s servant (I think he was Ginarrbrik) with an arrow. Was that scene really necessary?!? That was the only scene where Susan used her arrows against a live target. Then again, I might just be comparing her to Legolas too much. I think this was just a late addition to the movie after the writers discovered that she was given such a cool weapon but never to use it yet in battle. (“Make her shoot something! How do you expect the toy version of that weapon to sell?!?”)
• They weren’t able to recognize the lamppost but they recognized the professor?

~

What’s wrong with MSN Messenger?!? One of the applications I heavily rely on just conked out on me. For some reason I appear offline to others, they can’t send messages to me and I can’t messages to them eventhough I’m really online. It was also encountered by other people here in the office so it must be a network virus thing.

Damn virus.

One Nasty Christmas Surprise

It was 2 in the morning. December 22. My mom and dad were asleep in their bed. Lights were out. A dark hairy figure emerged from the shadows and crawled between my mom and dad.

The dark hairy figure stupidly stepped on my mom's leg and now my mom was awake groggily staring up to this faceless person. She's thinking it was probably my brother but it couldn't be cause he was standing by the door.

"Sino ka?" she asked.

The faceless person replied with a sound... not a word... but a distinct sound that only one weirdo from the family is able to pull anytime he wants...

quack

Mom screamed. Dad woke up and screamed as well (like a girl). My brother flicked on the lights. The dark hairy figure was a pale person who hasn't had a haircut in months and smelled like an airplane chair in the economy class. Mom was crying. Dad was still screaming like a girl.

They didn't know I was going to be home for the holidays. ;)

Allowance!!!

"Eight digits can turn your onshore life from bad to good"

I'm talking about my personnel number. I was just assigned one which means now I can charge my per diem allowance!

Finally...

• Hindi na lahat ng groceries ko "Jewel" ang tatak. Jewel paper towels, Jewel laundry detergent, Jewel butter, Jewel pancakes, etc etc... (side note: Jewel-Osco is a grocery and the Jewel brand is very much like "Bonus" ng SM Supermarkets". If di nyo pa rin na gets, tawa ka na lang kunwari then read on)
• Hindi na lahat ng shampoo at sabon ko "Bridgestreet" ang tatak. (side note: BridgeStreet is this company that handles our housing in the US. They provide free stuff especially toiletries when you first arrive in your place. Madami pinamana si Glenn sa kin noon bago siya umuwi).

(Kailangan ko pa ba talaga i-explain lahat ng jokes dito?!?)

• Hindi na lahat ng damit ko galing sa Old Navy (specifically sa clearance section)
• I can stop drinking my "will expire in one week kaya naka sale" milk by the shot glass
• We can stop ending up in parks. Free eh. And we need the fresh air. (plus we're cheap)
• We can stop eating at the Atrium Mall (Thompson's) and mutter after paying for our meal na "alammo... sa Jewel magkano lang ito...)
• I won't go straight to the clearance section when shopping at Old Navy and Gap.
• After minutes and minutes of deliberating where we will have our dinners everynight (McDo, Portillo's, Singha, etc...). I won't end up eating a ham and cheese sandwich on stale bread.
• I can now go big time in McDo!
• I can stop using that useless $1.69 gloves I got from White Hen. It's as useless as a solar powered flashlight

Snow Stories

Friday night is laundry night. I love doing laundry here since all you have to do is place your clothes in the washer (if you're OC like me, you have to sort them whether they're "machine wash warm" or "machine wash cold"). After 50 minutes of senseless whirring, you pop them to the dryer, place this fabric conditioner tissue like thingie then hit another button. After a few minutes, your clothes come out clean and pressed. Well, not fully pressed but close enough so you whip out your iron ... (comment: hey arn, get to the snow story!) ok fine fine...

This Friday night, I ran out of detergent while preparing my second load. It was already late (10:15pm), it was freezing outside, snow was everywhere, I was already in my sleep wear and there were probably lots of mitis outside so I thought I'd just drop by Jewel tomorrow morning. That sounds logical, I was pretty tired and I wanted to rest already. Then I realized I'm out of Krispy Kreme donuts...

So I was outside in my jogging pants, my trust ol' Lebron shoes, a thin air cool shirt and a cotton jacket - no thermals, no thick jackets. Hay, the things I do when I run out of donuts... one time I went out with in my shorts... Nicole found it funny and crazy... anyways.. that's another story. After going through the revolving doors (no static this time), pucha ang lamig pala. I was crouching on the ground because of the cold deciding whether to run for it or go back to my apartment, get a thicker jacket but risk not being able to reach Jewel before it closes. (If you still haven't figured it out... Jewel is a grocery here... punta kayo http://www.jewelosco.com/ if you're curious.). I decided to run for it... donuts yun... walang lamig lamig if donuts are involved. I ran past CVS, ran through a red pedestrian light, and ran through Kinzie between Clark and Dearborn - huge mistake because that area is filled with icy patches. I slipped thrice before I got to Dearborn. On my way, lot of people thought I was nuts because I was going jogging at 10:30 pm with temperature well below the freezing point. Hahahaha! No I wasn't. I'm just out in jogging pants running to the store to buy detergent and donuts. Normal right?

Jewel was still open. I grabbed a Jewel detergent container but there were no Krispy Kreme donuts on the pastry rack...

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! (overhead view of Jewel with pigeons flying away).

