Bus Rider

Note: This post is dated January 10, 2008. Gosh, it took me half a year to post this?! I don't have dementia or anything but heck JANUARY 10?!

I've been in this situation wherein I ride the bus (I am saving money for piano lessons so I now walk and ride the bus. However, when it is really warm and sunny, I usually think twice if I'll walk), after I got seated, people start to push themselves inside the bus, and then an old woman enters. The bus is a pretty shaky and dangerous (for me) ride, and when the driver is all reckless, he accelerates and stops suddenly. The end result is that the passengers who are standing are thrown back and forth, just like described in Newton's Laws of Motion.

Back to the old woman. She gets to feel the sensation of riding a theme park's roller coaster while riding the bus. Good thing I haven't seen anyone hurl during a ride. No one's offering her a seat. I have this thing that when no one is taking the initiative to do something, I volunteer (I think sometimes I have regretted doing so). So I offered her my seat, and she kept on thanking me. What's strange that after I stood up and gave her my seat, all the men were offering theirs. I am pro-women rights and ok, I like gender equality, so I think even women should (it's not mandatory, though) offer their seats to old people (and the pregnant). C'mon. You don't want your/anyone's grandparents experiencing Enchanted Kingdom's Space Shuttle ride while commuting without the safety devices.

I always have my iPod with me. If there are three things I won't leave home without, these things are my handkerchief (dunno why, but I can't leave without one), iPod/music device/something to listen to, and money. No cellphone. Sometimes it is fun when I don't have my cellphone, but when you get home and check it, it is a dread to see all the people's concern on your phone. Missed calls and unread messages. Nightmare. Bangungot! Anyway, back to the topic (if there's any) about always having an mp3 player, I think I'm becoming insensitive in some ways. Like the bus scene, I cannot hear people, I can't hear it when the guard is calling for me, if the beggars are asking for change, etc. I just can't hear people, but I can see them. So if the old woman was screaming or cursing from being pushed back and forth by inertia, I won't be able to hear her. But the heck, I can SEE her.

I asked my brother what would he do if situated with that. He told me that if he's near his stop, he would offer his seat, otherwise, he would pretend to be sleeping. Great.


MORAL: Offer your seat and don't say, "I also paid my fare." In the LRT, some people really want to stand, so it's ok. Don't follow my brother's style. It is evil in some ways.

Mura Kami

Patience is a virtue... sometimes.

I have a story not about a story I have been reading but a story about how I went about buying a copy of a story I have been reading, desired by not being able to read stories similar to the story that I went off buying in the end.

What I typed above is just plain mockery of words and the human mind.

What I'm trying to say is that I have a Haruki Murakami book Sputnik Sweetheart. Murakami's pretty popular as I may say, and because I said so, believe it. I am more credible than Wikipedia. Why? Because I said so. OK? We don't need to argue on this. I have heard of his name before; however, it was only almost a week ago that I saw his books placed on a corner in National Bookstore, SM City Sta. Mesa branch. I found the covers of his books plain and striking. White cover with whatever images the cover artists thought to be in line with the book, like naked woman or just plain dizzy font styles. Another is that his books are not mura (cheap) and that is the pain in it. When I am intrigued by the story, I want a tangible copy of the book. Not an e-book downloaded off in the Internet which is really fun by the way since you get tons of free stuff you probably don't need in the first place and positively can live without.

I was checking his books and all of a sudden my phone vibrated inside my pocket. (I still get surprised whenever my phone vibrates in my pocket. Surprised by so much that when I am sitting on a couch/chair my leg would suddenly straighten out and I would slip a few inches off the chair. Yup, that surprised.) I answered it and put one of Murakami's book back onto the shelf. It was the LAST copy of Sputnik Sweetheart which I've been thinking of buying for a few minutes, because PHP425.00 is already a big deal for me (I used to NOT mind spending a lot, until I realized I have needs like clothes, shoes, blank DVDs, etc. and have to pay phone bills). It could leave a painful mark in my allowance jar where I throw a few hundreds every now and then planning to collect them at the end of the month then deposit the cash in the bank. (That's a clue to those who have interests of getting other peoples' hard-earned cold cash.) Where were we? I got sidetracked by the events-that-transforms-into-the-words I type. Hmm, oh yeah, back to the last copy of the book. A girl who was just passing by suddenly grabbed the book, looked at it and went off. She bought the book. I was astounded. I was standing there and watched the last copy fly from the shelf. Right then and there I felt betrayed by the book maybe because it "said" I gave second thoughts of buying it. Another thing I felt is that at least I get to keep PHP425.00 in my wallet.

