The Road not Taken

Bye Bye BlogSpot!

2006-06-19T21:28:00.000-07:00

I'm retiring this page and transferring my site somewhere else. This is officially my last post. Thanks! =) minditch.wordpress.com =p

Object Oriented Design

2006-06-16T15:07:00.000-07:00

After a long drought, I finally found some time to train! Yahoo! Well actually it was my manager, Chris, who enrolled me in it. She sort of forced me to take a break and train. Hehe. My work capacity is usually full this fiscal year so I am unable to look for good training and find free time in our team calendar to be away in the office. Even for this one. I didn't know I was enrolled until I got the enrollment confirmation. Hahaha. What makes this training great is that this particular training is something that I've wanted to take. It's a good training for Application Designers (sorry for the IT jargon) but I need to be away for 1 whole week for this. Hehe. That didn't really sit well with my supervisors' plan so I really needed to ask for this training ahead of time (a month ahead). And I did. Added to this, only senior developers were allowed to take the training since it is assumed that only their roles are the ones designing software applications. Since I was already doing this as part of my job, I asked my senior team lead if I can still take it because it will really help me and benefit the project in the long run. And so they made a request to take me as an exception to the rule. Eventually, the professional development unit approved. And so I was ready. The first time I was approved to take the training, it unfortunately got cancelled due to low enrollees (see, teams don't want their people being away that long. hehe). What?!?!?! After all that!? Talk about luck.

And just when I have accepted that I might never get to take this training, the enrollment confirmation comes. Alright! Added to this, the June 12 Holiday will fall in between this training so I have a longer break (training is from June 7-14). The training was awesome! It was a nice break from my team life. I gained a lot of insights, learning and skills. But most importantly, I gained a lot of weight! Hahaha! There was mirienda in the morning, heavy lunch and another mirienda before we leave... all for free! Plus I was able to go home at 5:30PM with the sun still up! I get home early, rest, take a bath and attend my SFC activities at night fresh and rested. All without hurrying and without the stress of traffic. This is too much. It's like a dream. Hehe.

Then just like all dreams and all good things, it had to end. But it was ok. It was good while it lasted. I came back to work rejuvenated, more alert and smarter. Oh, and what's the name of the training, just look at the title of this post. ;p

Highlights

2006-06-12T22:21:00.000-07:00

Sometimes we underestimate the impacts that moments have in our lives. Moments are those little things/events that happen to us or we encounter that when given insufficient attention simply passes away. We must learn to recognize the power that moments have in us. Just one moment can totally alter our life's perspective, make us laugh boisterously, cry quietly or reaffirm truths we've forgotten. When we learn to recognize a moment, it sort of becomes the highlight of an event. We just have to be open and observant. Here are some things that happened to me lately and their highlights. In short, this is 'Update Attempt' # 2 with some fancy introduction. Hahaha!

CLP Baptism
>> I was the praying partner of my fellow head who happens to be a facilitator for this CLP - Allan. After the baptism/pray over of this particular participant, I was suppose to accompany him to go back to his seat. When our eyes met, I saw tears dripping from his face. It didn't look like he was sad or remorseful. He actually looked happy. At that moment, I was reaffirmed that what we are doing in this thing called CLP actually makes a difference in other people lives and transformations. Forget the fact that Ryan, Chin and their service team are making a lot of sacrifices, going the extra mile and doing all these for free. As long as participants experience the happiness in Him that most of us feel in this community, then it's all worth it.

CFC Pentecost Rally
>> The African priest! Who could forget him?! He is like a ball of lighting. When he stepped on the stage and started speaking, you wouldn't know what hit you. I know I've been tagged as part of 'energy' (the younger ones in the community as supposed to 'wisdom' who are the elders) but this one is the epitome of energy! I couldn't keep up with him! Asking us to stand then sit again then stand again. His talk was anything but boring. After his talk, I really felt empowered, assured and of course energized!

Crocodile Grill Dinner
>> The dinner itself was the highlight. It was supposed to be a dinner for all my chapter mates working in the Makati area. I even invited our chapter mates in other places if they wanted to join us. The result - only five of us attended. Hehe. Even so, I really enjoyed all their company and we had great fun - this time without talking about any service-related activities. Just us being single, young professionals. Oh, and the seating arrangement was a highlight as well. Hopefully a vision of things to come. Hehe

CLP Graduation
>> The participants' presentation is a great moment for me. First they had this mini satire followed by this spoof of the song 'Narda' and finally their favorite SFC song as a batch - I Give My All. Wow! A batch with noticeably close relationship with each other singing 'I Give My All' on their dedication night… Very inspiring. I actually took a video of their singing but since I am all-writing in this blog, you'll just have to ask me personally for that. Hehe.

Village Fiesta/ Neigbor's Baptism
>> The realization that we really live in a small world. During the fiesta of our Village, our neighbor asked my sister to be the Godmother of their son. It happened that the brother of our new member, Vicky was also asked to be the Godfather. So Vicky and I were like extras in the Baptism rights. Hehe. When I saw the face of Vicky's brother, it all fell into place! I frequently tell Vicky that she looks familiar but I just can't figure out where I've seen her. When I saw her brother Voltaire, that's when I knew! We were former bus mates back in the days when I was a High School student in La Salle and she in OB Montessori. We started conversing about all the common acquaintances, experiences etc. All this time she perfectly attended all the 13 weeks our CLP and I never realized that she was that little girl that used to be my bus mate. We like in small world with intertwined relationships.

Angeli's Debut
>> We were invited to attend the debut of Hazel and May's younger sister. When I entered the venue, it felt like I entered into an all-girls school. There were so many 18-year young ladies! I felt good and bad. Good because I am one of the few eligible guys around (you could just imagine the hidden stares that I get. hehe). But bad because I felt old. Some of these girls haven’t reached 18 yet so I could be sued if I do anything mischievous. Hehe

McDonalds at 1 am
>> After Angeli's birthday, I didn't want to go home yet so I asked some guys/girls to go grab some coffee. We could find an open store on a Sunday night so we ended up at McDonalds. The highlight for me here was my blooper about the pregnant lady. It was really funny to me and I was extremely embarrassed. Oh well, me and my loud, big mouth. Hehe

Freedom Build at Simona
>> The heads of my chapter went to our new GK site, Simona, for the very first time to profile the households there and to get a feel of the place. The highlight for me was the last interview. I actually met the oldest living settler in the area (at least that what the neighbors are saying). He was a 70-plus-year-old blind man who was very accommodating and polite. I wanted to interview him further but we were out of time so we just stuck to getting the information we need for the profiling. He is like a walking history book of the place and I am sure to go back to interview him. It's that news bureau blood pumping again.

Swimming at Pat's pool
>> One of my frustrations in the CLP that I headed was that I didn't get a chance to get to know the participants personally during the CLP. I was always the one talking in front but it was the facilitators that got to talk to them personally since I was occupied in handling the overall flow of the CLP and I didn't want to concentrate on a group to seem that I play favorites. Of course, I more than made up for that because I have good relationship with them now. With this last CLP, I was given a chance to get to know the members a little bit better because there was no team lead pressure anymore. One of these times is the swimming at Pat's residence. The highlight - well, just the bonding itself. It's like meeting new friends. Great group. I enjoyed their company. Plus I enjoyed the pool. Hehe

My Tobit's Weekend

2006-06-02T10:38:00.000-07:00

Last May 27-28, I, along with almost all the heads of my chapter, attended the Tobit's weekend in Tagaytay. It's like a retreat/conference for the Couple's for Christ community and was opened for attendance of SFC leaders. Initially I thought that it was just going to be an 'OK' event for me. I didn't expect anything great to happen since it's a CFC activity and most of the CFC activities I attended in the past don’t really relate much to my life (because it talks of family life, marital problems, nurturing children etc). But to my surprise, I was deeply affected by the Tobit's weekend. I really can't explain the exact talk or sharing or prayer that did it for me. Perhaps it was just the total experience, including the many things I participated in:

First there was the PowerSlam. Initially I was not really supposed to join the group. The directive was to have 3 participants per chapter. Since there was initially four household heads in our delegation (I, Ryan, Klea and Chin), I chose to give the three heads a chance to experience this different kind of service. But since Chin became unable to attend due to work-related constraints, I had no choice but to join PowerSlam. After seeing how very little participation we got from the sector (there was a time when only 9 practiced when we were aiming for 25 people), I became more willing to participate. I wanted to help Jane because I knew that she is also struggling to make the presentation work. During the presentation day, I was less nervous than most of the group. Call it the 'veteran' effect but I was actually quite calm. I knew that we would have mistakes and the presentation wouldn't be perfect because we didn't really have time to practice in the actual venue but I thought we would be OK. To be honest, I felt like an old soul. I remembered how it was when I was just new in the community and participated in my first Bounce competition. Back then I was freakingly nervous. Years after, I am still here. From that first group, it was Jane and I that were still left there. But even with that feeling, I still gave my best. I knew I was not doing this for anybody but the Lord. If it was just me, I would just be comfortable watching these dance presentations. But I know that I have this little blessing of coordinating my mind and body with a particular song, so I responded to His call.

