Champagne-lined Clouds

Move closer, set my world on fire…

2009-07-24T06:25:00.000-07:00

I wrote more when I was less required to. It was never a problem, even as early as six pm, beer still buzzing in head, nicotine not entirely up in the head yet. A mere tapping of keys end up with a page full of useless words. Now, the curse of the blinking cursor is stronger, and the white of a page is no longer a friend.

I need to write. But now, that comes in a different sense. Thinking, writing it down, listening to you talk to your head should be like a lie you could easily slip away. Turn off the lights, turn on the rain, and pick up a bottle of beer on your way. How tempting.

Every piece of letter on first rehearse, go back and make the right decision to not save.

The Problem with Blogging

2009-07-03T06:57:00.001-07:00

Working in an industry that pays you to blog carries about difficulties that most bloggers face, with some additional toppings. Going to work everyday, churning your brains to dish out about four blogs on a client’s service or product creates a thin film that seems to block the usual consciousness of those who blog for personal reasons. It creates the illusion that it’s okay to flood out all thoughts and publish them on the web. It creates a false illusion that yes, the whole of the internet is your friend.

So you publish a post, receive both positive AND negative feedback, and all of a sudden, you say, well, it’s my personal blog. You cannot hold what I say against me because they are purely my opinions. No matter how rotten I write it, no matter how intrusive the topics, no matter how dangerously private the information is, others should not care because this is no longer for the company. These are my own opinions. Wrong.

Writing something and publishing it on the web for all the world to see is no longer something as private as an email to your closest friends. It is there, everyone can see it, and everyone also has the right to place whatever opinions they have about it. You both have equal rights. Face the facts. You get immediate responses, both bad and good. And this is the juice of the brilliance of blogging.

If you’re not open to face the facts, you either cut back on writing, or, swallow your disillusionment and deal with it.

There are a lot of wasted internet space that talk about the nonsensical world. However, that is not for me, or any reader can judge. The blogsphere is a medium for those with similar ideas to converge, communicate, and share. And, whether we like it or not, there are those who share the same love of the supposed nonsense of who their favorite heroes are, or whether Megan Fox is as hot as the movies portray her to be.

Fucking Evil European Clowns

2009-01-15T05:43:00.000-08:00

I always knew clowns were evil. This is the first of a series of blogs about proof of the evil that are clowns. They are out to conquer the world with their over-applied lipstick, afro hair and star painted eye make-up. They intend to turn us into something like them, beginning with shoe-size.

I am going to have nightmares later tonight.

Long Vacation

2009-01-01T07:43:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking of going on a vacation. A really long one. Probably a week long. That's long enough in our line of work I guess. I want to go to a really nice beach, with no acquaintances. Not the usual Samal.

I already pictured it out. Lying on the beach, a bottle in hand, waves all over. A girl can dream, but I'm definitely going to put it on my calendar.

Exercising Bush

2008-12-13T18:55:00.000-08:00

Oh I just can't help me... Hahahahha.

Broken Zippers

2008-12-02T04:32:00.000-08:00

I never could stand a blinking cursor, except during 2 in the mornings. And if have anyone to blame, it would be my mother. I remember that first 2 am, when she made it clear I was not to leave the house, but made it too awkward for me to leave my seat, which was, at that time, the computer chair. I did not eat, did not talk, and did not sleep. I just sat there, facing the blinking cursor in its white plain again and again, until I began to move.

At first it was a forward backward movement. Typing a word or three, just enough to pretend to be working on something important. Mother just couldn’t weigh my idea of importance. It was always about the family, my father, my sister, me, sisters, brothers, aunts and uncles. I don’t even know a lot of my uncles and aunts. I know that I have an aunt who was I nun. But I forgot her name. I just remember her white and grey uniform, and her nice smile, and my not liking her, for some reason.