side story: the next day, I went back to Jewel with Ann. Andun pala sa likod malapit sa dairy section hehehe :-P

~~~

It snowed the entire weekend and snow on the ground is now 2 inches thick. Great for snowballs! I was making one when Gezelle wacked me with one from behind. The whole afternoon we were just exchanging snowballs but I think in our official score she was still ahead. Kainis, I missed one at point blank range. 4 -seam fastball grip pa naman yun.

Snow! Snow! Snow! :D

Today will mark the third time I've experienced snow in the US but this was the one with the heaviest snowfall... 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch siguro.

The first time was a very light flurry. It looked weird cause it looked like confetti. It took me a minute to realize it's snow pala. It wasn't heavy enough to cover the ground white though. I was walking along N La Salle gazing up with stupid smile on my face when I saw another person also gazing up. Pinoy to malamang... pinoy nga! It was Marco from KMAD. "Woooow pareee... isnooooww!" "oo nga eeee... huwaaaaaawwww".

The second time was the Friday afternoon after thanksgiving. I was napping after dragging Che all over State and Michigan ave for the thanksgiving sale. When I woke up at 6pm, there was the white stuff all over but it wasn't snowing anymore. The next day, when Che and I went out, I belted her with lots and lots of snowballs. Poor Che.

Today, it was really snowing. As in white flurries all over and a thick layer of snow on the ground. I went to the office with Ann then sabay pa kami ng hirit "wow snow! wow snow! wow... whoa! ayyy... madulas pala". I didn't throw lots of snowballs at Ann though. Isa lang... and it sailed over her head. Siguro later pauwi na lang hehehe... sana she's not reading this before she goes home. >:-D

Revolving Doors

One way to find out if you're already in downtown Chicago - revolving doors. Almost every establishment has 'em - our apartment, our office, restaurants, hotels, shops. I think 95% of all buildings here. I'm not really sure why but my theory is that revolving doors are designed such that there won't be any wind drafts whenever someone comes in. In case a building doesn't have revolving doors, it has two automatic doors instead just a few feet apart. It's automatic because you just bang this big button the size of a notebook and it opens. Convenient for people bringing luggage and other stuff. They're pretty cool since we don't have them in Manila. In my 1 and a half months stay here, I've already compiled some interesting stories using these things.

• In Sterling, during my first week in Chicago, thinking that it was already the open section, I walked right through the round plastic wall. Ouch. My face made a print on the plastic thing.
• In Old Navy, I was shocked by static electricity.
• In Sterling, naipit ko si Gezelle. Sorry Ge... :(
• In Thompson Center, I tripped while going through the door. Someone came in suddenly and spun the doors fast.
• In Accenture, my gloves got caught in the handle and natanggal. Paglabas ko... tingin sa hand sabay "huh?!?". Then all the people behind were pointing at my gloves na naipit sa handle.
• In the "Gallery of Shops" in Lake and Dearborn, after going through the door I still pushed the doors hard so it would spin fast. I didn't know someone was in it. Napatakbo tuloy. Buti di nagalit.
• In McDondald's, I was trying to go through the doors while carrying a paper bag and a takeout tray for drinks but it stopped in the middle.
• I learned from Che to push the revolving doors with your elbows. More sanitary and less prone to static shocks.
• I'm not familiar with revolving doors etiquette. Do you let the lady go first kaya lang she has to push the doors all by herself until you enter on the next section? Do you go first and push it hard so she doesn't have to push (kaya lang parang ang bastos naman if mauuna pa ko...)
• In CompUSA, I was trying to push the door. Sarado pala.
• In Sterling, it's funny when you leave through the door then midway, you remembered that you forgot something so you ride the doors all the way back then midway again, you realize that you don't need it pala. Hinihintay ko nang sigawan ako ng "Stop playing fool!".

Damn revolving doors.

Thanksgiving 2005

Thanksgiving! :D

So many things I learned about thanksgiving just days before the actual holiday:

1. Thanksgiving is the most important holiday in the US where families and friends fly home to their home towns to be with their families.
2. The thanksgiving spread always include pumpkin pie.
3. It happens on the last Thursday of November.
4. It's the longest holiday in the US since you get both Thursday and Friday off. (well, some don't get Friday off...)
5. Plane ticket prices double.
6. Most stores are closed on Thursday. Just like during holy week back home.
7. Thanksgiving sale! It occurs at 5am on Friday and lasts only until 11am. Some stores carry over the discounts through Sunday. Some lower the discount rates in the afternoon while some wipe it off completely.
8. The NFL plays their major games just like what the NBA does on Christmas day.

Back home, Thanksgiving was just actually a time to stuff chicken with mom's great stuffing recipe and call it turkey. My bro and I pronounce it "Tar-key" for some reason.

I had thanksgiving this year with Tito Roger's family and some onshore people like Debbie, Chardi Bacardi, Jaye, Analou, Shay, Amy, Jon and Joahn. Damn, it was cold that night. Good thing I was able to bundle up. Earlier in the afternoon, I was suckered by the high afternoon sun which made me think of going to Grant Park and take pictures with just a shirt, jacket and jeans - no bonnets, no thermal shirts, no gloves. It was a stupid stupid stupid move as I was only able to reach Millenium park and froze. Going back, I had to make pit stops in White Hen and other open establishments just to thaw my hands and my nose. The Wacker-La Salle clock showed -7C. This is the first time the cold has actually prevented me from going somewhere.

Thanksgiving at Tito Roger's was cool and I had my first rice meal and first real dinner in November (long story...). So this was Thanksgiving all about... what a way to know all about what it means.


(clockwise from the left) me, Chardi, Tita Violy, Shay, Joahn, Amy, Debbie, Analou, Tito Roger, Jaye

I'm thankful for my friends and my family back home. I'm thankful for this career opportunity. I'm thankful for having great friends here, most of which I was only able to meet here. I'm thankful for the great office mates I have. I'm thankful for tito Roger and tita Violy who I hope to get to know more and spend more time with during my stay here. I'm thankful for the onshore people here - the GSPS girls, Glenn, Debbie and Chardi Bacardi. I'm thankful for Mags, my guardian angel in Manila. I'm thankful for Kat though she still has stories to tell. I'm thankful for Mahar, who talked me into getting into the thanksgiving season. I'm thankful for Gezelle, someone who I just met 2 months ago but already a close friend who teaches me a lot about life . I'm thankful for Ann, my shopping, grocery and pasyal partner. I'm thankful for Che for still resisting not to strangle me.

Thanks! :)

Bakit nga ba?

One of the questions I always ask myself here...



Bakit iba itsura sa box?

My cap... My Beautiful cap...

Nodding to the beat of a song stuck in my head
While strolling down the magnificent mile at night
Loving the ten o clock chill; Longing for my bed
Smiling as a cool breeze brushes me from my right

But it's one of those days when they're just plain mean
The weather gods playing with the power they have
As the breeze turns to gust leading to a bad scene
My Red Sox cap in the middle of Michigan ave

"Oh gosh, darn it!" my face smiling, my head shaking
As I wait for the nearby stop light to turn red
But yellow's not showing and cars started zooming
As my cold face was now starting to fill with dread