And then there was the sharing. When my father asked me if I wanted to share in the talk 'Tobit's son', I said OK thinking that I will be just like the usual sharing that I give when my father delivers his Christian Family talk. Little did I realize the impact of what I was going to do. From the briefing I got from Tito Edwin, I realized that I would have to open more to give the talk more meaning and to be able to fully maximize its intended effect. The first time I entered the venue I thought, 'mukhang napasubo ata ako." Hehe. There were so many people! And a lot of the CFC I’ve seen there knows me and my father. I became more nervous knowing that I would be talking about a man whom most of the listeners know about. When I was able to sneak in some quiet time for myself, I prayed to God to empower me and to use me as the vessel of his message. I was sure I couldn't do it alone but I was surer that I am not doing it alone. He is there. Anyway, the sharing itself was weird. It was my first time to talk in a large audience with all the works of a big gathering. It felt like giving a monologue to me - I couldn't see a face because of the bright spot light and in effect I couldn't see the reaction of the people. I couldn't even hear a thing because my voice was the only thing reverberating in the all the corners of the auditorium. I was a bit distracted by those things but then I just kept on talking - saying things about my life that I have not really shared with anybody. Now, I am sharing with the whole sector! I didn't know if I made any sense. I tried to follow the outline I prepared the night before but in the end, I just followed my heart. I just hope that I gave justice to how I knew my father and how instrumental he is in changing my life and my perspectives in it.

Lastly, there was my Chapter and my Cherifer. Hehe. I think it's the first time since we fondly called ourselves Cheriboys that we were together on a major community activity. This time we were not on a gimmick, nor some club nor drinking for that matter. At that time, we were just brothers in the community all trying to contribute to the success of the event - JM, Ryan and I in PowerSlam while JB in the production crew and that theatrical presentation. It was good to see all of us serving in whatever way we can. Plus, these guys are super supportive. I didn't really expect JM and JB to pass by the area where my chapter was seated just to wish me luck on my sharing. Then there was JM's story on his conversation with PA's mom. Very inspiring. As with my chapter, I feel really blessed to a part of it. All of us heads have a very close relationship. And that relationship was further strengthened in this Tobit's weekend. Thanks to Anto, Ate Dedeth, Jonas, Ate Lannie, Line, Klea, Ryan and also to the heads who were not there namely Kuya Robert, MacMac, Beth, Allan and Chin. All of you guys played a huge part in my growth in the community and in service.

We went home on a Sunday not really feeling tired but actually more able and empowered to go about our CLP Baptism that night.

Tagged

2006-06-01T10:38:00.000-07:00

My old friend and now fellow diver, Kate, posted this open tag on her page. I thought the topic was interesting so I chose to respond. Here's the topic:

Name ten (10) of life's simple pleasures that you like the most

Here's my list:

Laughing - If you know me, then you know that I laugh hard. It makes you look younger; just look at me ;p
Sleeping or resting in my bed - This is a luxury for me. But I love sleeping when I get a chance
Listening to Hip-hop or RnB while bouncing my head and body - Yep, I'm that kinda guy; not really your Rock Star; maybe Porn Star. Hahaha!
Having great conversation with friends - I go on gimmicks not because of the gimmick place but because of the people I'm with. As long as I can have good conversation, I'm OK anywhere.
Dinners or lunches with family on a weekend - what can I say, I enjoy talking to my family. We're like a barkada
Eating Jolibee's chocomallow pie, or KFC's chocolate mousse or McDonald’s hot fudge sundae - sweet tooth!
Getting a good sweat on a challenging badminton game - Badminton is good for the mind and body. Believe me.
Attending SFC activities namely conferences, praise fests, household meetings and GK builds - Need I expound? Hehe
Meeting new friends and discovering new places - It's harder to find genuine friends as we get older, that's why meeting new ones is such a delight. It's also fun to see new places; i guess it's that traveler in me kicking in.
Alone moments with her - Yep. I like it when it's just me and her.....

Since this is my first tag, I am sharing it with everyone. So I am tagging you! Yes, you! The one reading this post! All the people reading this are tagged! TAG!

Update Attempt

2006-05-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

WAAAHHHHH!!!!! I am SO behind on my blog updates that it's all piling up on me! I can't take this anymore! You know that feeling when you know that you have to do something but do not have the capacity to do it. Then you hate yourself for not being able to do what you have to do because you know that if you had the time, the results would be so great! Since I am still busy this week and there’s the Tobit weekend, I’m sure I will still be unable to blog in peace. So, I give up! Blogging is supposed to fun! It's not supposed to be stressful! I am supposed to be the God of my blog site. Not it's slave! Instead of putting separate entries from events that I deem blogworthy, I am just summarizing them. Bwahaha! I know it doesn't have the same effect but at least I had those events stamped in my blog history. Here's what's written in my One Note. I'm just going to doodle on it and hopefully make sense:

To-Post:

My First Chapter Outing - posted
Cheriboys Session - posted
Mother's Day - posted
Fellowship on Ryan's birthday - posted
Toxic - This is the week of 05/15/06 to 05/19/06 when I was so harassed and stressed with my job. My capacity is so stretched that I really feel toxic the whole week.
PowerSlam practice - I was supposed to explain how I went back to sharing whatever minute talents I have in dancing for HIM. Hehe
Carl's resignation - This one I really hate not writing about. My mentor in Accenture just resigned and I was quite reflective on his last day in the office. Before he left, I had a few private conversations with this guy and his words really brought a lot of realizations and memories for me... I really would like to expound on this one... but.... argh!
MMLA - My first ever attendance of the Metro Manila Leaders' Assembly. I would have posted the side stories of the travel going to the venue, the MMLA itself, the MetroWalk after etc etc. Oh well.
Da Vinci Code - I watched it after our music min practice. My thoughts and reactions basically.
Bingo – it’s a term we use in our Chapter that means that we have an activity for all the days of the week. That is my state this week and I was supposed to write why.
Mother's Birthday - Today is my Mama's birthday! My parents are on leave so I'm sure they're making the most of their time. Happy Birthday Ma!

Ryan's Birthday

2006-05-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

Go shorty! It's your birthday. We gon' party like it's yo birthday.....

Finally! Ryan no longer has the right to call me 'kuya!' because we now have the same age! Yahoo!

All the guys from our chapter decided to have a household/fellowship on the actual day of this SFC bro's birth (05/15/06). Since it is his birthday and he is the host of the household, we asked Ryan to lead all the guys into the activity. So there we were fervently praying when we noticed people coming in... It was the girls! What?!?! All the female heads in our chapter decided to pay him a surprise visit. Haha! They got him there. Wow! I just realized that the entire upper households (plus a few members) are present! This hasn't happened to a household for quite a while now since we had the segregation of unit and chapter households. The girls didn't join the prayer though since we were already in the middle of if.

After the prayer, we ate the food prepared by Ryan's mom, Tita Olie. It was gone in 60 seconds! Hahaha! Conversations, laughters, jokes and all the many things that I love about our chapter transpired during that night. The girls went home earlier while we guys started our honoring. Prior to the honoring, I realized that in the years I have known Ryan, he has honored me twice but I have NEVER honored him. So I sought to make up for that by basically saying all the good things in my mind and in my heart about this cool fellow.

To Ryan, Happy Birthday! I've said what I wanted to in that household so I'm just going to say, "Take it easy, BRO!"

Mother's Day

2006-05-16T10:22:00.000-07:00

Being extra-busy is no excuse to celebrate Mother's day. I guess for my family, this is the perfect time. Usually on this day, my mom would treat us out. But now that both my sister and I are working, it was just natural for us to treat her on her day. I was craving for some Buffalo Wings so we headed to Don Hen and ordered the family size among others. That time, there were seven of us celebrating (with my cousin, my aunt, and her friend) so the bill was a bit heavy. Oh well, it's all for you mom! After dinner, we went to see the last full showing of ‘MI: III’. That was the second time I saw the movie but it's all good. I watched it for family. The first one for something else.

To my mama, a big happy mother's day to you! Lav Yah!

No Sleep

2006-05-15T23:09:00.000-07:00

With very little sleep from the event in my last post, I woke up at aroud 5pm for the Cheriboys' version of celebrating Ryan's birthday. Actually, that event was supposedly for dual purposes - Ryan's birthday celebration and 'welcome gimmick' for GJ as a temporary honorary cheriboy (haha! temporary because he is going back to LA quite soon). But since GJ cancelled, it was all for Ryan that night. We went to Promenade and had some light drinks then proceeded to Embassy in The Fort. The guys thought that the fee was not worth it so we decided to go back to our good old Basement. You see, this is when you know that you are in the company of men and not boys - they have other things allotted for their hard-earned money that they're just not simply willing to change that just because the place is deemed cool. If I was in the company of the latter, we would have gone there whatever the cost. OK, reading this makes me think if I am just optimistic or simply making an excuse. Hahaha! We went home earlier this time (5am) and then tried to get more sleep. I am one sleepy creature. ZzZzZzZz...