And there it always started. On the blinking cursor, I would eventually remember things, dreams, childhood memories, daily routines, absurd, funny, scary, it didn’t really matter, as long as I found something to do to get me to sleep. I remember the most prominent today was still about nuns, which is probably why I remember that aunt of mine.

Every day break, before I went to sleep, I would light my last cigarette and stare at the children outside the gate. Typically clean and dirt at the same time, their hair wet from their recent early baths, shirts white, but not quite. Their bags, most of it with broken zippers, are strapped on their backs. And I swear, if I ever go near them, they would smell like drool on paper. Their paper always seems to smell like that. So does their bags, and their hair. But I really couldn’t tell, they were too far away. And as I would stare at those white and green clad children, a line of nuns, usually five to seven of them, would line up, riding their old fashioned but shiny bikes. It always struck me as something picturesque, like something that came out of a movie. Their bikes were always particular, like the one Maria used to ride in the movie with a dozen kids.

Obama Wins the Election

2008-11-05T02:46:00.000-08:00

I Won the Bet

To those who have read the previous post, well, I would like to address to the person in topic, thank you for the admittance, and I understand the slight twistedness of communication. And, no, I will not say who it is.

________________________________

Obama is president. I won the bet… I am so going out this Saturday, think of the location, the menu, and the booze, and just wait until the beloved Saturday.

A bit cheerful I may be, however, I do worry for the world of Offshore Outsourcing, especially MY world of offshore outsourcing. If he really does perform the platform he had presented, then there might be a difficulty in the coming years. Perhaps less clients? Cheaper rates? Or maybe his financial advisers will counsel him to do otherwise, and we can still channel that American Dream towards our country.

Here is a copy of Obama’s speech I read from Danton Remoto’s site.

Remarks of President-Elect Barack Obama-as prepared for delivery
Election Night
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008
Chicago, Illinois

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It’s the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It’s the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he’s fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation’s promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation’s next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us to the White House. And while she’s no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you’ve sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn’t do this just to win an election and I know you didn’t do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they’ll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor’s bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won’t agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can’t solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it’s been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it’s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, “We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.” And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that’s on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She’s a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn’t vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

Bitch-blog, I'm going to Get a Hate Page for This

2008-11-03T17:34:00.000-08:00

Guess which finger she has up?

I was piss drunk last night. I had too much rhum, too much beer, too much insane talk, even delved into the Obama McCain bet. An all expense paid night out with the boyfriend, loser pays all the bills, winner gets to choose where. I bet for Obama, he’s topping the poll right now, I prefer that McCain wins, but I do believe my opposition’s explanation that in the end, racial considerations would apply on the last minute. The crazy things you get into when you’re intoxicated…

Speaking of which, have you ever stepped inside a building, or approached a person, and half-way, asked yourself, “Am I sober?” Well I have, a lot of times, and most of the time, the answer is no. But never, in my entire drunken nights or early morns, have I ever considered, going into a station such as Love FM, to greet in a certain Radio show called “iring-iring” (a term which means, in Filipino, to creep with certain dirty sexual intentions) at 11 am, greet everyone at work by stating the company name, and act in such an embarrassingly provocative manner, as described by the DJ, and be called maniac. The DJ, seeing the affinity, also describes the people in the same company in the exact same manner, naturally. What would you expect? The show evolves in the same area, and that co-worker, acted as expected of him/her by the DJ and their afternoon delight feather flurred moods.

Note to self: If in need of a boyfriend, never go to the extent of exposing your desperation by going to a radio station, announcing your cell number, or whatever it is they do there, and look for a text mate.

I mean… come on… And what the fuck is the company name for? Announce that you have a job so you can raise your market value? It’s even not the radio station, it’s the attitude of going there, dragging your company with you, wherever you belong, and acting like a complete goober just so you can get the attention. Just so that person knows, not everyone has the same low tastes as her/him, so the baduy by affiliation should really be dropped.