I was wrong. I kept thinking about the book. I hate it. It always happens to me. Whenever I see something and wouldn't buy it yet (which is the sensible thing to do), then decide to buy it already only to find out it's out of stock already.

Example 1: The jacket. I saw it the first week in Greenhills and then I thought I would just buy it "next time" because well, I didn't want to spend money right then and there. When I went home, I told myself I will buy the jacket the next day I'm free. Weekend came there were no more size small for me, considering I went to Gateway, Greenhills (again), Robinson's Galleria, and SM Sta. Mesa. Only medium ones were left. After that, I decided to buy the medium ones the next day. Then, I went to the same places and didn't find any medium size of the design I wanted! Gosh I was soooooo annoyed. I thought maybe the jacket wasn't really for me. And to think that the small and medium sizes are already obliterated from the face of the earth, there are hundreds of Pinoys out there wearing that jacket. I just hope they all meet together and realize what kind of schmucks they are for buying all of the sizes leaving me with ridiculously large sizes.

Arrggh. So the next time I came to National Bookstore, the moment I saw the book I grabbed it and was ready to box-out the possible people who would want to buy the book.


MORAL: If you want it and really believe you need it, buy it. I'm referring to clothes here. However, my sister still believes in the "if you wait and come back to see it's still there, it's definitely for you" chipping in her experience of buying her jacket. She waited for 28 days (just like a monthly cycle!) and was shocked to see the jacket she wanted still there, waiving at her. If you're buying music CDs, wait for at least a month or so before you buy because most often than not, the record company would release a repackaged version of the album and it includes a crystal case, additional tracks, and all the regret you have of buying the first album right away. They didn't coin "Patience is a virtue" for nothing.

Therefour

Last night I watched the Williams sisters knock off their competition to the other side of the earth. They wanted to win in similar fashion. Venus 6-1 7-6 over Elena Dementieva who still looks like Barbie. Then Serena 6-2 7-6 over Zheng Jie. Anyway, they also beat the crap out of Natalie Dechy and Casey Dellacqua in the semifinals of the Ladies' Doubles. Rawr. It would be an all-Williams affair tomorrow. Singles, doubles, they're everywhere. Then there's another Nadal-Federer finals in the men's division. Zzz.

We already bought tickets for Alicia Keys' concert in MOA Open Field. Then I came across the news that Avril's having a concert here as well, in Araneta. Check the prices:

Patron VIP (101,103 1ST 20 ROWS) (Reserved Seating) 10500
Patron (Reserved Seating) 6750
Lower Box (Reserved Seating) 6750
Upper Box A (Reserved Seating) 2850
Upper Box B (Free Seating) 1400
General Admission (Free Seating) 600

WHAT THE HECK?! I would be living in the poverty line by then!

Dang. I really want to watch Avril!! Heck who cares if she sucks in live performances? Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn. I really (repeat 480x) want to watch her! After all, she names this, "The Best Damn Tour" and she's coming to the Philippines again! (I missed out her first concert because I was required to attend a high school event way back then. I also missed the Alicia Keys concert then. So they are both haunting me now, and I would be a fool to pass on this opportunity.)

Davai!!


MORAL: Even though Marat Safin lost, I'm still crushing (?!) him. Avril Lavigne and Alicia Keys are there to make me realize that eating Tofu Steak with Vegetables (replacement for beef) in Bento is a sucky thing to do because it's a waste of money. Instead, I must save my money for concert tickets (an amplifier, and an external HD). God bless me.