Chapter Outing

2006-05-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

No storm could stop our chapter from having fun! No! Not us! Haha! Caloy is nothing compared to our desire to bond and be together. Hehe. Last Friday up to Saturday, I joined our chapter outing - my first time ever! The birthday celebrators prepared the food so no worries for us. We went to this place in Antipolo (sorry I forgot the name) and dipped ourselves in the pool until sunrise. I think that was the first time that I was still swimming up to 3am. Obviously, I've been to overnight swimming events before but not to the point that we didn't sleep and we were just in the pool from night till morning.

There was also this videoke machine. Time to sing again! Haha! In between swims, we would go up and sing a song or two then go back to swimming again. Of course, there was the unlimited picture taking. We are experts at this! Hahaha!

Oh, and there's the game that we 'energies' love to play - anything Q&A basically. Games that would allow us to get to know each other better. I'd say that this fellowship is one those times when I really got to know my chapter mates on a more personal level. We are more comfortable with each other so we are able to open ourselves more and in the process are able to help each other out in each other's concerns. Oh! And I got to know the new members' first impression of me! =p

I got home at around 2pm and caught up with my sleep. That was great guys! See yah all next time!

Just wanted to put this out.....

2006-05-09T13:50:00.000-07:00

My mind, my body and my spirit is spread thin lately. For some varying reasons, I have so many things going on that I am unable to think, reflect or analyze all of them. I just try to take it one day at a time. Step by step. Thought by thought. Issue by issue. It's not that I feel physically tired because I don't. It's more of an emotional weariness. The highs are really highs and the lows are really low. I just hope that I get out of this "stage" whole, stronger, wiser and hopefully not too jaded. Hayyyy...

God, Grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to know the difference.....

Happy Birthday Bianca!

2006-05-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

To my friend and blog buddy, Liza, have a happy happy birthday! You are beautiful inside and out! Enjoy your day! God Bless!

Happy Birthday Sister!

2006-05-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my sister Ryzel! You are 23 years old now! Yahoo! See you later in Something Fishy and in the honoring in my unit household!

I've already said my message to you offline so I'm just going to say that may all your wishes, dreams and hopes come true!

GK Luzon Build in Nueva Vizcaya

2006-05-01T22:32:00.000-07:00

I think it's one of those defining moments in your service in Gawad Kalinga when you realize the impact of what you do and when you are totally plucked away from your comfort zone. I gave my long weekend (including the whole day of Friday) to this endeavor and it was worth every moment. Yes, there are times when I question the reason why I was there. It was a long weekend and I could have gone diving somewhere else, or probably tried surfing, or maybe went back to playing badminton again. But instead I rode 12 hours in this truck, slept on a tent, took baths on streams, built houses under the intense heat of the sun, and got myself hurt while barefoot on a muddy road etc etc.

At the end of it all, I know that I did that for love. There was this line that says, 'Give until it hurts.....' Well I'm telling you, I felt the hurt. I gave my time, energy, effort and ultimately myself for three straight days. And I'm thankful that I was given an opportunity to do that. I feel blessed that I experienced that kind of service. I went back to Manila a different man, not only in terms of service but also on a much more personal level.

Less for self, more for others, enough for all.

PS: I'm doing an article on this one. That is why I didn't really elaborate. Hehe.

Planet Dive

2006-04-24T17:51:00.000-07:00

It's one of those rare moments when your team building meets your hobby. In this case, our team building happened on a dive resort! Yahoo! This gave me an opportunity to both be with my team mates in a non-office setting and dive again.

It's a good thing that I decided to go with Chris on the way to Planet Dive because we had a chance to leave at a latter time. We were suppose to meet at 7 am in a McDonalds joint near my house as supposed to going to Makati at 6am where the arranged transportation will be. I say it's a good thing because I woke up at 5:30am still at Ryan's place from the previous night's 'session.' Waaahhh! I hurriedly went home realizing that I cannot afford to waste any time. I was able to make it to the meeting place without causing anybody any inconvenience. Yehey!

The trip on the way there was very relaxed. There was Chris, Tristan (her husband), Isabel (her baby daughter), Nick and I. We got lost along the way but it was OK. We were all laughing and having discreet conversations so by the time we got there, we weren't really stressed. The program and games prepared by the team was exciting. Everybody participated and all were having some nice team building fun. I believe the program finished at around 3pm and we were given some free time until 7pm. So you know what this means? Dive time!

We opted for a shore dive since I got feedback that the corals in the area were also delightful. It was actually my first time to dive without a dive master to plan and guide the dive. It was just us boys - Sherwin, Sean, Carlos and I. We went to this place called the Twin Rocks. It's like this 2 huge female bosom 40 feet below the water. The rocks were teeming with life and biodiversity. We crossed the 'cleavage' just for fun. It was a tight one I tell you. We couldn't use our hands and our fining was very limited to avoid hitting the corals.

We got back at the shore and almost all of my team mates are there. I realized that this is he first time that they'll see me not so much as an office mate but a diver in action! Hehe. As I walked across the shore with my gear, I can feel all the eyes behind those shades directed at us. This is something only a few of us in the team are certified to do. I realized that I can use this attention to encourage some of the guys there to take intro diving so I kept pestering them to take the intro dive offered by the resort.

The night was another adventure. Before joining the team for some drinking session, I first had some smores and chocolate fondue in our room. It was something that my IC group had planned on doing and it was great that we were able to pull it off. We were hysterically laughing because there were so many boo-boos in the process. Oh well, the night had a great start. We joined the team afterwards along the sea shore. There were so many booze! Beer, Tequila, Kurant, Lambanog etc. Anton got super wasted primarily because of Sean. Hehe. Anton revealed so many things that the guys in our team were quite shocked by some of the things he is saying. Haha. Oh well, I guess it was really a night to let loose. And then there was the ceremonial 'tagay' of AAT with Mike to sort of welcome him in the group. Sherwin initiated the process and all the AAT members toasted with Mike a glass of beer. Of course each of us drank a glass while Mike had to drink a lot for each of us. Hehe. Mike Bien even had a proxy and I had to wake up Carlos who was at that time almost sleeping due to being drunk - all of this just so everybody is accounted for. It all ended with the 'tagay' of Mike and Ekky. Yahoo!

Lastly, there was the morning dive that I thought took forever to begin. We were so behind schedule on the dive that I had to ask Chris to leave without me (I was supposed to join them on the way home) because I know that they had to leave early for their baby. The dive was a boat dive this time. We went to this ship wreck called Dari Laut. I'm not really sure about the depth because somebody in the dive group mentioned that we got up to a hundred feet but my gauge only tells me 60 feet. I'm standing by my gauge reading. This time Leah was able to join us (too bad Omi wasn't there. Huhu). I've seen some ship wrecks before in Galera but this one was particularly eerie. You know those horror/thriller movie that that goes down to the sea and then finds this weird looking form on a dark blue water with unknown white solid particles constantly crossing your path. That was the initial feeling. Of course, I got over it when I got a closer look at the wreck and all the marine life that chose it to be its sanctuary. Ahhh... It was a thing if beauty...

After the dive, we got back to the resort, rested a while and accompanied Ram, Sheng, Dave and Alvin in their intro to diving. They were being towed like toys by the DMs. It was actually a bit funny because they were like dead dolls hovering in the sea floor. But that was OK, I knew they were enjoying with what's happening so we just looked after them, played with them, took pictures of them etc. It was very welcoming to see other team members taking their first steps in diving. I hope they follow through.

I rode with the team bus and got home at 8pm. Wow, what a weekend!

JM's turn

2006-04-24T09:27:00.000-07:00

Honesty is one of the many things that I appreciate about these guys. Last Saturday, THE CHERIBOYS (Notice the 'the' much like 'the' Ateneo. Haha! And yes, we shortened it for legal purposes) had another session. But this time, we opted for something simpler, cheaper and more toned down (no bumping and grinding here) - a sleepover! Well, sort of. I was really just looking for the interesting conversations so it does not matter to me much where we're going as long as we're talking. We met on a Friday night at Ryan's house. We thought this was a nice opportunity for Ryan to play host. Hehe.

I notice that in every gimmick/session, there usually is a person who has the most sharing/stories to tell. During our formation stages, it was PA. On PA's birthday, it was JB. On one of our gimmicks, it was I.... telling stories about her.... So this time, I thought it would be good for Ryan and JM to be on the spotlight. I'm close to these guys individually so I know that there are so many things about Ryan that he still haven't shared with most of the guys, the same way that I know there also things about JM that some of them don't really know about.