Don’t get me wrong, I know I will be hated after this, but I’d rather be blunt than lie. I happen to love my job, I love the people there, even with the exceptions and the stress. I don’t care if some of them don’t like me, I feel the same way sometimes, it’s normal. And sometimes, I can be such a pain. Fuck up, go ahead, but make sure its an honest mistake never to be repeated again, and not just a random hilarious act embarrassing enough for them/us to bitch-blog.

Sell-out writing

2008-10-24T05:28:00.000-07:00

For months on end, I have been writing for sites on background checks, obituary searches, public records, and eye creams. It has to be more than 500 characters, it has to contain the specified keywords, and it has to be spun a gazillion times. During breaks, there are also the blog entries of bad English I get to edit (thank God for the chocolate duo, Lem and Em substitutions). Bah! I believe I’ve already loosened by spacebar key for really bad writing, and I have to admit, on most cases, it has been difficult for me to write without reading something beforehand, thus, the lack of blog entries.

Writing for the web has its own pros and cons (money not factored in). On one side, researching for a topic you recently considered to be absurd is a definite eye opener. Learn new things, share about them, and all the usual cliché. However, continuous writing about a singular topic way outside your border of interests is exhausting, boring, and produces a major glitch in the way you write. Present the information, period. It’s not even Wikipedia worthy.

Cacophony of Sounds and Shiny Things

2007-09-12T17:26:00.000-07:00

I enjoy the way the sleepless night and the blood in my coffee and beer stream gets a hold of me. They have a unique way of forcing their presence in my system. The sense are heightened, all is crisp, the street, the grey clouds, the car paint flash, the guard’s shiny plastic shoes, the remnant of last nights memories, the dancing smoke, even migraines flick, at this point in time, seems fun.

Girl Crushes

2008-10-02T01:37:00.000-07:00

I pay my tribute to girl crushes and girl talks, girl talks meaning talking about girl stuff, and talking about hot girls per se. Plus, some long long ago stuff.

"Bullets"

Come fly down, like a singing bird
Sings your name, I am still the same,
Black and white, no you're not to blame,
Holly sweet...put me down to shame...

Lights in the car in the park,
I'm falling on my face I know who we are...
And I ain't looking down for the rest of the night
A bullet in my head ended late last night...

Jack and coke, please take off your coat,
Come and smile, please stay here a while,
Come and dance, shuffle with a glance,
When you're gone, bring in for the dawn...

She's shaking in the car with the gun in her hands,
Falling over love and a sweet romance,
And I ain't never thought it could come down to this,
A bullet in my head, with the sweetest kiss...it's in my head

It's in my head
My head
I know

She's shaking in the car with the gun in her hands,
Falling over love and a sweet romance,
And I ain't never thought it could come down to this,
A bullet in my head
My head
My head

It's in my head
It's in my head
Now it's in my head
It's in my head
Now it's in my head

"My Favorite Accident"

I got the message long before you said you knew
There was no chance of us at all
With no velocity and empty-headed hard and far-too-long
I spent two years alone with you
Just when I thought I had forgotten
You came back soft without a sound

You said we were an accident
With accidents you’ll never know what could have been
So we were an accident
You’ll always be my favorite one

You hit the road and left me an ocean
I can't swim in the silence of your skin-skin please let me in
Side the times we never had right
Inside two years alone with you

You said we were an accident
With accidents you’ll never know what could have been
So we were an accident
You’ll always be my favorite one

We could have been (We could have been again)
Instead of accidental running always running (why can’t you believe)
We could have been (We could have been again)

Long winded promises of future company
Up close the sound remains the same
Without the reign of terror over every momentary change
We are exactly as before

You hit the road and left me an ocean
I can't swim in the silence of your skin-skin please let me in
Side the time I had to forget you
Inside no chance of us at all

"Suspension"

Lately I'm alright
and lately I'm not scared
I've figured out,
that what you do to me feels like
I'm floating on air.
I don't need to know right now
all I know is I believe
in the very thing that got us here
and now I can't leave.