"Oh syet, damn it" no more smiling, head still shaking
A car running over it like it was road kill
"Ay putek, NakNgTokwa" green light still showing
Another car, then a van, head was now just still

Was ran over... again and again and again
Yellow light appeared but a car wanted to race
Beat the red light, swerved left, crunched my cap, "...and again"
Peeled it off the street and went home with a big scowl in my face

State Quarters

I first heard it as a gag bit in the Conan O'Brien show, which I always watch to put me in a good mood before I sleep. These state quarters are part of a program by the US Mint from 1999 through 2008 wherein each year, they release 5 new designs for the US quarter dollar. These designs are symbols and/or text that best describes the state in a nutshell. For example, in the New York state quarter, there's the statue of liberty, the text "Gateway to freedom" and an outline of the entire state of New York. Out of the 50 designs, 35 have already been released and as predicatable as I can sometimes be, I'll try to collect them all. :D

Here's what I've got so far:

1. California
2. Connecticut
3. Georgia
4. Illinois
5. Kansas
6. Kentucky
7. Louisiana
8. Maryland
9. Massachusetts
10. Missouri
11. New Jersey
12. New Hampshire
13. New York
14. North Carolina
15. Ohio
16. Texas
17. Vermont
18. Virginia
19. Wisconsin

Hey, I have to have a hobby here that won't cost much (well, not until I receive my personnel number so I can start receiving my allowance!)

19 down, 16 to go!

City of Lights

Aurora, Illinois!

The City of Lights, the first one to use electric lights for publicly lighting its streets, the second largest city in the state and the home of the Chicago Premium Outlet Mall! :D

The outlet mall wasn't bigger than the one I went to back in Cali but it had lots of cool stores. It had two long paths connected at both ends and a food court in the middle. Since it was an outlet mall, it had branded stores that directly sell goods to shoppers with heavy discounts.

***

Hay salamat natuloy din! This Aurora gimmick has already been moved twice. Ann, Che, Ceej and I boarded the train to Metra train to Aurora - my first train ride that didn't loop around in circles for 5 minutes. Syempre at the Union station, we were obviously first timers and when I saw the train.... "whoa, that thing's huge!" I thought the train would look like our MRT but it looked more like... like... our MRT... only bigger (I'm really bad with describing things...) . It didnt go that fast though since we stopped every 10 minutes. After almost an hour we were finally in...

Auro... oh wait nabanggit ko na pala kanina...

***

After arriving at the mall, I strayed away from the group. We have contrasting styles in traversing a mall. The three liked the "slowly but surely" method. One time visit lang sa mga shops then slooooowly move on to the next shop. It's like reading "The Hobbit". I employ the Iteration method. Round 1 is scouting. I check all shops, see what they have, look at some stuff, maybe try them on but I won't buy anything unless it's THAT much of a bargain. Round 2 is the actual buying, comparing with similar stuff I found on other stores and prioritizing. Round 3 is the cleanup. Final visit sa shops and buy stuff that were not important or not on sale. See, pati sa pag shopping CI methodology pa kong gamit. (Note mo yan Edward ha... best practice!)

***

A lesson in percentages. 60% discount is big. I was at London Fog looking for a trench coat which had a 60% clearance discount. Wow! I thought I'd buy two. I checked the original price and it cost 300+ dollars. I tried to do the math but.... why bother? It still cost a lot. LESSON: Part of huge crap is still crap.

***

Went to Brooks Brothers with the same sign: 50% off. Checked inside and the coat cost 500 bucks. I tried it on, it fitted like it was made for me, then placed it back. "Di kasya e".

LESSONS: You can do scouting of items from the outside. If mahal, don't bother going in. If it costs too much, it doesn't fit.

***

Another quick lesson: Since you're already scouting the items from the inside, make sure that the store carries items for guys. Haaaayyy... kakahiya...

***

I bought a BoSox cap and wore it right away. A few minutes later, this stranger walked up and said "Boston Red Sox huh? Well they didn't quite make it this year". Puro "yeah" na lang ako... tapos hirit ng "stupid white sox". Buti natawa lang. Delikado din pala mga BoSox cap dito...

***

I had this grilled chicken with lettuce, fries and coke for lunch! mmmmmm.... mahal nga lang :( Dali lang kaya gumawa nun?

***

Still havent charged for allowance so we are still in tipid mode, which is not an ideal mode when shopping in an outlet mall. It's torture to find the perfect product on a discounted price but STILL have no money to pay for it. waaaahh... sige balikan na lang...

***

A few hours later, all shopped out, we boarded the Pace bus and went back to Aurora transportation center. Wala nang pansinan. Higa na lang. The train going back was scary though. It was making this weird sound of metal grinding into metal. Overall it was a good gimmick. Sana lang we had more money para we could have bought more stuff. Well, next time.

When I arrived home, the other onshore people are there...

"Nold, alis kami, sama ka?"
"(pagod na) *yawn* san punta? pagod ako e"
"Hooters."

Magic word e. How can I say no to that? :P

Onsyor Blues

Don't you just love it when you can find the perfect song to what you're currently going through?

Ako ang nakikita, ako ang nasisisi
Ako ang laging may kasalanan
Paggising sa umaga, meeting ang almusal
Bago pumasok sa opis
Kapag nangangatwiran, ako'y pagagalitan
Di ko alam ang gagawin
Ako'y sunud-sunuran, ayaw man lang pakinggan
Nasasaktan ang damdamin.

Ako'y walang kalayaan
Sunod sa utos lamang.

Paggaling sa opis, diretso na ng Sterling
Wala naman akong aabutan
Wala doon si Arvin, wala doon si Ceejay
Si Glenn ang naghihintay
Pagtawag ng barkada, sa kanila'y sasama
Lagot na naman paglarga
Kapag nangangatwiran, ako'y pagagalitan
Di ko alam ang gagawin.

Ako ang nakikita, ako ang nasisisi
Ako ang laging may kasalanan.

Brewed Iced Tea?

The Chicago office pantry...

I like it better than the one back home. Water and ice dispenser, brewed coffee (may decaf and french roast pa), and Swiss Miss hot choco packets. There's one thing though that I still can't figure out:

Brewed Iced Tea.

First time I was there, I pulled a 16 oz styro cup from the dispenser on the wall, poured out some brewed iced tea and added ice. Nilagyan ko pa ng straw.

Pwe! Ang pait! Yun pala tea lang yun. na may ice. (Iced tea nga naman diba?).

I had to put in lemon juice and sugar pa pala (stupid). In Manila kasi you just get it from the dispenser then drink agad. Here, tinitimplahan pa... and it's not iced tea mix + water + ice. Here it's brewed tea + lemon juice (in packets) + sugar + ice.

My second stab in making iced tea was worse. I put in too much lemon juice. Pwe! Ang asim! It tasted more like lemon juice than iced team. Third try, I added too much sugar. Inistraight ko na lang para di sayang.

I think it only started to taste like iced tea in my 7th try. It still tastes awful though...

Life, Weather, Bridges and Water in Chicago

So many random stories I don't know where to start. So many things have already happened but haven't got time to blog about.

So... where do I start?

Life here in Chicago is cool! Office is just 2 blocks away, we have a nice chilly weather, people are nice and living here also has given me a feeling of self accomplishment since I have to do everything here on my own. No maids, no labanderas, no cooks... just me. I'm not really good at it yet but I'm getting the hang of it.