Ryan only shared a little. Mostly those things where I am also a witness to. Our lives are so intertwined lately that it's getting to be confusing to determine which experiences we are talking about. Hehe. Oh well. I guess he thought there really isn't anything to tell. I'm telling you bro, there is. I'm sure you'll open up more to them when you're ready. On the other hand, JM went full blast. He opened up as much as he can with no pretenses, justifications nor cover-ups. Just the plain truth with the sincerest emotions. Of course, we listened with no judgment and outmost confidentiality. JM, I thought that it was good that you have shared with the guys. I'm sure that they learned a thing or two about you and your life. I second the motion when you say that your life is a testimony of trusting in God.

Firsts and Repeats

2006-04-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

Last Holy Week was a series of firsts and repeats for me. Here are the mentionable:

First - My officemate/manager/friend invited us to go to their house last holy Wednesday. It was the first time I've seen the insides of their new home. We had our videoke session, something that all of us seem to extremely enjoy lately. As expected, the highest scorer is Jona, the song Goddess. Haha! Thanks Chris for the generosity in inviting us over! Till the next session!
First - In my 3 years in SFC, I never had the opportunity to join my chapter in their annual Bisita Iglesia. This year, I asked my parents if we can just go home to Pampanga on a Thursday night instead of the usual Thursday morning. Thankfully, they agreed. Yahoo! Finally! It was a fun experience for me. Most of our new members were unable to join so only the old-timers were there. I don't know how to describe the feeling.. but that event reminded me of how small our chapter was before and how big we've grown through the years. Ah I know! It was a comforting feeling that the older members are still active in service while newer ones are becoming more and more engrossed into this community. Happy times!
Repeat - While in Pampanga, we went to Baliuag, Bulacan (about 30 mins away from our town) to watch the yearly procession depicting the life and death of Jesus Christ. Their procession is quite a big event for them because they showcase these magnificent looking statues. It started late (~ 10pm) so halfway into the whole presentation, we got so tired of standing for hours that we just decided to head home since we've already seen the whole thing last year.
Repeat - I again met with my officemate/AAT bud, Karen, because we live in neighboring towns. This time she was with her boyfriend, which also happens to be our officemate, Elison. By the time I got there on the way home from the procession, Elison was already asleep so I was only able to talk to Karen. Last year, she was the one who dropped by our house, so this year it was my turn. Hehe
Repeat - After visiting my relatives on my father's side, we headed to another part of Pampanga to visit my relatives on my mother's side (didn't I tell you that my holy week is for family?! Hehe). We went to this resort in San Fernando called 'Don Alfredo’s Resort' something. We already been there last holy week but since it was new then and it was a good place, we just decided to go there again. Actually, I was a bit disappointed by how it looked now. It looked so good last year but now there are writings in their cottages, comforts rooms etc. I really don't understand why people do that. It's just a shame....
First - While we were in the resort, my mom, dad and sister decided to go to mass. I was NEVER able to attend mass on Black Saturday because on those times, I am usually drinking in some resort with either family or friends. So this was a first for me. We went to this nearby parish called 'St. Augustine' something. Now, I tell you the mass was so interesting. We started outside the church with some bonfire, proceeded to enter the church, lit the candles in particular instances and the priest blessed the water and candles we brought. Oh, and did I mention that the whole mass was celebrated in Kapampangan?! Wow! I have now confirmed that I have lost my ability to comprehend the dialect. I used to be fluent in Kapampangan when I was a kid. In the mass, I only understood so little. I could not even sing the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father) because even the songs are in Kapampangan! Well, this was definitely a first for me....
First - I ended my Holy Week by attending my SFC bro/adopted HH member's birthday. We went back to Cainta, attended Sunday mass and went straight to Eugene's house to celebrate. There were lots of food, good conversations, heartfelt laughter, sincere honoring of the birthday celebrator among other things. This was also a first for me..... Anyway, Happy Birthday Eugene! Good luck on your board exams, love life and service! God bless!

MYMP

2006-04-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

You have made your momma proud by having that singing voice. I knew you like to sing but I didn't know you're good at it! Next time, we're going at Red Box so that you can have your mini concert there. Hehe. Again, I cannot expound simply because It's Complicated!

Dodong's Despedida

2006-04-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my SFC brother's last day here in the Philippines. He is going to Taiwan to work. Before that, some of our chapter mates, dropped by his house to wish him well. We gave our regards and prayed over him for all the many things he needs on this new episode of his life. By this writing, you should have landed there and have started weaving your way into their society. Yahoo! Congrats Dodong for finally getting that job! God bless bro!

Also, I know my text message was a bit short notice but you guys still came: Allan, Rose, Ryzel, Klea, Raziel, Eugene, Joenel, and Jonas. I rarely mention collective names but you guys deserve this one. Kudos!

PMG Meeting

2006-04-10T10:37:00.000-07:00

I attended my first meeting with the role my chapter has bestowed on me.... well actually, it's more like the heads forced me to take it. Hehe. I was assigned as PMG of the new GK site our chapter will be taking care of -- Simona in Taytay, Rizal. I knew the task would be big since the site will be basically built from scratch but I didn't know it was going to be that challenging! First of all, the role encompasses a lot. You have to different things to different people. Second, I think I am the only PMG for that site (the other one they are eyeing has not confirmed yet since she has a job at Laguna). So it will be just me doing all those things. Lastly, I will still actively serve in my other GK work, which is the News Bureau. In there, I am Sector Editor (together with John Mark) and also a News Correspondent for one site. The Sector Editor role alone covers work for the 8 GK sites in our sector. And did I mention I still have a full day job? Hehe.

Given all these, I am actually still excited. I know it would be difficult. But I also know it would be possible. I'm a little nervous because I know that I have to overcome some shortcomings as person to effectively do my work. One of that is being shy. I need to thicken my face for all the beneficiaries of this site. I am still unsure how everything would work out for me in this new role. For sure, I would need my chapter's full support because I cannot carry the site alone. Time and again, it has to be a chapter effort. Ultimately, I am thankful for this new challenge because this is an opportunity to better serve the Lord by serving my country. I would need HIM to lend me his strength to perform this work for HIM.

PS1: Great thanks to my SFC brother and very good friend Jonas for coming with me on that meeting. You are the epitome of Gawad Kalinga and service for the poor. Your service alone inspires me to do better with mine.

PS2: I got an offline comment that questioned why I advertise my charity. He said, it is not supposed to be done discreetly? To all those who think that, Gawad Kalinga is not a work of charity... It is a work of nation-building. Every person needs to hear about the work of Gawad Kalinga. The GK story has to be told.....

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Matt. 5:14 Matt. 5:14- 16

So spread the word!

Home Spa

2006-04-09T09:11:00.000-07:00

After what seemed to be an eternal quest to get one, I finally got what I wanted -- a MASSAGE! A full body massage at that. I've wanted to get one for the longest time because I feel that i have been so stressed with work these past months. Good thing I have friends that are as stressed as I! Hehe.

Last Saturday, JM, Ryan and I went to this place called Home Spa in our area. Initially it was just JM and I who intended on getting one because of the stresses of the past quarter. We tried getting a massage the last time but it was unsuccessful. Ryan, on the other hand, had also been lacking sleep and rest lately because of his work and team lead duties in our CLP. Wanting to get some breather, he said, 'pamasahe' tayo... Initially, i thought he wants to commute or something (see how stressed I was? Hehe) but realizing that he was also after a nice massage, I just thought of just joining the two (I don't want to damage my pocket and perhaps my body by going into two simultaneous massages for them. Hehe).

We went into the spa and they told us that they only had a room for two. We told them, 'di pa pwede gawan ng paraan na tatlo? Kawawa naman yung maiiwan samin.' And so we had to wait to clear out the room and provide additional bedding. The massage done on me was a combination of Swedish and Shiatsu. Oh, it was so perfect. I literally felt my stresses dissolving.

During the whole thing, there were so many bloopers and anecdotes. Ryan, being the ultimate photo-album blogger took pictures that are humorous and of course embarrassing to take. JM had a lot of hilarious experiences too. But I guess I'm not at liberty to tell it since he will be placed in a compromising position (Hahaha! Joke!) Being the energetic people that we are, we were talking and laughing even at our most relaxed moments. The masseuse even said, 'kayo ho yung pinaka-maingay na grupong namasahe ko. Parang hindi kayo nag-rerelax eh.' But we were. It was just a fun experience for all of us. The masseuses were even laughing with us.

After the massage (around 10pm), I got hungry and asked my buds to eat. And yes I ate what I define as comfort food - warm 'goto' with boiled egg and 'tokwa't baboy' Hay... This is the life....

PA's Birthday Celebration

2006-04-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

It's one of those times when you think that you are going to have at worst an OK-day and at best a great day. Since PA's birthday fell on a Wednesday, we decided to just celebrate it on a Friday to give us more time to... well celebrate... Hehe.

I realized that at 430pm, I still had tons of tasks to finish. And just when the going gets tough, I unintentionally closed a report I was just finishing up without saving it! Oh and did I mention that was due end of that day?! Waahhh! I just promised to submit it the following day to give me time to attend PA's birthday celebration. With all the toxicity that happened during the day, I really thought I would have a terrible night.