Say anything, but say what you mean,
cause I'm caught in suspension.

Now,
I'm wanting this for sure
and I'll beg for nothing more.
I'll plan all day and drive all night
you'll love what's in store.
I can't seem to stop this now
even if it's not so clear,
and I'll take what I can get.
If you want me here (If you want me here)

Say anything, but say what you mean.
When you whisper you want this
your eyes tell the same.
We are gaining speed
I can barely breathe.
Cause I'm caught in suspension.

It's enough for me to get excited,
It's enough for me to feel...Oh!

Say anything, but say what you mean.
When you whisper you want this.
Your eyes tell the same.
We are gaining speed (suspension)
I can barely breathe (Oh, please say what you mean)
I'm caught in suspension (suspension)
I'm caught in suspension.

Say (say) anything (suspension)
but say what you mean (Oh, please say what you mean)
I'm caught in suspension (suspension)
I'm caught in suspension.
We are gaining speed (suspension)
I can barely breathe (Oh, I can barely breathe)
I'm caught in suspension (suspension)
I'm caught in suspension.

Say (say) anything (suspension)
but say what you mean (Oh, I can barely breathe)
I'm caught in suspension.

Improvised bomb found in Hizon Elementary School Davao

2008-08-27T02:53:00.000-07:00

Davao City has been very peaceful lately, in fact, festive what with the recently celebrated Kadayawan, which gave me my flu and sleepless nights by the way, I never would have expected a worrying event to take place.

According to Inquirer.net, an improvised explosive device was found at the back of Hizon Elementary school in Lanang, Sasa, just 2:30 today. It was reported to be powerful and designed to kill. The bomb was tipped by a concerned citizen and safely detonated in the area.

It is with mixed concern and relief that I read the news, considering the event had not happened during the Kadayawan, with massive amounts of people pouring out from their homes and different locations had been in the streets of Davao; that the bomb was found early by the police. If it had exploded, children could have been hurt, and it could have been the start of a series of similar events, and possibly, though of course, I do not wish it to be, really is an initial move.

The idea that it had been planted in a school, with innocent children as the target says a lot about the perpetrators. There is nothing left to do but have faith in the system, pray, and hope that it ends.

Dating Persona- Yes It's Another Quiz

2008-08-15T05:40:00.000-07:00

Alright, you take a quiz, it's fun to read, you post with the knowledge that no one is actually going to read it, but it's fun to pretend anyway...

The Wild Rose

Random Brutal Love Dreamer (RBLD)

shmolorful, but unpicked. You are The Wild Rose.

Prone to bouts of cynicism, sarcasm, and thorns, you excite a certain kind of man. Hoping to gather you up, he flirts and winks and asks you out, ultimately professing his love. Then you make him bleed. Why? Because you're the rare, independent, self-sufficient kind of woman who does want love, but not from a weakling.

You don't seem to take yourself too seriously, and that's refreshing. You aren't uptight; you don't over-plan. Romance-wise, sex isn't a top priority--a true relationship would be preferable. For your age, you haven't had a lot of bonafide love experience, though, and this kind of gets to core of the issue. You're very selective.

The problem is them, not you, right? You have lofty standards that few measure up to. You're out there all right, but not to be picked up by just anyone.

Your exact female opposite:

The Dirty Little Secret

Deliberate Gentle Sex Master

Always avoid: The Bachelor (DGSM)

Consider: The Vapor Trail (RBLM)

Link: The Online Dating Persona Test | OkCupid - singles | Dating
My profile name: : champagnetinted

I heart Pedicab

2008-08-06T04:54:00.000-07:00

The lyrics of "Ang Pusa Mo" by Pedicab

Aysus! Aysus!
Aysus! Aysus!
Aysus! Aysus!
Aysus! Aysus!