***

Like I said, the office is just a 2 blocks away and walking there hasn't been a problem for me. I enjoy walking in the cold weather, walking through downtown Chicago, staring at the buildings, breezing through pedestrian crossings, gazing at occassional limos/porsches/bmw's that drive by and just freezing my nose off in the process. I like the cold. I walk outside on a 12 C degree night (plus wind chill factor) with just a T-shirt and a thin jacket tapos sa tabi pa ko ng river naglalakad. This afternoon, I walked all the way to Old Navy to look for an office jacket and I noticed I was the only one with just that attire. The others had fur coats, leather jackets, super kapal jackets tapos I'm still in my "Baguio Attire"...weirdo...

***

I had a blast last night. It was just the second time I actually went out and tried to have fun in Chicago. The first time was when Ceej, Che and Ann (someone I just met but feels like I've known her for years) walked around Michigan Ave. This time, it was supposed to be a big welcoming event for me and Che with all the Accenture onshore people all the way to Chinatown that was reduced into a Kat & Arn gimmick (even Che was busy :(...) Kat toured me though the north part of downtown Chicago and we went to four of the would be my favorite spots here. The first one is the 8-storey Sports Authority building 2-3 blocks from here which has all the sporting goods you'll need. Back in Manila, I looooove sports shops even I'm not yet cleared to play. So many stuff I wanted to buy - caps, New England Brady jersey, baseball mitts and it was the first time I saw skis, skiboards and other stuff that's not available back in the RP. Right across that is the biggest McDonald's I've been to. It has two floors, plenty of seats (some hi tech and some are lounges), a dessert and coffee bar, a McDonald's museum and escalators! Cool! We didn't eat there though... we ate in the other building across that - Portillos. Haay... my first Chicago burger/fries/drink combo. I just ordered for a "cheeseburger, large fries and large coke" which in Manila is just a snack for me but I ended up with a huge burger with everything on it (talo pa Big Mac), a bag of fries and a BIG styrofoam cup of coke. I used to devour these things in under a minute but that one took me a while to finish. To walk off what we ate, Kat and I went to John Hancock Centre just in time before closing time. What a view! It was one of the few places where you can view Michigan, Indiana, Wisonsin and obviously, Chicago. Great place! Cool gimmick though she was just a one-person welcoming committee. All the walking took a tool on my knees though as it was the first time it was stretched for a looong time. Jes' cool!

***

When walking to the office, I always walk through a drawbridge to cross the Chicago river. The bridge has this pedestrian sidewalk that rattles and clangs when cars drive by. The sidewalk is made up of thin steel sheets and there are crevices where you can see the river below. Sometimes I have the feeling that these sheets may not be connected properly to the bridge and stepping on the wrong side of the sheet transforms it into a trap door. One time, I was walking through that bridge, all smiles as usual then suddenly this bus sped by, violently rattling all the metal sheets. Ayan napamura tuloy ako.

***

The bathroom faucet has three settings. There's "Pucha that's cold", there's "Pucha that's hot" and there's just plain "pucha...". I'm still trying to figure it out. I think the cold water is the default water and hot water comes 10-20 seconds late. "Pucha that's cold" setting is my first choice in the morning. Not that I wanted it that way but I always forget in the morning that Chicago water is cold. Manila water is lukewarm (...and dirty). By the way, Chicago water is one of the cleanest in the US. I'm still getting used to drinking straight from the faucet. Anyways, the second setting, "pucha that's hot" is really really hot. Coffee water hot. Yes, it's steaming. Get the idea how hot that is? Now imagine showering with that in the morning... ouch. The last setting is the curveball setting. If you expect hot water, it comes out cold. If you expect cold water, it comes out hot. "pucha" nga naman diba?

Walking through Wacker

Me and Ceej on the way to Che's in Michigan Ave.



Ann, me and Che

Touchdown Chicago!

After weeks of stress, of training and practicing answering questions in front of a mirror while maintaining a smile (ala beauty pageant), of indecisions and one week of panic buying... finally I'm here.

I will (and already do) miss so many things back home - my family, my hamsters, my car, etc... which is why I arrived here not entirely happy but I didn't wanna come here and just sulk on my decision of leaving home. I came here to work to, enjoy as much as I can and to try not to let MyScheduling blow up.

For all those na di ko nasabihan pala... my apologies. Everything happened so fast, as in faaaast. I'm here in the Chicago... and if I owe you something in Manila, I'll pay you back in a few months. :P I

As usual, the journey was excruciating. The checkin line for Northwest in NAIA was a mile long, I terribly lacked sleep and I had to carry around a clunky laptop bag and a full sports bag all the time (note to self: either carry a light bag or make sure it has wheels). I just wanted to make sure I do everything right so Che and I don't end up in China (or Timbuktu). By the way, we ran into Cindy who's my S20 blockmate back in college (what were the odds of that?!?). First time I saw here since... Gokongwei days. :)

Finally we were out of Manila and arrived in...

Nagoya,Japan!

Well, there wasn't anything special here. It was only a 30 minute wait


[Nagoya] Cindy and some handsome fellow...

After that it was the horrible, turbulent flight to...

Detroit, Michigan!

It was one of the most horrifying sights in my life... the wobbling wing of a Boeing 747 as the plane violently shook up, down, left, right spilling flight attendants' coffee and tea filled pitchers. Oh, did I mention I love watching "Aircrash Investigations" in National Geographic? It's not a good idea to watch that before your flight. Anyways, I only got a few minutes of sleep because of that. The movie was kinda good though: Monster in Law, XXX 2 (The movie ha... di yung rating), and March of the Penguins. There was an oldie show earlier but I ditched that for my Calvin and Hobbes comic book. Upon reaching Detroit, my legs were wobbly, my eyes were puffy and my tummy was like "what the hell was that?!? there's no way that was beef". Cindy went ahead to her next destination while Che and I had to wait for almost 2 hours for our next flight, which I didn't really complain about - we needed rest.


[Detroit] The view from the seat where I was waiting...


[Detroit] Che and the same handsome dude...

Detroit airport is cool. A walkalator and a mono rail! The shops were good though it was expensive as expected. My first purchase was... a $1.75 bottle of Sprite. hehehe

After 2 hours, we left and was finally in

Chicago, Illinois! (aka the Chinese village of Tsi Ka Gaw... sorry Karlene hehehe)

We were too drained to take pictures already. Weather was good. Not hot, not chilly... just right. The welcoming committee of Ceej, Ann and Arves were there which was a welcome sight. The cab driver who drove us all the way to our apartment was interesting. He looked like a musician. Inside the cab was a poster for a Brazilian Latin music group's CD launching or something. The person in the center looked familiar... wow! he WAS a musician. Kaya pala pag sakay namin nag play agad sya ng latin instrumental CD. Maybe he was plugging it hehehe. Shrewd. Finally I met some of things I heard so much about but never saw in real life... The Sterling, The apartment (which I believe was the apartment also of previous onshore people), our office building and the "Oh my God, cell phone yan?!?" MyScheduling Chicago Primary Support phone. Also, now I understood Mahar's latest blog entry... it did smell like chocalates here. (I can now imagine my dad making a joke where the punchline will be "Chicogolates"). Just a few hours in and I already owe Che 20 bucks and Ceej a burrito. (Thanks Ceej! Sorry natulugan ko kayo...)