I was so far from being correct. Unexpected surprises and events, people keeping their promises, camaraderie being strengthened, new relationships developing, lively but intimate conversations transpiring, greats news being delivered and all other things combined made the night a memorable one for me. I wasn't able to stay long but the time I stayed there was more than enough for me. Haha. Again, no elaboration on this one.

Happy Birthday brother PA! Like I said, I didn't think we'd be close because both of us have quite strong personalities but I guess things really have a way of working out. Now, you're one of the few people I confide with. Good luck with your new job and best wishes to you and Gian. Haha! Cheers to the many great things your challenging but blessed life has to offer!

City Barn

2006-04-03T19:36:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, I wanted to attend the music min practice for our CLP. My father had a talk about Christian family in the Couples for Christ CLP in our parish so the whole family supported him through our sharing. It was a welcome experience for me since it has been a while since we did that. Also, I was able to advertise our CLP to the titos and titas there. Hehe. I told Ryan that I and my sister would immediately go to the practice right after our sharing. Unluckily for us, the practice ended earlier than we expected because the music min already knew the songs. Good thing that my chapter dropped by the chapel on their way home. I was able to meet them and perhaps because I missed them (because I knew they were already going home and some other reasons), I hastily asked them to go out! Since it was last minute (not all of them asked for permission and did not really prepared money for it), we just opted to go somewhere near and affordable. There's this coffee shop called City Barn. We thought this would be a good place since all we needed was a place to have good conversation.

We were almost on the entrance of this place when we heard people singing and saw this videoke monitor with some lyrics displaying. I thought, 'Oh, great. There are no band playing so maybe this is their entertainment when there are no live band performances....' I know my chapter mates would not back down on any opportunity to sing so we went in. While walking towards our chosen table in the corner of the room, I got a glimpse of the video being played as background of the lyrics in the videoke monitor. It was Katya Santos... In all her naked glory! I thought, 'maybe it's one of those videoke machines that shuffles its vidoes and it just so happened that this song had that not-so-wholesome video.' The girls in our chapter initially sat in the couch facing the videoke monitor while the guys sat in the wooden chair facing the girls. We ordered and all when Anthony whispered to me to look at the monitor. I looked and saw Maui Taylor... and her fully exposed body (well, minus the thingy that is covered by this large shell. Hehe.)

I thought, 'What the hell has this place been?! Isn't this the coffee shop that we pass by daily?!' Upon further 'inspection', we realized that they were showing Viva Hotbabes Hot Stuff Video followed by the Sex Goddess video thingy by Asia Agcaoili and Patricia Javier. I really felt a bit embarrassed because all of my companions are girls and there were only 3 guys in the group. Wrong place, wrong crowd. But then we thought, 'Oh well, we might as well enjoy since we are all here.'

We enjoyed the night having a bit more personal conversations and a lot of singing our hearts out. It was just weirdly funny that groups of men started arriving and would choose ladies to sit with them. If my memory serves me right, this kind of place is one of the least wholesome places one can go. But during that time, we are already into the singing that we didn't mind. We went out to enjoy and that's what we're doing. Hehe. We ended the night with group singing with the microphone being passed around. This time it was 'Picture of You' by Boyzone. I think the people in City Barn were more shocked by our nonchalance than us being surprised by their sudden 'change of business.'

PS: When we were billing out we could not find the waitress that was taking our orders, serving our food and helping us pick the videoke song (their service was personalized). We later found her sitting in one of tables entertaining some 'visitors.' Talk about double duty and job rotation!

Cherifer Boys

2006-04-03T11:55:00.000-07:00

I was suppose to write a post on how the Cherifer boys had another gimmick in The Basement in Eastwood that lasted until the next morning when I realized that I haven't really written anything that gave this group their due recognition. So I'm changing the goal of this post to the Cherifer Boys introduction and probably honor them along the way.

For anybody who has seen me, Ryan, JM, JB & PA, they'll surely know the relevance of the name. Haha! We basically have the same height - I think the politically correct term for that is 'vertically challenged.' Haha! But why did we allow ourselves to be named as this? I don't exactly know the answer. Maybe because nobody really had any violent reaction against the name. After all, it sure is funny to someone who knows each of us individually. It only proves that we don't take ourselves seriously. Life is too short to be serious all the time. If we could bring out laughter in somebody, then it's all good right? Also, I never really felt insecure about my height. It has never put me at a serious disadvantage because of the other talents/skills that the good Lord has bestowed on me.

I guess it's one of those times when you realize you found something good. I've known each of these guys individually and I didn't realize how a blast it would be if we bond. For me, what makes it a blessing is the fact that we are all servant-leaders in SFC. We're on the same age bracket, all of us are active in the community, most of us share the same struggles in service and even life, most of us share the same interest and the list goes on. What could have been accomplished in say two year's worth of friendship, we accomplished in 2 months... or something like that. This is due to the decision to just be open and honest without the worry of being judged or gossiped about. You wouldn't believe all the things we have talked about. It's very freeing. We try our best to help each other in living out an authentic Christian life despite all the distractions and temptations our generation holds. I know we are far from perfect, but that's not the point..... Plus we are each other's supporters when it comes to that matter called 'love' and 'women.' Hehe. *Hint Hint*

I've been in an all-boys environment in High School and I've made good friendship similar to this. I guess what makes this group different is the spiritual aspect. Yes, we're gimmick and drinking buddies. We party hard and drink harder every now and then. But we also pray hard, serve hard, praise hard, and most importantly, we all chose to take the 'road less traveled by...' Where in the world would you find men that after they went clubbing and drinking actually prayed and thanked the Lord during breakfast for all the blessings that He has given them that night? Yes, we are weird, I know. But this is one weird thing I am comfortable and proud accepting.

I do not know what the future will hold for us. Given that PA now has a night-shift job, I am unsure if we'll be able to meet regularly again. Who knows, we might even disband because of one important thing that's keeping us together - girls! Or somebody might start an issue on us, causing us to distrust each other. A lot of bad things can happen to good people. But I am optimistic that as long as we are under the love and guidance of this community called Singles for Christ, we will be OK. I have learned to surrender myself to Him lately and this is no exception. I am lifting up the friendship to the greatest Cherifer boy up there who gave it to me.....

CLP Orientation

2006-03-28T13:27:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday marked the start of our CLP for this year. Our titos and titas from Couples for Christ used their original timeslot on a Saturday night so we decided to have our CLP on a Sunday afternoon in our home parish. Sunday at 2-5 pm is the new fixed timeslot of SFC. Now, we can say that our chapter is really integrated in our Parish. Yehey!

Honestly it was a surreal moment for me being in that venue again for CLP purposes. But this time it was different. I use to be the driving force behind all the efforts that needed to be done by the chapter and the service team. I was in charge and I call the shots. Now, I am a follower, a listener, a supporter and sometimes an adviser. It was an honest, peaceful sentiment for me knowing that this time around, I can just relax and serve Him without any pressure. After all, that is why we are all there - to serve Him. I know that this CLP will be great because I have total confidence in Ryan and Chin. They have the complete support of an efficient service team and the full thrust of our Chapter. Just look at our orientation. We were a well-oiled machine executing gracefully all the planned tasks and activities - we got the speaker that we wanted, the sharers were prepared, music min was good (new chapter guitar and all), prayer warriors were taken cared of, registration was organized, the food was properly prepared (new chapter jug and glasses. Hehe) etc. Everything was smooth because everybody did their part. The turnout was also decent. We got 9 participants with 4 or 5 more attending next week.

So good luck CLP service team! Continue your fasting and I will be praying for you guys! GB!

Cassandra

2006-03-25T10:40:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to my SFC sister Cassie for graduating in college! The 'sisig' in your graduation celebration was so delicious! We also found a way to make Karaoke so much fun while making all the guests sing! I'll keep the details a secret so that it becomes EastA1B confidential (unless Ryan posts it in his blog. Haha!) Here’s to going home at 3 am! Wohooo!

Deployment

2006-03-24T17:47:00.000-08:00

For anyone who knows the real Accenture work life, I know it will be hard to believe that in my almost three years of stay in this company, I have never worked on night shifts. As with all things in life, that is about to change.

I was asked to be part of the deployment support group in our team. Usually, I would decline night shifts but for some reason, I accepted this one. Actually, come to think of it, this is really not a night shift but more of a 24-hour shift because we still had to go to the office in the morning and stay at night for the deployment. I was literally awake for 24 full hours!

Generally, I thought it was a nice experience. I didn't have to come to office today so I had enough time to sleep, attend to some errands then go on gimmicks. And the food during deployment was overflowing! We had dinner at North Park, had dessert in Starbucks, had lots of chips and empanada the whole time, and ate a buffet breakfast in RCBC. And I didn't have to spend a single dime! Yahoo!