I.
Pwede bang hawakan
Ang katawan,
Pwede bang mahipo
Ang balahibo,
Ng pusa mo,
Ng pusa mo?

'Pag sinasaktan mo ako
'Yan ang gusto ko
'Pag sinasaktan mo ako
'Yan ang gusto ko

II.
Lalagyan ko s'ya
Ng kadena
Bibihisan ko s'ya
Na parang reyna
Ang pusa mo
Ang pusa mo

Refrain II:
'Pag sinasaktan mo ako
'Yan ang gusto mo
'Pag sinasaktan mo ako
'Yan ang gusto mo

Outro:
Aysus...
Aysus...
Aysus...
Aysus...

Cacophony, always cacophony

2008-07-24T21:24:00.000-07:00

The best thing about reading good stuff online is the worst thing about reading good stuff online. They’re always short, concise, rich, good, and frustrating. Once you read one, you jump and search for another good one, always better, or just plain good, and you end up typing bullshit like this, just to let off the frustrations now impossible to achieve, frustrations of becoming a prodigy of some sort. No, this is not the bad sort of frustration, it’s just the lethargy conjured by the many flashes in your head, the sort that makes me leave my desk for a smoke, more cacophony of bad spellings and stupid childhood memories and present sensations. The walk down the stairs to the outside smoking area obliterated by the heat when you get out of the gate, and see the repairman trying to fix the gate, walking to and fro, and I get dizzy, move my sight elsewhere, to the Ateneo building in front, and remembering the chapel, supposed righteous days of daily mass attendance and services. I’m not quite sure whether I went to mass everyday for the mass itself, or because the chapel was always so pretty, so quiet, the priests so witty, the candles always scented. Back then, my only adjective for the Eucharist was beautiful, whether you listened or not. It was all routine, remember when to stand, when to respond, when to make the sign of the cross, or kneel, and you’re good.

Meditations of a Piss Artist. It was undeniably good, and the chaos it produced my teaching or rather, the senile teaching staff was worth the fun, You are not to teach sexually sensitive literature to your students and pollute their minds. Ahh, the simplicity of the minds of others, the cause for the creation of the rules always broken, the foundation of the walls that corner student’s education that converts knowledge to the word CLASSROOM.

Old maid Miss Lua walks behind me, and I take a step forward to wave off the smoke from my cigarette. Danton Remoto mentioned “Memory is the mother of all writing” my memories are always distorted, what could that mean? There are only a few of them that I remember to be precise, free of my edits and changes, like the time my sister and I vowed never to talk to ourselves again, and find ourselves hours later, each under an individual mango tree, having the most interesting of conversations, not with each other, or the time we discussed being eeked out when we try to day dream in our Visayan dialect.

The last drag from the fag, then thrown on the side-walk, fuck Duterte and his anti-smoking laws. I run up the stairs, look forward to whizzing officemates, blinking cursors, flashing websites, loud music and much louder notions. I love stripes. I think of the possibility of tripping and hold on the railings as I continue the slow run up, the feel of my loose white skirt going up and down my waist, and finally the glass door, smile at the success of not tripping.

Kiara Quilos visits Old McDonald's farm

2008-06-24T06:52:00.000-07:00

I’m not sure if one can call it withdrawal symptoms, or pure exhaustion. Good coffee, bad coffee, they all taste the same for me right now, except for the first sip. Beer though, has been constantly fluctuating, good on Mondays, filth on Tuesdays, worse on Wednesdays, sweet on Thursdays. I’ll quit before I get to explore the other adjectives I might attach to beer.

Kiara made my night though. On a cheap dinner break at Matina, Jay and I were waiting for our b-b-q’s to get cooked, when we hear a shrieking e-i-e-i-o from the karenderya and see Kiara sitting there, mic in hand, screaming Old McDonald at the top of her lungs on the videoke machine. She made quite a riot tonight, pity we didn’t have a video, Sir Eric didn’t like the lighting…

And as I type and remember the singing of tonight I have the sudden urge to sit near a gasoline station, in a coffee shop that serves beer, with a beer buddy that’s totally hilarious, or at least someone who would not talk about anything related to computers for a change. When is that damn package gonna get here?