Bookit?

Why?

Why is it that I can read novels, the newspapers, magazines, and dictionaries (yes I read dictionaries and always bring one) yet I can't even have this "passion" to read assigned readings (Philosophy, History, even my Systems Analysis and Design book)? I mean there is no lack of attention span in my veins if we're even considering that. In Literature class before, I finished the required novel to read, The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, in a day or two. However, it was a drag reading photocopies of different plays. I'm still thinking of the answer. My answer to why...


Then it hit me.


I don't like reading those that aren't compiled, those that do not resemble a book or a notebook. I lose interest in reading my notes afterwards when I wrote them in pad papers. I didn't touch my History readings before (mind you, I really love History) not until we were going to have our exam the next day. I don't like reading/studying PowerPoint presentations but I don't want to print the PowerPoint because they look dumb on paper. PDF files are still negotiable BUT they are not even in the level of the purgatory. Given the chance, I still want a book, and I still hate highlighting books (I get the willies when I see books with highlights).

Amen.


MORAL: This is where taking down notes shows its importance. If you're having the same feeling as well, try writing a lot of things down. I love to write, type, think, and read. We could all do the same for the better future of our country. (There are papers sold that aren't made from trees. Let's help save the environment! Because we have to. Frankly my dear, we do not have a choice.)

Molting Hot Skin

So I went to Subic last weekend with my relatives after my LS199.6 class, wherein we watched the old school movie Hoosiers. My cousins and I arrived there around 4 or 5pm, and ate like refugees. My mom and sister, my balikbayan relatives, and other relatives from the country were already there a day before us. There were so many food my sister asked, "We're already leaving tomorrow right? It's like we have enough food for three days." But of course, instead of being idle, try gluttony. We ate breakfast food (we're accustomed to eat corned beef, pan de sal, egg, etc. in the morning) for supper. Great. (There were a lot of junk food there. And oh, factory outlets in Subic are smokin'! The discounts are great deals. If there were stores like those here in Manila, I would really be financially-disabled already.)

Anyway, after a lot of activities, and burning under the climate-change-affected sun, a while ago, I was like molting. I saw it when I was in my first class, MIS121. I saw my arm, and I was flabbergasted. OMGosh - skin. Next class came and it was worse. I thought my skin would peel too much and then my dermis would show up followed by muscles, tissues, etc.


MORAL: Sunblock, baby, is a necessity. Unless you are willing to toast your skin under the sun with all those ultraviolet (why aren't there ultrapurple?) rays. Deadly. Raawwr.

Shortless

No Sharapova, no shorts.
No shorts, wow.

Day 4 in Wimbledon - A day of upsets.
What is an upset? In tennis, it is when a higher ranked player is being sent off court by a lower ranked one. It has no relationship to what you feel. "Oh my gosh, I feel so upset today." Ooookkaaay. I am upset, though. These are players I wanted to watch progress a little further in the tournament.

The list of casualties:

[3] Maria Sharapova 6-2 6-4
[10] Daniela Hantuchova 6-3 4-6 6-1
[13] Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (12-10), 4-6, 6-3
[25] Lindsay Davenport walkover
[6] Andy Roddick 6-7(5) 7-5 6-4 7-6(4)
[9] James Blake 6-3 6-7(8) 4-6 6-4 6-4

My Maria Mystery still lingers. The one with the match thing. I didn't watch her match at all (the tv was off) because I was busy writing something. The next thing I saw when I checked the live scoreboard, she shamefully lost 6-2 6-4 without contest. So, the when-I-watch-Sharapova-wins-even-on-the-brink-of-defeat thing is still ON but I am so sad to see the waistcoat aka blazer go. It looks nice.

Daniela Hantuchova. I freaking hate this world. Dear Daniela, what the crap on earth did you do that you lost?! OK, considering Shriekapova ranks higher than Daniela and Shriekapova/Shortsapova lost, it would be acceptable to see Dani leave the court while her opponent celebrates. However, I really wanted Daniela to win more matches. Arggh.