Another good thing about being there when the application gets deployed is that you get to 'protect' your module. At 4am, the testing team verified that my module wasn't working in the production environment! It didn't matter that I was so sleepy because I was up for more than 20 hours then; I became wide awake when I heard that. My heart was pumping hard while trying to investigate. Good thing, it was just a false alarm. There were just some discrepancies in the configuration that was migrated to production. In short, it’s not my fault! Haha!

Kudos to my team for successfully producing high quality application to our customers! You guys are: High Performance. Delivered.

March Celebrators

2006-03-23T23:23:00.000-08:00

Every month, our team in Accenture recognizes all the birthday celebrators for that specific month. Naturally, there is a committee that handles these celebrations. I am part of this as an 'extra-curricular' activity. For the January celebration, we had Jolibee for breakfast so we asked everyone to come in earlier than usual if they wanted to get the 'limited' breakfast (actually, there was enough for everybody. we just wanted to get full attendance early in the morning. hehe). For February, we had it on Valentines Day with some sort of 'love' theme (we just had pizza so no relation on the food there. Hehe). For this month, we have some sort of 'pinoy summer' feel by giving everyone 'Halo-halo' along with other pinoy mirienda such as 'lumpiang toge' and all sorts of 'kakanin.' Yummy! It's a bit self-serving because I influenced what was to be served for this month by my personal preference. But what the heck, it's my birth month too!

Going into the preparations, our manager had this brilliant idea to make our celebration more meaningful. She just found out that I am an SFC member. Coming from SFC herself (she is now married), she thought it would more fun if we have some sort of 'honoring'. Since we cannot afford 70+ people to honor six birthday celebrators for the month, she thought of just asking the people closest to us to give a line or two.

And so the birthday celebration came this afternoon. My senior team lead, being the naughty energy that she is, made some twists to the plan. Instead of just asking the people closest to us, she asked the people who are 'linked' to us in the project. Their goal was to pair us up with other team members. In effect, the honoring became more of a teasing session with loud 'yiheeee!' from all over. It was quite embarrassing because I am really uncomfortable putting my personal life in the spot light. But it was nonetheless fun! Thanks to my fellow committee members for pulling this off! The short program was entertaining and the food was great! See you in the next planning for the April celebrators!

The Secret Society of the IC

2006-03-23T15:49:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I found out something that made me want to write this post. I guess I just felt a bit sad knowing what I discovered given that everything is just getting better by the day. But then again, nothing is final yet. It was just a happy surprise that an unexpected friendship developed from an unlikely combination of people. It was almost like a secret because the friendship will only thrive if other people just allow it to be. And since it was just allowed to progress, it got better every time. I actually found myself looking forward to the next time we'll have lunch again. It honestly felt like being a teen again - crushes, teasing, cutting 'classes', CD exchanges, joking around, coffee shop discussions, ice cream trips and the list goes on. For all the many things we 'secretly' do outside the office, here's to more fun and friendly conversations! So what is this I'm talking about?! I can't tell you. It's complicated! ;p

Birthday Post

2006-03-18T23:59:00.000-08:00

older - sagip session - kids - cards - games - preparation - mass - dinner - chapter - honoring - cherifer boys - drinking - 6AM - fun - thankful - etc - sorry can't elaborate

Galera Dive

2006-03-13T18:56:00.000-08:00

After what seems to be forever, I was able to dive again! Yahoo! To accomplish this, I had to block off the dive date in my planner a month early. We went to Oceania Puerto Galera as part of the Accenture 'Clean-up dive.' I was with my AAT buds Carlos, Sean, Omi, Leah and Sherwin. We again used the AAT van and were headed for another adventure. We had four dives and here are some things that I’d like to mention:

Crown of Thorns

The first dive was the clean-up dive. WWF initiated and briefed us in this effort. We were supposed to gather this starfish-like creature called the "Crown of Thorns (COT)." It basically looks like a starfish that had very prominent thorns. They're supposed to harm the underwater environment because they eat up the corals that serve as shelter and source of food for the marine creatures. The dive site that was assigned to us had very few Crown of Thorns. In our boat, we were only able to gather 3 in the whole 45-minute dive. Apparently, there seemed to be a mix-up in dive sites because the site that we went to was already "cleaned." Our DM (Dive Master) got one and gave it to me by using the thongs I was carrying and placing it inside my net basket. It was so hard to carry the net basket. I had to fully stretch my right arm sideward to avoid any physical contact with these COTs because they sting and you'll swell for at least a week. Plus they move gradually in the water. One minute they are at the bottom of the net, the next thing you know they are already on the verge of freedom at the upper portions of the net. You really have to keep an eye on them and push them inside the net every now and then with the thongs I was carrying. It's hard enough that I am doing all these things while managing my buoyancy that I didn't need additional things to worry about. But I did. There were these two divers who kept on hovering below me then suddenly go up my way so I had to jerk to avoid them. Aside from the fact that their bubbles annoy me, I had to maneuver myself so that they do not get hit with the poisonous “thorns” of the COT I was carrying. Not only that, they sometimes carelessly bump me as if it’s my responsibility to avoid them. I thought to myself “Kailangan ba talaga akong siksikin? Dude, ang laki-laki ng dagat! Go pick your own spot! Di ka ba tinuruang mabuti ng dive instructor mo! Oo na, certified diver ka na! Di ko malaman kung nagpapa-impress ka o nagpapa-pansin eh.” Of course I couldn’t say that aloud because I had my regulator firmly attached to my mouth. Hehe. For a split second, I thought of just allowing things to happen – them carelessly going up my way while the huge Crown of Thorns sting their sweet faces… What a lovely sight. But that was just for a split second. Hehe. I had to be the better diver even if it brings me unnecessary inconvenience. Because unlike them, I have good manners… even under water.

Aborted Dive

My second dive was in this site called the Sabang Wreck. There are basically three ship wrecks 60-70 feet below. I had my descent and waited for my dive buddy Carlos in the clear sandy bottom around 40 feet below sea level. For everyone who is not aware, scuba diving always requires a buddy. You always dive at least in pairs so that you have someone to look after you during the dive. You never dive alone, unless you’re suicidal. Going back, around 5 minutes after my buddy reached the bottom, he tapped me and signaled me to go up! Initially, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! We haven’t even explored the site yet and we already had to go up. But a good buddy had to do what good buddies do – and that is to abort the dive when one buddy does feels extremely uncomfortable for some reason. When we reached the surface, Carlos explained he panicked for acceptable reasons – his regulator was leaking so there were disturbing bubbles pestering him while his air supply is running out faster than usual, all he could see was just this deep blue abyss going down, we were going to a wreck which is basically a human instrument of transport where all its former passenger are now already dead, and lastly that he was breathing so hard that if felt like he was always catching his breath to the point of hyperventilating (he only had I think 2 hours of sleep prior to that dive.) My dive buddy was so apologetic at the surface and kept on saying sorry. I told him it was really ok because frankly it really was. The friend is more important than the dive. Also, I am not really a fan of ship wreck dives so I don’t think I was missing a lot. Besides, these are the things that they teach you in scuba diving school, not so much for academic purposes but because it will really happen. Actually, I am a bit glad having an aborted dive because at least I have applied what I have learned. I can just charge this to experience that will add up to being a better dive buddy. Besides, on our last dive, Carlos, Omi, Sean and I went back to Sabang Wreck and had a fun and successful dive with lots and lots of pictures to prove them. See! Surrender and God will make a way! (Sorry, I just had to put that in because I really thought that way then.)

90 feet

My Open Water certification only allows me to dive 60 feet and above the sea level. But on my dive in Sinandigan Wall, I reached more than 90 feet coming into a hundred feet! The water was so calm, the temperature was just right, the visibility was so good and the dive sight was so rich in creatures that it didn’t occur to me that I was going into the hundred-foot mark already! No wonder it was harder to breath at a certain point. This is what you get when you have two Advanced Open Water divers in your dive group (Sean and Sherwin) – you get carried away. Hehe. Sorry. ;p

AAT forever

It was good to be with my AAT buds again. The last time I remember us going out was during Mike’s despedida. After that, we got busy doing our respective work (we are now scattered into different team so it’s harder for us to meet during office hours). In any case, you guys will always be my family here in Accenture. So don’t create any issues if you see me going out with other groups/friends! *Hint Hint* Hehe. ;p

Home-cooked Me

2006-03-10T14:29:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was my quarterly dinner with my 'teka-teka' group/college friends. Usually, we go out and try a restaurant that most of us have never tried before just so we will have a new experience and have something to look forward to. This one would be the same thing except we didn't go out to a restaurant. It was home-cooked meals this time around.

For some unfortunate reasons, only four of us in the group made it - Me, Ryan (G), Jam and Jeanie (cause she was the host. hehe) and also for some weird reason I didn't feel uncomfortable at all with the fact that there are only a few of us. I enjoyed the conversations, the dinner preparations (Japanese food rules!), the dinner itself and even the early departure (cause I double-booked that night. bz bee).