Haaay... after months of preparation and stress, we're finally here. For now I can only sigh and smile. :)

One Flight Up, One Flight Down

Elevator going down... stops at 18th floor. Person slowly walks in, presses "17" and everyone in the elevator groans silently. Me? Of course I have to be professional and just ignore though sometimes I have that "anak ng..." yamot look.

The delay isn't really that long. I timed it one time (ganun ako ka bored sa elevator) and it only took around 25 seconds which is the same time it takes me to go to the pantry or walk to the mail bin and back or think up of an excuse how come some features are not working in our application. It's really more on the momemtum stopper... the "delayed feeling". Look, the scene here is is slowing down to 18th, stopping, door opening, person entering, door closing, going down, stopping again, door opening, person leaving then door closing before finally going again. Sometimes this is even compounded by people going down from 17th to 16th. (By the way, the same applies going up.) See, even reading the whole process is such a pain.

...and is it me or does the door pause an extra second or two (or three) after the person just stepped off the elevator? Tapos hihirit pa ata ng "Sorry, to keep you waiting"

Haayyy, you guys are fit naman e. Use the stairs!

...and take a bath for crying out loud.

Being a geek, Men in drag and Handbags

I still remembered one of the old stories back in college wherein she and her barkada would pass by one of my classes in the Gokongwei building and see me seated front and center. Kakahiya, what a nerd! The reason I sit there is that I easily get distracted and most of the time, I'm seated beside Deney (ako sa front-center-left, si Deney sa front-center-right) where I can easily ask questions if I don't understand something.

Anyways, this suddenly popped in my mind because last Tuesday, I was seated front and center again in a "Best Practices and Techniques for Developing and Designing Advanced Database Applications" session (and I admit I was really interested with the topic) Once a nerd, always a nerd.

~
Last week, we had this "MISSter CIO" thing which was basically a "men in drag" pageant show. Note, men... no queers. I've never really heard of an event like this before eventhough Mags told me they had a lot of these events in UP. We "assigned" someone from our team to be the contestant and a crew of 9 or 10 people handled the dance routines, costumes, speeches, etc... It was a lot of fun though especially during the pageant itself where we ended up with the "Best in National Costume" which translated to Monday burger meals hehe :D Great job by Clint and the Crew! For pics, check out this site. :)

~
Yesterday, I had to bring Mags' handbag from her workstation to the clinic where doctors were recommending that she be sent home since she was ill. To get to the clinic, I had to ride down to the 12F and hitch a ride back to 29F where the clinic was. Bag in hand, I reached 12F with no problems... didn't run into any of our leads or managers, didn't run into anyone I know. The elevator going up was empty... good! then it stopped in the 26F... then around 12 people came in and packed the elevator - Accenture developers, leads and a manager from a different project... then I had to walk to the back area of the elevator... then I hid the bag behind me... then the elevator stopped at 29F and no one else was getting off... then I had to say "excuse me" to tell the other people behind the door to get off first so I can get off as well... then they saw the bag... then they looked at me... then there was an awkward silence... then the doors shut and continued up... together with all the pogi points I've accumulated through time.

Why Today's Not Any Typical Day

• Today's one of those very rare days when most newspaper headlines are about one POSITIVE story - Manny Pacquiao beating Hector Velazquez, Brian Viloria knocking out Eric Ortiz, Rey Bautista knocking out Felix Flores Murillo and Erik Morales losing to Zahir Raheem.

Side note: there's a story line behind every match but I think the most interesting is the one behind the Viloria-Ortiz match. Last May 28, Viloria battled Ruben Contreras, a known Mexican boxer. Fight was stopped when Contreras complained of a headache then had a seizure a few minutes later. He underwent surgery to stop a hemorrhage around his brain and was in a coma. He made significant progress and Viloria invited him to watch the match versus Ortiz.

Ortiz came out quite cocky and even announced that he dedicated this match to Ruben Contreras. He even walked down ringside and posed for pictures with him. Match started and Ortiz went down hard in the 1st round. He tried to get up but he fell again halfway. It's like a cartoon. He was ok though. Viloria was interviewed and he said that he also dedicate this match to Contreras and posed for pictures with him.

It's just not good when you come out, dedicate a match for someone then lose terribly. Kakahiya...

Anyways... back to the list..

• It's Ching's birthday! Happy birthday Ching!
• Today marks exactly one year of no basketball, no running, no badminton and no real exercise. Yep, I blew out my knee exacty a year ago... and it's still awfully weak :(

last but certainly not the least...

• Happy three years and eight months B. :)

Blog Color Should Be...

I was blog hopping all through lunch and I noticed that these blog quizzes are everywhere. Most of them are from blogthings.com, which I visited and checked out other uh... blog things. Lotsa quizzes! Some I already got through mail. I tried some... nothing interesting except for this one:

Your Blog Should Be Yellow

You're a cheerful, upbeat blogger who tends to make everyone laugh. You are a great storyteller, and the first to post the latest funny link. You're also friendly and welcoming to everyone who comments on your blog.

What Color Should Your Blog or Journal Be?

Give Starbucks Another Chance

"Your name sir?"
"Rowan."
"Johann?"
"Rowan."



Hmmm.... puede na...

UAAP Saturday

ADMU vs UST
DLSU vs UP

Ateneo Gym.

Perfect :)

Well, tickets are cheaper at the Ateneo Gym and it's a lot nearer to our houses so we just couldn't pass this event up.

We arrived during halftime of the ADMU UST game. ADMU and DLSU were at the gallery near Katipunan and UST and UP were at the other so we were forced to be Ateneo fans for half a game. We didn't know any Ateneo chants/cheers except for "Get that ball", which we changed to "Get that boy" as an experiment. Wow, I guess it doesn't matter what you shouted as long as you did. Reyes can hit a 3 and I could shout "Tsamba lang yan!" and no one would hear (nor care).

It was the first time I watched an Ateneo game at the Ateneo gym and I think it's just unfair. I observed the entire gallery and everyone is rooting for Ateneo except for a small group of 60-70 wearing yellow. More than half of the UST gallery is rooting for Ateneo. The two sides behind the boards are rooting for Ateneo. The janitors are rooting for Ateneo. The vendors are rooting for Ateneo. The cats and mice were rooting for Ateneo. That makes it just that small yellow dot in the crowd, the UST players, coaches and crew, and five secret fans in the stands (cheers for both teams hehehe) rooting for UST.

Last two minutes came and Ateneo managed to cut down the once 20+ point lead to 2. As expected the crowd was alive. They were shouting different Ateneo cheers which I couldn't follow anymore. For us, we wanted Ateneo to lose so that the 2,3 and 4 slots will be up for grabs and Ateneo has been having a good year so we're cheering for the underdogs and oh... did I mention I've been a La Sallian for more than 16 years? Cheered for UST we did. Crucial defensive play for Ateneo and Kramer missed a defensive switch enabling one of the UST players to score and ice the game. Timeout Ateneo. Tenorio was furious and at Kramer and was shouting at him while walking back to the bench. That dude sure have guts, being small and shouting and pointing at someone as big as Kramer. Guts... but that's also a lot of leadership. Final buzzer sounds and no miracle for Ateneo. The big blue gallery was silent except for a shouting and jumping yellow dot, players and coaches celebrating below and five actors in the stands pretending to be upset. Ateneo lost but the crowd was still cheering for the Blue Eagles and they sung the school anthem still loudly and proudly. Now that's class. :)