Vera Zvonareva. Who wouldn't love her last name?! She really had a temper there, stuffing her racquets inside her bag with much power I thought she was going to break the bag/racket whichever comes first.

Lindsay Davenport lost without even appearing on court. She walked home. Yes, back to the US of A.

Roddick is always a delight to watch, and he does what he does best - talk too much. He says a lot of thing to the umpire, a lot of negative things. I remembered he said before, "Kids study hard so that you won't be an umpire." Eyeloveit!

James Blake. WHYYYYYY?!?!

(In day 3, Novak just had Marat Safin's hug as his consolation prize as he was punished in straight sets.)


MORAL: In tennis, there are only two players. A net divides the court between them. A ball may go on either side and the umpire is not God, he is just there to shush the crowd and say your score loudly. What I'm trying to say is that, anything can happen. Even though sometimes (or a lot of times) it sucks.

Wimbledonya!

This is a very, very, very good day for tennis.

Let's start with the first match in Center Court at the All England Club. Novak Djokovic and former world no.1 *drum roll please* Marat Safin. Yay! Honestly, I used to be a big fan of Novak. Not until he talked too much about beating Roger and the decline of Roger's domination in men's tennis. On the other hand, Rafa was as humble as a rock still arguing that Roger is the man to beat in Wimbledon and all that. See, even Rafa is lovable. Anyway, the deal here is that after having all of those Marat+hon = Marathon, Marat finally quenched his thirst for victories (since he's always losing in the first and second rounds of tournaments). And the best way to celebrate the win is.... to whack Novak Djokovic in Wimbledon. Macho Marat drained the life force from Novak with 6-4 7-6 6-2. Take that Novak!

Marat was asked how far does he see himself on the draw, and he said something like when he saw Novak's name as his opponent for the 2nd round, he didn't care to look further. See. Humility is a prime factor to be world no. 1. Djokovic should be jotting down notes in the "How to be World Number 1" class. Rafa is still taking the class.



Aside from that, Nicole Vaidisova avoided an upset from Samantha Stosur aka shades-girl 6-2 0-6 6-4. I go ballistic whenever she, (sometimes) Anna Chakvetadze, and Daniela Hantuchova lose to unseeded players. Add Maria Kirilenko who lost in first round. (Maria Kirilenko wears Stella McCartney for Adidas clothing and damn! Stella's designs for Adidas are so beautiful it makes me want to cry.)

Then Ana Ivanovic survived a 6-7 7-6 10-8 from Nathalie Dechy with the help of the net cord which saved her on a match point. I love it when the ball hits the net cord and then it's floating in the air with no one knowing which side it would land. I knew she would win it, just like yesterday how I hoped/prayed/wished Marat would win over Novak Djokovic. (Nicole, Anna Chakvetadze, Maria Kirilenko, and Daniela are the ones I get the chills when they are faced with even unseeded opponents). 'Nuff said.

Then Serena won her match today 6-4 6-4 to Urszula Radwanska, younger sister of Agnieszka Radwanska. Never knew she had a sister. Cool. For women's tennis, aside from the Williams sisters, now we have the Bondarenko sisters, and the Radwanska sisters. Tennis is a big family, no?

I'm confident Roger would win his match against Robin Soderling. I'm just waiting for Anna Chakvetadze's match which is progressing (she won first set) as I type these shizzles. She sends me the chills, no? I believe she'll win her match, though.

Oh, I just read from Yahoo! news that Dinara Safina (Marat's younger sister - told you tennis is a big family, no?) is added to the Russian Olympic team. Funny how in the French Open she beat three Olympic teammates—Sharapova, Dementieva and Kuznetsova en route to her first Grand Slam final. C'mon, whenever tennis players compete, it's like an Olympic match already. Players from different countries beat the holy crap out of each other in tournaments.


MORAL: I just love this tennis day. Words are not enough to express it. Not even Megatron can rain on my parade. However, there is still a photo that uhm, interests me.. How sweet is that?!