I realize now why I was OK with it:

We have been doing this quarterly dinner thing for almost three years now since we graduated. There was a conscious decision from all of us to not only keep in touch but maintain our friendship even after college.... even after it is unnecessary.... even after it is not that convenient. Every quarter, we'd find a way to stop whatever we're doing and make time to see old friends who have been there for us years before we were this busy (and moderately successful I guess). Every time I meet them, the idealism that I once held that is now jaded by the corporate experience somehow finds its way back even just for a split second. I am reminded not to settle for anything mediocre and try to juice out the best this life can offer. Of course this time there is that SFC factor in me. Nonetheless, these guys remind me of what I wanted to be even before this chaos of a young professional existed. It is easy for us to lose track of our dreams when we have been so immersed with our reality. These guys take me back to a place where I strived for excellence and betterment.

So even if there are days when we are not complete, it will still be ok. The important truth is that we are still willing to continue maintain the bonds we have formed. So that means there will always be next time! So guys, see you on the next quarterly dinner!

Johari Window

2006-03-07T19:33:00.000-08:00

I just realized recently that there are a number of friends who read my blog but do not leave any comments in it. Haha! That's OK! No problem about that. I just need to feel your presence by trying this one out. Pleaaaassseee:

http://kevan.org/johari?name=ThomasAnthony

Chow!

Weekend Stuff

2006-02-27T13:01:00.000-08:00

Despite the political happenings these past three days, I still managed a great weekend. It's probably because I decided to show my love for my country in a different way while still being able to move on with my life.....

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It's one of those days when you actually hate the rallies going on in Makati because it falls on a Friday night. The result - your gimmicks get cancelled just to be on the safe side. Since most of my chapter mates were asked to go home early because of the declaration of 'state of emergency', we just attended this 'Drink and Dance for a cause' spearheaded by our parish. Initially, I just liked the 'drink' part because the dancing apparently involved DIs (Dance Instructors). I'm definitely not the ballroom type of guy.

But you know what, at the end of the day, we actually enjoyed attending. It was probably the first time I've seen female DIs since most people who get into ballroom are ultra-old women. So us guys had a interestingly entertaining time. The female DIs are probably the same age as ours so it wasn't really that eeky. The unlimited drinks also helped a lot. In the end, the night was amusing. This just proves to me more that the company we keep is more important than the places we go to in terms of enjoyment. Also, that "life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."

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The thing about being in the GK News Bureau is that you become a Sector property and your service cannot be exclusively for your chapter. I was only supposed to stay in the GK site assigned to my chapter for the GK 1MB celebration but the better part of me took over. I wanted to visit every GK site in our sector and so I did. All of them had activities lined up as the work of nation-building was once again prevalent. More of these in the articles we are creating for the 1MB celebration (I'm sure it will be quite long so I am deferring it.) After the site visits, I went to Ryan's place to be with my chapter (at last!) for lunch. We took a nap and then went to Quezon City circle for the national celebration.

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The good thing about friendship is that you can have as many as you can handle. I've added a couple of great comrades in my circle.

Midway through Cueshe's performance in the 1MB celebration my buddies, PA, JM and I took off and didn’t even wait for Bamboo's performance. We bought all the things we need for the overnight session at my place. We were able to grab all the things we needed except for ice. Good thing Ryan is also coming with us but was still left at QC Circle. I asked him to buy some for us so that when he arrived, the good times rolled! We talked about a lot things and I mean a lot without leaving any reservations behind. It's true what they say - great minds think alike! ;p

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The following day, I attended the birthday of another buddy, JB. It was not just your ordinary birthday since he decided to celebrate it in the company of the SAGIP and SIBOL kids of their chapter's Gawad Kalinga site in San Andres. It was very heartening since I plan to do that as well. Too bad his birthday came first so mine would just look like an imitation of what he did. Hehe. I don't care. As long as the other kids (because my chapter is assigned to another GK site) can benefit from it, then I'm fine. His celebration is inspiring because what he did proved to me that it can be done. (I think this deserves another article. I hope I get the time.) Sometimes, we just need to know that something hard can be done for us to actually do it.

Humble Follower

2006-02-23T11:44:00.000-08:00

EastA1B just had their first GMT last night. The talk was simple but meaningful. I was asked to provide copies of this song as 'props' for the topic. Sure, I've seen this many times. But while printing copies, something in me yesterday looked at the lyrics line by line. I was a bit inspired so I looked for an mp3 copy of this song. After the GMT, I found more meaning in what it is trying to say. Here are the lyrics:

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Leader of the Band
- Dan Fogelberg -

An only child alone and wild
A cabinet maker's son
His hands were meant for different work
And his heart was known to none
He left his home and went his lone and solitary way
And he gave to me a giftI know I never can repay

A quiet man of music
Denied a simpler fate
He tried to be a soldier once
But his music wouldn't wait
He earned his love thru' discipline
A thundering velvet hand
His gentle means of sculpting souls
Took me years to understand

The leader of the band
Is tired and his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs thru' my instrument
And his song is in my soul
My life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man
I'm just a living legacy
To the leader of the band

My brother's lives were different
For they heard another call
One went to Chicago and the other to St. Paul
And I'm in Colorado
When I'm not in some hotel
Living out this life
I've choseAnd come to know so well

I thank you for the music
And your stories of the road
I thank you for the freedom
When it came my time to go
I thank you for the kindness
And the times when you got tough
And papa I don't think I said
"I love you" near enough

The leader of the band
Is tired and his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs thru' my instrument
And his song is in my soul
My life has been a poor attempt to imitate the man
I'm just a living legacy
To the leader of the band
I am the living legacy
To the leader of the band
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Yep, my life has been a poor attempt to imitate THE MAN. I'm just a living legacy to the leader of the band.....

Boozed-up

2006-02-20T17:20:00.000-08:00

I arrived at the office at 9am with a slight headache. Sure, I didn't get enough sleep but that was not something abnormal in my routine. Besides, lack of sleep does not really cause headaches for me. So I thought, "What could have been the reason of this headache?" Then I got it - I was boozed-up!

It was a 'por-da-boys' weekend for me. I have been drinking for the past 3 days and although I do not consider myself as being OLD, I also acknowledge that I am not as young as I use to be (*tear*tear*). Hence, the headache. Hehe. Here's the rundown along with some side stories:

Friday:
My good friend and brother in service, JM, and I had a 1-on-1 at Sidebar Cafe in El Pueblo (or is it St. Francis square? I always get that confused). Part of SFC culture is this thing called 1-on-1. It is when we are given an opportunity to talk about anything and everything under the sun, including personal matters. This usually happens between heads and their members. The point is just to check how the member is doing or if there are some things that he/she wants to communicate outside the confides of the household group. There are also instances, like in ours, that we just want to talk and bond. And bond you will. These 1-on-1 meetings have that confidentiality clause, much like in a household group, that whatever is shared and discussed by the people involved will not be divulged to anybody else. See how that bonds people? Hehe.

Anyway, our 1-on1 was a blast! JM and I mostly talk about SFC service when we meet in community gatherings so this is a good time to talk about the 'other things' (Sorry, that's the only thing I can share). Oh and did I mention that after a long drought, I was able to drink Super Dry again! Wohooo!!!! Super Dry is my brand and it's harder to find them now since everybody has gone Light or Strong Ice. Sorry, but I still like my Super Dry more than any other newer brands.

Saturday:
After the meeting in GK San Andres for the 1MB super event, JM (again) and I went to Rica's birthday bash. The drinks here were on the finer side of the spectrum. We drank red and white wine up to the last drop. It was another bonding experience for the chapter as I introduce JM to all his potential GGs from my chapter. Hehe.

Sunday:
After the speakers training, PA, Gian, JM (again) and I went out to eat dinner and had laughter-filled conversations. These guys are hilarious on their own and all us combined is lethal and harmful. Haha! As we finish our dinner, my confidant, Jonas , invited me to celebrate his mom's birthday. So after my dinner, Nat and I went to this small place with a relaxed atmosphere called M-Vic and had some very interesting discussions. I had to contend with the Light and Strong Ice brands this time since they don't have my Super Dry.

So in the end, I have a headache as a result of all my conversations (yeah right!) Plus, I got sick and tired of JM's face since I was with him for almost whole days for the past 3 days (Haha! Just kidding bro!) You are one cool dude! It was actually great forming good friendships with these two-letter-nickname-guys. We are becoming closer friends and better brothers in this community (issues and all! Haha!)

(Is it just me or do I sound drunk writing this post?! ;p )

Do I look like Rainier Castillo?

2006-02-15T14:29:00.000-08:00

Our team had a hilarious and delightful Valentines Day celebration! All the portals (this is the collective name of our big team under one senior manager) boys and all the portals girls ganged up together to pull out a surprise for each other. Usually, I would not know about this because it was supposed to be a surprise. But I am part of the team building organizers so I knew.