Doodz's Birthday at Mcdonalds Matina

2008-06-11T04:02:00.000-07:00

Gian Dapul's Winning Speech

2008-05-16T03:36:00.000-07:00

This may be a little late, but to give credit to a brilliant speech, I’ll have to write about this. Gian Dapul, an incoming senior from Philippine Science High School has made the Filipino’s proud by winning the English Speaking Union’s International Public Speaking Competition held last May 9, in London. This is the second win, following Patricia Evangelista’s 4 years ago. In my opinion, Patricia’s speech was good, but Gian’s speech was bloody funny.

Here’s a copy of the speech (The title rhymes! Weee!):

FISH MUCUS AND FOOT FUNGUS
by Gian Dapul

When I was in 6th grade, I hated Mathematics. You would have, too, if you had my teacher. He would drop huge workbooks on our tables and croak, “Thirty problems, fifty minutes.” A lot of these problems seemed unsolvable, so we complained: “Sir, there are no answers to these!” But then he’d reply, “To every question there is an answer, to every problem there is a solution.”

Although I’m only sixteen years old and an incoming 4th year high school student, I know that my country has more problems than any Mathematics book. Strangely enough, the answers to some of our problems are fish mucus and foot fungus. These seemingly improbable items are products of what we call scientific research.

Research turns our guesses into real knowledge, serving as the sifting pan of our hypotheses. It challenges what we assume, because, as they say, if you only learn from what you ASS-UME, you make an “ass” out of”u” and “me”.
In the early 1800s, someone warned that the streets of London would be filled with horse manure due to the uncontrolled use of horse-drawn carriages. Of course, that never happened. Combustion engines,products of research and invention, replaced horses, and the manure piled up in Parliament instead.

While on the subject, few people know that the most expensive coffee in the world is taken from the droppings of the Asian Palm Civet found in the Philippines and Indonesia. The small mammal excretes the coffee berries it eats, and forest trackers recycle the fruity feces to create what is known as Kopi Luwak in Indonesia or Kape Alamid in our country. Research has led to a synthetic process that simulates the droppings’ exotic flavor and quality.
So, who’s had coffee with their breakfast? Well, soon nobody will have had coffee and breakfast if the looming global food crisis worsens.Are you all feeling fine? Well, nobody might be fine for long if some new disease creeps up on us.
Health can be enhanced and life can be extended. The nudibranch, a beautiful, soft-bodied creature unfairly called a “sea slug” — a favorite among underwater photographers for its marvelous colors and shapes — has actually been used in tumor research. Samples of fish mucus have also displayed certain antibacterial properties.
And as the Home Shopping Network would say, “Wait! There’s more.”

Certain types of infectious fungi that coat some of your toes here form beneficial relationships that support plant growth. The International Rice Research Institute based in the Philippines continues to develop ways to improve rice growth and help alleviate the current food crisis.

New challenges are coming, and they will always confront us. What we need is an army of scientific researchers that will help find the solutions in advance. I want to be part of that army that would cross the new frontiers first.
If only we could make science fairs and contests as popular as the thriving “Pop Idol” franchise. Although I’m not sure if Simon Cowell’s sardonic comments will sit well with my peers. But we need the same hard-hitting passion in research and invention.

To conduct research is to be innovative; avant-garde. Researchers are like artists with test tubes and lab gowns instead of paintbrushes and smocks. When I graduate from the Philippine Science High School next year, I want to begin my “masterpiece” and apply for a university degree in Biochemistry.

But sometimes, I am discouraged by those who say that a researcher from a Third-World nation is like a Jesuit adhering to a vow of poverty, or worse, like a Benedictine monk observing the vow of chastity. It is indeed a challenge, but it’s also another frontier to cross, for me and many young people like me.