Ok. On to the second game so we slipped down to the lower box seats and was now courtside just a few feet away from the UP bench. Manny Ramos, BJ Manalo and some tall dude I don't know were sitting on my left and guess who's on my right, Mang Jack! It's been a long time since I last saw him. We wanted to boo Vainio and Gavino but baka i-dunk kami e. Wag na lang.

There are a lot of stuff I got to see that you only do on live games:

• What happens during a timeout? Players walk back to the bench either celebrating or shouting at each other. On the bench, trainers are icing up the players just like boxers. The cheers slowly dying down.
• There's a LOT of cursing going on. Someone steals the ball from your point guard - *?$#&%*!. Opponent gets offensive rebound - *?#&%*!. Players curse in the court - *?$#&%*!. Lahat na lang minumura.
• Injuries. 6 foot + players screaming in pain. There was a UP player who tweaked his ankle and was really hurt. Not a pretty picture. :(
• Courtside reporters practicing.
• It's hot in the Ateneo Gym. The fan doesn't reach us. :( *whew*
• Cheering on momentum. One play you're just sitting and gently clapping. Two steals and one three pointer after, you're off your seat and shouting insanely. Well, actually we do that at home too :P

It was a close game between UP and DLSU but at the end, Tang and Yeo caught fire and the full court trap was clicking. Last two minutes and DLSU was up big. Here's where I noticed more things you only will on live games:

• Tang and Yeo were pulled out and the crowd gave them a standing ovation for a job well done.
• The UP gallery was filing out now to avoid the traffic. Game's decided anyway.
• Mang Jack was singing "uwi na kayo!" :P

Lastly, the game ended with DLSU up big. Crowd was cheering then I got to do something I haven't done for a loooong time - sing the alma mater song and I don't do it with the pumping fists - mine was just stationary - old school high school way hehehe I suddenly missed my high school and college days.

Which Filipino Food Are You?

I borrowed this from Liza... Actually she taught this to me... Oh fine, I stole it from her (thanks liz anyway :) )



Halo-Halo: A medly of beans and fruits mixed with
ice, ice cream, and condensed milk

Which Filipino Food Are You?
brought to you by

Halo-halo, I'm not surprised. I knew I was nuts.

12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country

I got this one from Mahar.

A booklet authored by Alexander Ledesma Lacson entitled "Twelve (12) Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country", has been making the rounds in Metro Manila. It may be may be a "voice in the wilderness” but Fr. Ruben Tanseco, S.J. has called the proposal, "very concrete, practical and doable" actions for ordinary Filipinos.
These 12 simple things are:

1. Follow traffic rules -- Why is that the most important? The answer is simple. Traffic rules are the simplest of our laws. If we learn to follow them, it will be the lowest form of national discipline that we can develop. Since it is totally without monetary cost, it should be easy for us to comply with, and therefore should provide a good start.
2. Whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt. -If a seller does not issue an official receipt when you buy a product, the seller may or may not remit the tax to the government. Without an O.R., there is no record of the sale transaction, and the tax that you paid may not be remitted to the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
3. Do not buy smuggled goods. Buy local, buy Filipino. -- It may not be good economics to buy 100 percent local products. What I suggest is for us to take a "50-50" buying attitude. This means that we must develop the attitude of using 50 percent of our budget for local products and the other 50 percent for imported choices.
4. When you talk to others, especially foreigners, speak positively of our race and our country -- this is best addressed to the rich and the middle class in our country, who have contact with the outside world. It is they who talk to, dine or deal with foreigners either here or abroad. It is what they say and do which creates impressions about us among foreigners.
5. Respect your traffic officer, policeman, soldier and other public servants -- There is nothing like the power of respect. It makes a person proud. It makes one feel honorable. At the same time, courtesy to others is good manners. It is class and elegance and kindness. It is seeing the value and dignity in the other man. It is, in fact, a mark of a most profound education.
6. Do not litter. Dispose your garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve. -- As Louis Armstrong says in his song: "I see trees of green, red roses, too, I see them bloom for me and you and I think to myself, what a wonderful world."
7. Support your church. (or charitable/ civic organizations -- :-)
8. During elections, do your solemn duty. -- Honesty, more than a masteral or doctorate degree, is what gives credibility. And credibility is essential because it is a leader's link to the people. It is what makes the people look to one direction, follow a common vision, and perform a uniform act. In short, credibility is what makes people follow the leader.
9. Pay your employees well. -- No exercise is better for the human heart than to reach down and lift someone else up. This truly defines a successful life. For success is the sum, not of our earthly possessions, but of how many times we have shown love and kindness to others.
10. Pay your taxes.-- In 2003, P83 billion was collected from individual income taxes. But 91 percent of this amount came from salaried workers from the government and private sector, people who had no choice since their income taxes were withheld mandatorily. Only P7 billion of the P83 billion came from businessmen and professionals like doctors, lawyers, accountants and architects, among others.
11. Adopt a scholar or adopt a poor child. -- You can make a difference in the future of our country by making a difference in the world of children.
12. Be a good parent. Teach your kids to follow the law and to love our country. -- Today's children will someday rule and lead this world. But whether they will be bad rulers or good leaders will depend largely on how we raise them today. Our future is in the hearts and minds of our children.

Lastly, I'd like to add this: Support OPM. -- Especially these days. We have lots of bands breaking out - both indie and label and they sound great. Buy original CD's and try watching them live. :)

The Past Four Days

...has been, hmmm, colorful. Glad to be back home and blogging. Rather than bore you guys with a big essay as to what happened, I'll just share some excerpts of events since Sunday. :) I'm not sure whether to rate it as happy or sad so I'll just rate the events as I write and tally it all in the end. cool?

Sunday morning, I contacted my mom's manicurista to get rid of the troublesome ingrown in my left toe that has been causing my foot to bleed for the past two weeks. The nail's already deep and it wasn't a pretty site. It was a painful experience but I'm glad that's over. The manicurista cleaned off the rest of my toes (is that what you call all the fingers in your foot?). Then she placed some pink stuff on it. Not sure what that was but now my toes are all colored pink... hot pink. (looks girly... but no one will see it naman e... -10)