Noah's Ark in San Juan

I heard a woman preach the Gospel of the Lord inside a moving bus while commuting home. She was talking about those who listen to the words of God and those who don't. That those who listen are to be saved (I listened to every word she said, even though I was wearing earphones, my iPod's turned off) and that those who do not mind the words of the Lord are to be punished. Then she handed envelopes for donation. "Manong, stop!" I have to leave the bus. (I was saved from donating money from my org-drained wallet.) Saved by my destination.

That was the end of my commuting adventure. Now, let's begin the day.

I ran from our van to the safety of the LRT station which was guarded heavily by water warriors. Water warriors aka tambays na may dalang tabo, balde at water guns who would rip themselves just to soak you in water. The guards in the LRT station were in cahoots with them because when I was walking (before I ran) he said, "Ito oh!" So it brings light to why there were a lot of "stranded" passengers at the stairs of the LRT stations.

Today is San Juan Day. The Feast of St. John the Baptist. Him, being a baptist, the mini-city (I can't still get over the fact that San Juan is now a city) celebrates their patron by drenching each other in much precious water. Why is San Juan Day infamous? Well aside from the similarity that it is celebrated same day with Manila Day, this town (ok, shush up, it's a city alright) is notorious for throwing pail-loads of water to commuting passengers inside jeepneys and tricycles, and most often than not, cause the rumble when cyclists and motorbikers all of a sudden treat the asphalt road like their beds. Then there are those who still wear white clothing while walking around the town (city). The tambays who hose people down are probably enjoying the feast when these white ladies are now white, wet ladies. It's a see-through world!

When God said, "Let there be water!" Certainly the people of San Juan collected all of them for the annual celebration. But atleast the food is great.


MORAL: If you do not have extra clothes and a sense of humor, don't even dare set foot in San Juan on June 24. Unless you bring your own vehicle, because even fire volunteers suck the water out from the fire hydrants just to blow the people away like there's a rally in the middle/side/back/front/underneath of the road.

It's A Morph Thing

I have a Lindsay Lohan thing. No, I don't do drugs, drive under the influence (I don't really drive) or get myself wasted. (I have nothing against Lindsay Lohan. In fact, she's included in my mental list of Favorite People.) Then there's Zhang Ziyi. Zhang is her last name so that's why she changed it to Ziyi Zhang to conform with the Western way of naming themselves. Anyway, there is a site called MorphThing and it lets you waste your time by picking out pictures of other people/creature/artwork/monster and combine it with the picture of another person/creature/artwork/monster/unknown species. It's quite tedious deciding over which celebrity to pick to morph with another celebrity or creature or monster or whatever, there are a lot of choices though their database is not that vast yet.

I chose Zhang Ziyi and Lindsay Lohan's pictures out of randomness. Funny their initials have the same letters. Zhang Ziyi = ZZ; Lindsay Lohan = LL. Honestly, as-a-matter-of-factly, it's not funny. It's a bit pathetic. (Remember: Eyelove Zhang Ziyi and Lindsay Lohan! They are REALLY included in my mental list of Favorite People which I would reveal some time.)

Here's how they would look like and is definitely NOT pathetic:



Then there are other annoying things like when you morph two of my other favorite people, Natalie Portman and Keira Knightley, my dear, they just frickin' look the same. I read before that their parents can't even distinguish both of them (Keira and Natalie) when they were in the set of Star Wars wherein Keira played Natalie's double. Well, except that Keira is lankier, very little difference. (What if both of them were casted on The Other Boleyn Girl? Who would really be the other Boleyn girl? Hmmm....)



Brittany Snow is always contrasted to the Olsen Twins. Haha. Come to think (or imagine) of it, she looks like the Olsen Twins. She could join them and have the SnOwlsen Trio/Triplets. Ok, that's annoying, but this one isn't:



Oh, don't even think of morphing twins together. You're really wasting your time. Just go read my other entries, they are ALL educational.


MORAL: If you have other things to do, don't go web-surfing. You'll just blame yourself in the end for missing all of your appointments and abandoning your tasks. Internet is the real temptation today. It is the devil.