We Filipinos are well known for their dedication to service, in foreign homes, hospitals and hotels. In the hotel, I found three Filipinos working there. I want to be one of the pioneers that will make the Philippines known for its excellence in scientific research,as part of the driving force that will expand our horizons towards tomorrow. And I intend as a 1to have a lot of fun while doing it.

Going back to my math teacher, I eventually realized that, well, he was right. As he said, “To every question there is an answer, to every problem there is a solution.” We just have to go looking for the right ones. Who knows? Maybe one day we’ll be answering the questions that haven’t been asked yet.

Scarlett Johansson's Anywhere I lay my head

2008-05-14T00:37:00.000-07:00

Scarlett has an album. Seriously, she does. And don't throw anything just yet. Critics are actually pleasantly surprised over it. She brilliantly takes in successful producer Dave Sitek, who brings in Nick Zinner from Yeah yeah yeah, and Davaid Bowie. So together they build an interesting album, armed with the exceptional Tom Waits songs, and package Johansson as the alluring character she was built up to be.

I haven't heard any of the tracks yet, and I am more of a Tom Waits than a Johansson fan, but I admit waiting for the tracks or the album to actually come out in our market. Reviews praise it more of a Waits and Sitek genius, just with a highlight of Scarlett, but I believe that alone will make many grovel over it.

Vanilla-esque Lavender

2008-05-07T23:12:00.000-07:00

One of the few many things I hate about having too many people in the office is the smell, or to be more precise, smells. It simply sucks when I got out of the room, and smell vanilla, take a few steps forward, and smell lavender, who the hell wears lavender nowadays??? That’s just a very irresponsible way of wearing awful perfume/cologne. And if they do have to spray, can they at least do it in the privacy of their own homes, where the scent can whiff away from commuting?

gunner: you wrote?
jessica madrazo: yes
jessica madrazo: just now
jessica madrazo: bitcing
jessica madrazo: *bitching
jessica madrazo: still
gunner: i LIKE lavender
jessica madrazo: cologne?
jessica madrazo: lavender cologne?
gunner: shampoo.
jessica madrazo: well there you go!
jessica madrazo: incense
jessica madrazo: shampoo
jessica madrazo: is okay
jessica madrazo: but cologne dude, that's so dead
jessica madrazo: i mean, reminds me of funeral homes
jessica madrazo: and lavender right after vanilla, the combination is very eeky vegetarian
gunner: poor baby.

TAX is a Three Letter Word

2008-05-06T02:04:00.000-07:00

And so, it is believed, that maturity is measured when a man’s preoccupation, the constant thought in their heads at work, at home, while eating, or driving, is a different three letter word that ironically also ends in “X”, TAX.

I have been hearing about it for a week straight. Wives are bickering about it. I hear about it in the ladies room, talk about it over dinner, they whisper about it during smoke breaks, and rumor says, a girl even cried because of it. Oh yes people, it’s everywhere, and it has no intentions of leaving. And like all mature individuals, there is a lingering question about, “What are the consequences if I do it or not? Tax evasion. Am I really strong enough to ignore it?” and of course, the elders, the ones with more experience puts a loving hand on the young ones’ shoulder and says, “Well, it’s your choice, but you’ll be forever haunted by it, sometimes, it even goes in your dreams, bothering you til you have no choice but give in. If you are willing to take the chance, then go ahead.”--- Indeed, words of wisdom by Sir Eric.

A cancelled vacation is like:

2008-04-23T21:51:00.000-07:00

… having nothing to do the entire day but delete spam messages.
… finishing all the songs from your file and getting stuck with Hanson’s mmmbop.
… turning down a drinking offer and think of the beer, in beach waves instead.
… seeing everyone doing the work you crammed on doing for a day.
… realizing your spam folder is empty and having nothing to delete.
… having time to visit bloglog visitors.
… getting excited over blog comments!
… typing in your name in search engines.
… discovering 8 different comfortable positions in front of the computer, and getting cramps minutes later.
… making a blog entry like this… pfff.