Went to Metrowalk and finally the Simpsons DVD Season 5 set is out. (I've been waiting for this for a long long time... +20)

Went up against Pao in billiards and I FINALLY RAN OUT A RACK! cool! It wasn't a gimme rack either and I finished the table with no flukes. (I'll have to rate this really high since this is one of my personal goals this year... +50).

Run out a rack - An expression in the game of 9-Ball where a players pots all balls from 1 to 9 in one turn.

I lost 10-9. (Who cares? -5)

Monday dawn, I woke up due to severe pain. It felt like someone was stabbing me. I woke up mom and dad to drive me to the ER. Dad decided to drive... in second gear! D'oh! I was squirming in pain and the car was "rushing" at 50 km/h in second gear. I told dad to pull over coz I'm driving from here. (Driving at 110 km/h in narrow roads in pain... -10)

At the ER, they stuck a dextrose tube up my right hand. Ow. Now I have to do everything left handed. (Good thing I'm kinda ambidextrous... -20)

Test results came back positive. It was bad. I've got blood everywhere! (Bleeding is never good... -20)

They injected painkillers to... er... kill the pain (duh). I also got a text message from Nikko at 4am. The first sentences I've read or heard so far that didn't have the words "blood" and "bleeding". (first positive signs... +15)

I was in shorts. I was lying in a bed in the ER. My toes are showing. DAMN THEY'RE PINK! HOT PINK! (no more pogi points... -15)

Medical City is nice. It should be anyway since it's new. Admitting was bad though. I was rushed at 4am and was admitted at 11am. Where was I during those 7 hours? in the ER corridor, lying in bed like a model... with pink toes... (nice place, bad system... I guess that cancels out... +-0)

I was brought to ultrasound to see how was everything and the results were inconclusive. The images did not show what was wrong and so I was scheduled for something more powerful -> a CT scan. This means I'll be out until Tuesday. (no work... but will entail backlog. I'm not able to relax anyway... -10)

Medical City has delivery services from the restaurants downstairs. All you have to do is contact their extension number. Cool! Among the restaurants available where Kitaro, Smokey's, Subway, Hungry Hippo, Pizza Hut, Basta Pasta, Dimsum and Dumplings, Max's, and 5 more that I forgot. :S (convenient! + 10)

CT scan was a horrible experience. First they injected me with 5mL of contrast to test if I'll have any allergic reactions to it. First 5 minutes were good but then I developed hives everywhere. Oh great... They had to rush and inject me (on the other arm) with anti allergy stuff. They had to prick me real deep coz that's how that med should be given. Ow. My left arm was now numb. My right hand is immobile. Then they injected 95mL more of that contrast stuff which was syrup like which means it's painful... very painful. They also warned me that that contrast stuff will be cold to my hands but hot to my internal organs and that the anti allergy thing has a drowziness effect. After the scan I looked drunk. They told me I had to stay at least until Wednesday. (It really felt horrible... -50)

Here's a quick fact on dextrose - there's this thing called backflow wherein if the dextrose bottle is empty, the flow reverses and now your blood is being pumped up. I felt kinda weak that afternoon then I saw that backflow thing. The nurse came running in then took out a big syringe. "ANO YAN?!? ANO YAN?!?" It was for the dextrose pala hehe... kala ko sa kin. Na tense tuloy yung ibang nurse sa background hehe. (exciting... in a not so good way... -20)

Nikko, his gf and Mags dropped by. It was nice having visitors :) Nikko made me get off the bed, unhook my dextrose thing and open the door with my foot (ala karate kid) though. (thanks guys! +50)

Oh great, now I have an ingrown on my other foot. (Ow... -20)

Docs came and finally signed me off (ugh, the term...) to be sent home. I guess the meds given to me worked but I really have to careful from now on. Check out was hell. The system was bad. The system was slow. (grrr... -20)

It was interesting texting, writing, signing and brushing my teeth with my left hand... (interesting... but not really helpful in the future :S)

Final rating? 10. At least it's positive. I guess it has been so-so the last few days. Interesting... in different ways :-/

BEST QUOTES / CONVERSATIONS:

(Doc at the ultrasound room) "Nurse, pull down his shorts and apply jelly. Generous application ha." (sounds kinda sexy :p)

(Maxicare representative) "Sir, since platinum cardholder kayo, you are entitled to a package with a large private."
(Di na ko nakahirit, I developed a sudden migraine due to all the jokes that entered my head.)

(While at the CT scan, I saw the results in a monitor on the wall)
"Tsong, ARE THOSE FALLOPIAN TUBES!?!?!?!?"
"Sir kidneys nyo ho yan"

(My doc discussing the results)
"Arnold, I saw the results of your abdominal CT scan and namamaga yung mga organs mo."
"A ganyan talaga yan."
"No, I meant internally."

Starbucks Names

"Good morning Sir! So that's one short capuccino decaf. Your name sir?"
"Arnold."
"Donald?"
"No. Arnold."
"Ronald?"
"Hinde. Arnold."
"Arman?"
"(Yamot)... Ensaymada na nga lang!"

Back in my old gimmick days, college days and early office days, I frequented the nearby starbucks for a mocha frap (pag gimmick) or a capuccino (pag nasa office). They're everywhere naman diba so there's gotta be one near you right now. For some reason, they always get my name wrong and so I tried changing the names I gave para wala nang problem. I'm sure some of you used different names din hehe... Here's the one I've used so far:

ARNOLD - I guess it's because I pronounce it with an American accent and nawawala yung 'O' but still it should be audible right? Instead of "Arnold", I always get "Ronald", "Donald", "Ronnie" or "Arman". I even tried pronouncing it ala Schwarzenegger para magets nila - "Ahhhnnnuldddd". Now they think I'm a weirdo. The worst one was "Dennis" - san mo nakuha yun?!? This prompted me to switch to...

A.J. - Two letters. Tignan natin if ma misspell mo pa yan. Well, they did. It worked only twice or thrice then it became "E.J", "A.G." and "E.G.". I even got "Age". Maybe it was because it had two syllables. I'll use my other (legal) name with only one syllable which was...

JAMES - Not bad when I first tried it. Feeling Lebron. It was only misspelled once but I decided to never use it again ever. It was really really awkward drinking from a tall mocha frap that belonged to "Jane". Next I used was...

BONG - One Syllable. Easy to say. Very audible. Manly pa. (Parang the Bakal Boys from Pinoy Wrestling). Hey, I ran out of names so I had to invent one. I thought it was a good idea until one evening I was ticked off while drinking from a cup labeled "DingDong". WTF?!? Let's try someone famous na lang. A name that's in the news today. Something like...

BRAD - I've only used it thrice and they haven't misspelled it. My problem with it is everytime I give out that name, they look at my tummy, tapos either iiling or natatawa (pero pinipigil). This implicitly means "Feeling mo Brad Pitt ka?". Well yea, pakainin mo lang ng mga 40 Big Macs si Brad kamukha ko na yun. :P

Buti pa yung Nescafe coffee machine sa pantry. The problem is there are times where it mixes up a capuccino by mixing a cup of creamer, half a cup of water, and sprinkles it with powdered coffee. Grrrr....

Any suggestions?

Tagged (from MK)

Was tagged by Knoll e... :)

1. What are the things you enjoy doing when there's no one around you?
a) sing until it rains
b) turn up the volume of the radio
c) practice sound effects
d) practice cursing using American slang/idioms with an optional British accent to use against stupid drivers. "Bloody Hell! Up yours asswipe!"
e) think up of snappy jokes to use for answering possible questions that will be asked tomorrow.

2. What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level?
a) talking to B.
b) MySched Issues Updates from She (kasi it means it's already eod and time to go home)
c) burgers and fries (lowers stress but shoots up my blood pressure)
d) my hamsters
e) CSI/Simpsons/Friends marathon

3. Tag 5 friends and post it in theirs.
a) Liz
b) B
c) Pamie
d) Yas (u said u wanted a post topic hehe :P)
e) Ceej

Published!

My poem "Deployment from the 22nd Floor" was published in the fuCIOn newsletter and I won myself a 500 Peso SM GC! This will be the first time I ever won something from a poetry contest considering I've been joining all types of poetry competitions in high school and college... and I did it with my most nonsense poem written so far. :P



This was the article about me:



I didn't mention anymore in the article above because I wanted to make it short in simple, but I like writing these nonsense poems lately because it's easy to sneak in a serious thought or message. It's something like a half-meant joke.

Try reading between the lines ;)

Stories I Owe

"Arn, where are the posts you promised us in your previous entries?"

Er... Uh... well, I've been busy and my internet connection is really slow and I've plenty of stuff to do... ok fine I forgot. :P Thanks for reminding me though :)

African Lovebirds (from 06212005)

One day, a pair of our African lovebirds/parakeets escaped from their cage and hid behind a clay pot. Unlike Mayas, these birds haven't been outside their cages probably their whole lives and so they decided to hide instead of flying away. So as they hid behind the pot, I snuck up on it then prepared to grab both birds. Before I did, I asked mom if they bite and she said it's just as strong as a clothesline ipit. Shouldn't be painful right? Wrong! When I snatched both birds, they bit me and left 2 wounds on each hand (one from the upper beak and another from the lower beak). OUCH! I let them go for a second then snatched them again this time covering their beaks... well at least I covered them. They bit me again for two more wounds on each hand and this time they just wouldn't let go. I already released them inside the cage and one still had its beak stuck into my hand, viciously shaking its head. Parang nilabas lahat ng sama ng loob sa kamay ko. Grrrr... The first band aid only lasted 2 minutes as it was quickly soaked in blood.

Damn birds.


Oya Story (from 06302005)

There was this person who visited a tribe in the mountains. After weeks and weeks of studying their way of life, he concluded that the best way to help these people was to set up a system for them - laws, rules, a governing body and special roles. One day, he summoned all the members of the village and laid out his plans. For each statement that the person said, the villagers would all shout "Oya!".

"We need to create laws and empower people to enforce them!"
"OYA!"
"We need to store all of our food in one location then equally ration them to each person!"
"OYA!"

After plenty more of "Oya!" later, he concluded his speech and while walking back to the village square through a herd of cows with the chief, he said "I think I did pretty well there. All of the villagers seem to like my idea". The chief just nodded and nodded but then jumped back and shouted "Oh be careful! You might step on the oya!"

Hey it was funny back in grade 7!

Me and Kitchie

South Border at Bagaberde

Back to the list:

#25 - watch a live gig/concert. I've been wanting to watch a live performance (preferably by an indie band) for a long time already. Pao has this report to do in Music class where he has to watch a live band and do some analyses on it so might as well go together. We were able to catch South Border and K24/7 at Bagaberde last night. K24/7 is an R&B band and a good opening act. I don't have any negative comments on them except that hmmm... maybe they can mix in a little rap into their music. They sung 7 or 8 straight R&B's that I was looking for the skip button in my beer bottle.

South Border just rocks! They started with some unknown songs before bringing in the good stuff. I admit I'm a fan of the Luke Mejares fronted South Border and replacing him with Duncan and Vince was a decent (but not good a) move. After watching them last night, I take it back. It's a GREAT move because of one thing: Luke couldn't have pulled what the two did last night. Call me shallow for basing it on just one performance but hey, I'm still a Luke fan, I even have his corny-named album, I like his version of 214 , but now I'd rather have the two front South Border instead.

Some more RT's for the night:

• I parked outside on the street right behind a big No Parking sign.
• Bagaberde is a great place with a good crowd and has the biggest FlowerHorn I've seen.
• Their pool table is probably the slowest I've seen.
• The bouncer was a big hulking dude with shades, a moustache and tatoos all over his arms. Reminds me of Igno from Pugad Baboy. Now that's a bouncer!
• I drank twice my average number of beer bottles on a Saturday night. (yea, I had two :P)
• I wonder what Pao's next report is going to be? Burger eating? Human behaviour in strip clubs? :)

My To Do List

Here's the deal again for the week: It's going to be like seven Saturdays so do everything you weren't able to do because of work. Sounds fun right? Problem is, there's a catch - a very limited budget. I spent too much last month that it ate up my allocated budget for this month. Damn budget plan.

Here are some of the items in my to do list:

#24 - watch UAAP with the gang. DLSU vs NU then FEU vs UP. Tickets cost 220 LB and 100+ UB. I promised I'd treat them so that's 5 x 220. Good thing it was Pao's UPCAT and so I had to call the whole thing off. How convenient. :P

#17 - wash car. It hasn't been cleaned for the past three weeks and now it looks like the swamp thing. I find this chore annoying because it seems pointless - the weather is just not ideal for it since it's sunny in the morning then it pours in the afternoon. I can't have it cleaned because of the whole budget thing so I had to do it myself. Going against logic, I took out the car during a windy and dark afternoon (minutes before an obvious downpour) and started washing my car. It looked so stupid that a kid walking nearby asked his yaya "Bakit niya nililinis yung kotse nya e uulan naman?". "Ano sabi niya yaya?". "Yaya, bakit siya ganun nakatingin sa kin pero tinuturo nya yung sky? at bakit yun yung daliri na gamit nya?".

Damn nosy kid.

#31 - dispose old office files. I have a pile of old DD's and status reports in my room and I couldn't just throw it away in the trash because of the whole company security thing. The first option? Get a paper shredder! When I saw how much those cost, go to plan B: an old flower pot, a pack of matches then slowly hide a copy of the Clean Air Act under the rug.

I know it would have been interesting if I did most of these ala McGyver.

Oh well. Deep down, it's sad how everything really boils down to money. :(

Seven Straight Saturdays

"Pitchin WILD in the 9th"

The best sentence to describe me the past few weeks. I've been logging 10 hours of work per day through lunch for the past few months. I've become someone that I've been avoiding to become since January - a slave to work routine. Before I burn out (again), I opted to use 40 of my offsettable hours to take the week off and catch up on things I've missed or skipped because of work. I even made a list of these - some interesting, some boring, some just plain pathetic... :-/

By the way, in case you're wondering what with the baseball expressions, it's baseball season! Go BoSox! :)

"Pitchin WILD in the 9th" - baseball term where the starting pitcher is already tired because he's been pitching since the 1st inning. It means that someone is present and working but may be inefficient and ineffective. In desperate need of relief.

Tag-Board's back!

Hey! The message board is up again! i think the whole tag-board went down. Not sure why but... nah doesn't matter. :)