The Talented Mr. Montano - Just Can’t Help But Read It

2008-04-07T01:49:00.000-07:00

More than a coffee shop conversation blog, Brian Gorrel has intrigued, captured, and unintentionally entertained bloggers with his Philippine society scandal online, with matching pictures, and now, podcast! Well of course Filipinos would notice it. I have yet to meet a blogger, or non-blogger who has read it, and although shove it as another petty gossip site, and not know at least details of the entries. From the sound of some comments, pretty funny ones too, Davao bloggers seem to have some interest on the hullabaloo.

The Gucci on Brian's blog

His cause is something nobody, or at least nobody I know has tried. All this talk about niches and niche blogs, I know someone who’s probly saying why the hell didn’t I think of a hate or pay me back niche? Well, he has triumphed, if DJ Montano does not pay, well at least he has blog ads money, interviews, or maybe a rumored telenovela offer at that. Hope you do get your money back mate.

Beware of the blog, some people have just found new potential.

How addicted to blogging are you

2008-04-07T00:22:00.000-07:00

Not much, not much.

82%

Some crazy article titles:

2008-03-28T00:39:00.000-07:00

To catch on some spider crawlers, and retain human readership, websites have now produced some really crazy articles, or make up some absurd titles, with enough keywords to satisfy google, but attempt at understandability and interest for humans.

Hot flashes, flush them out with water

What many women take for granted at the state of menopause is the effect that basic food and drink can contribute to their symptoms. An excellent, and easy preventive measure for hot flashes is basically purified water. This simple solution actually answers a lot of complicated menopausal problems.

Bald, bold, and beautiful

Being bald isn’t all that bad, nor does it always have to be scientific. Bald can also mean bold, sexy, and beautiful. In Hollywood, baldness has become the new in, what with so many prominent and sought after actors in our time, wearing their hair this way, or wearing the lack of it. Here is a list of actors, who have worn, or played a role which required them to chop of their locks.

Keeping hair loss on tabs: Pharoahs and Aristotle

People have considered hair loss as a serious social obstacle. For centuries, humanity has taken special attention to the condition of one’s hair. It has been fashioned to gain excellence in the aspects established by the different cultures of the world.

In ancient Egypt, boy’s and girl’s hair is mostly shaven, leaving only a small patch at the side of the hair to indicate that they are not afflicted with hair loss. Apparently, the absence of hair is an announcement of male impotency and at the same time appearance is believed to play a great role in impressing the gods to gain favor of a great after life.

From the Pyramids to the Parthenon, alopecia is still a big shame for any person. There have been myriads of extremely odd and ultimately ridiculous ways to manage baldness.

The humid Egyptian empire had different mixtures for an invalid scalp. Fats from a diverse choice of animals ranging from hippopotamus, crocodile, lion and geese are rubbed to the core after swallowing a concoction of iron oxide, alabaster, onions and honey and immediately reciting a verse for Ra, the sun god. Aristotle, who also experienced gradual hairline recession, relished the same uncanny search for the perfect cure, his mixture included pigeon droppings, horse radish, opium and other herbs. In the end he concluded that, castration might be a cure for hair loss. This is due to his observation regarding the connection of sexual maturity to hair growth as to what we already know today.

Bald and blue: the psychological effects of hair loss

The loss of hair is something that you can easily notice. It is not something that can be relatively shaken off as a pimple or a scratch when you loss it, people ask and pry and ask some more. It is a major physical element that contributes to our appearance which is given much attention. Cultures all over the world established that hair as a representation of youth, virility (for men), health and beauty.

There are people which can easily cope up with this condition. But there are also those of within the group that have such difficulty in terms of compensating with the situation, major issues can arise. Self-image is the altered self-concept which can lead to severe anxiety, depression, and social phobia. The impact can lead to changes in personality traits if it is not given immediate attention and counseling.