For the guys, we bought this nice looking small cake with some red, pink and white icing and a tiny heart-shaped card. Every girl in the team gets a cake with this dedication:

To (Girl's name)

HVD 143!

From the boys of Portals

Nice right?! It was sweet and simple. But given that girls are generally more creative, their surprise was better (sorry guys). Actually, it was hilarious! They prepared a video presentation showing who resembled whom. It can be anyone as long as he is known. And they did it for all of us! I can only imaging the effort given that I think there are 40 guys in the team. The comparisons were so entertaining! There was the look alike of Happy Potter, Shrek, Oprah Winfrey, Rico Yan, Bojo Molina, Manny Pacquiao, Dennis Padilla, Vaness Wu (Hehe, Ronald!), Ogie Alcasid (Carlooos!), Franzen of PBB (Kakosang Sean!), Onemig Bondoc, Magic Johnson, Tweety Bird etc etc. The list goes on and on. As for me, they said I look like Rainier Castillo, and then they showed a picture of me during my longer hair days last December side-by-side with Rainier's photo. I don't really see the resemblance, but hey, that was fun!

After the presentation, the girls brought out these red balloons and explained that each balloon had a message inside it. We needed to pop them to know what it was. Then balloons started popping simultaneously. It was quite exciting to see what's inside.

Inside was a personalized description or message of the recipient of the balloon from the girls. Here's what they had for me:

TA [my surname]

"God's Gift"

He is sweet and charming and you can count on him to answer any "Search" questions. He makes insightful blog entries. He used to be the "Other half" of Carlos but now he's looking for his GG. Well, we can think that this will be soon because we are sure that any girl would be lucky to have TA as her GG as well.

The event ended with Pizza Hut and Pepsi for all the February birthday celebrants in our team. It was an amusing event and all of us ended up being unproductive at work for about two hours. Nice one, you girls!

ILC

2006-02-15T14:18:00.000-08:00

How do you start writing a post about a three-day experience where every moment is bombarded with stories and details?! You can't! This is nosebleed for me. Writing a detailed, coherent and presentable post about my experience in the Singles for Christ International Leaders Conference is impossible! So anyway, I'll just type away and try to generalize the whole thing without looking back. Hopefully I'll make sense.

I was asleep the whole trip going there because I decided not to sleep the night before. I had to finish up a lot of things in the office because I was on leave the following day. I came home at 12:30AM and decided not to sleep anymore since I haven't packed my things yet and that we were meeting at 3am anyway.
It was the biggest SFC ILC ever with over 6,200 people in delegation.
We were there in the athletic bowl auditorium on an 8 degrees Celsius temperature.
There were 16 of us in the chapter who went to Baguio.
We had a great bonding experience. I felt that the conference really solidified the relationship that we have as a group.
Contributor to this is our decision to arrange our own transportation and accommodation instead of taking the chartered bus and teacher's camp reservations. We brought a van and an FX going there and the house we stayed in was great.
We took tons and tons of pictures!
Friday night was an affirmation night. It was very reassuring to see everyone thank everyone else for all their service to the community.
The Saturday morning session was a 'light bulb' experience for me.
Confession was very healing.
The Saturday night session was ultra-inspiring. The talk-giver gave me so many insights that I didn't know where to put it in my head. Hehe.
The Saturday night party was fun. At last, we were able to warm up those cold muscles.
Rica's birthday was sweet. She decided to spend it away from her family to be in the conference. On Sunday midnight, all of us guys went out of our room carrying this Mister Donut cake-like product with a burning stick of bond paper that served as candle then sang an out-of-tune Happy Birthday song. It was stupid but sweet.
The Sunday morning session was reassuring. We were tasked to start a 'Revolution' and before that we needed to help those that needed healing. It was quite an emotional Sunday morning.
We took more and more pictures in the other spots in Baguio.
There were so many funny bloopers in the trip and in the house. I could not even start to enumerate them.
We had very interesting discussion on the way home with all the 'energy' people in the van. Mostly, the discussions were about love - everybody's favorite topic.
It was a spiritual journey for me more than anything else.
I'm more OK now than I was before experiencing the whole conference.
The best things in life happen to those who wait. God is not through with me because he is still perfecting and purifying me. Wow, what a revelation!

Water Rapids

2006-02-06T21:39:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was the first time I felt wet, from the waist down, for a very long time. Before you get any nasty ideas, I am talking about our team building in Enchanted Kingdom. It was the first major out-of-town trip of our new team since we were formed last month. There's nothing much to tell really because almost all of us have been to EK. The experiences are more or less the same for most people. Given that, I didn't have much expectations going there. I knew it will neither be super fun nor extra boring.

But that changed. I've ridden the Rio Grande Rapids ride before and naturally my clothes absorbed water here and there. A little patch of water in the shirt and another in the pants. No harm. That was what I expected again from this ride. We got in line, waited for 1.5 hours (there were lots of field trip that day so all lines were long), then got in to that round floating object with seats. I was moderately excited that after a long wait, it was our turn. Then the ride started. On the first water slope, all hell broke loose on me! There was this big surge of water that came from behind. I can see it coming my way but could not do a single thing because the seat belts were securely fastened. I felt trapped! I could not move! I didn't know what hit me after that. All I felt was this cold tingling sensation all over my legs. I thought, 'What the f**k!' That is too much! I know they wrote in the entrance, 'Expect to get wet in this ride' but did it have to be that W-E-T?! Actually I was not wet, I was soaked! There is not a single thread in my pants and shoes that didn't absorb water. During the ride, I thought, "Oh well, I'm just gonna enjoy the rest of the ride.' And I did. But it was only after the ride that I felt the effects of the experience. I brought an extra shirt just in case I'd perspire (it's a whole day thing) but obviously I didn't bring extra pants just in case I would get soaked! That would be too much preparation (now I know there's no such thing. Hehe.)

And so there I was. Strolling around Enchanted Kingdom on a breezy night - warm above, cold below. That was definitely a weird feeling. Something I never experienced before. Minute, yes. But nonetheless new. I was suppose to ride the go-cart after Rio Grande but didn't proceed because I didn't want the jeans touching my skin (more so sit on it). It was only 6:30PM then and we were scheduled to go home at past 9 (obviously, I wouldn't want to force everybody to go home because of me). I thought, 'either this thing is gonna ruin the rest of my day or I would need to be OK with it. I chose to be fine and laugh at the fact that I was uncomfortably wet. I allowed myself to enjoy even if the circumstances are not optimal for it.

I guess my experience in EK is a microcosm of what I am currently experiencing in my life. As the cliché goes, 'Things happen when we least expect it.' We need to decide whether we are allowing these unexpected experiences to ruin us or improve us. I decided in favor of the latter choice. So rock on!

Field Trip

2006-02-01T11:12:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday, I joined the SAGIP kids in our Gawad Kalinga site for their annual field trip. This is the second time I am doing this so I was better prepared for the event. Last year, I came from a date that ended at 2am and got home at 3am and still had to wake up at 530am to go to the meeting place of the field trip. You could only imagine how sleepy I was at lunch time. I also didn't know what to expect so I was not able to bring extra shirt. So there I was under the scorching heat of the sun with a shirt so wet that it could no longer absorb my sweat. Yikes!

Anyway, this year I was more rested and well prepared. Aside from me, the guys who volunteered in our chapter were Ryan, Chin, Hazel and my sister Ryzel. I was assigned to accompany the younger kids to visit Villamor Air Base (while the older kids went to Ayala Museum) in the morning. We had lunch somewhere in Quirino Grandstand and rested there for a while. We then proceeded to the Intramuros area where we had a learning session in a fire station there. We entered Fort Santiago afterwards to continue with our tour. We ended the trip with lots of playing in the field inside the Fort Santiago premises.

Honestly, the SAGIP field trip is one SFC service that I really love participating in simply because it involves children. Unlike my sister, I am unable to facilitate on SAGIP sessions every Saturday morning so this becomes the perfect time for me to serve the GK program that is close to my heart. I realized that through this simple event, we are allowing the kids to freely be what they are - kids. There's this phrase that I picked up somewhere: "Minsan lang sila maging bata." It's quite challenging for these kids to be just kids given their backgrounds. Before the works of Gawad Kalinga, these children live in families where there is poverty, violence, child labor, no proper health care and no morality. They are forced to grow up early by their surroundings. Activities like this put them back to just being normal, fun-loving, playful kids. It was such a delight to see them run around and climb up and down a covered tree after our lunch break. Same goes when they started playing 'agawan base' or 'luksong baka' in the open field of Fort Santiago. Or when the young boys started giggling after they saw a naked sculpture of a woman inside the Rizal museum. Or when a young girl asked her SFC 'ate' to stay in the jeep with her because they’ve already become close even just after a short time. These are the often-forgotten, seemingly-regular, priceless moments that we all had as kids that I saw them experience as well. I remember one of the kids that were assigned to me in last year's field trip in Manila zoo. He was excited to go to the zoo but during the day he became sickly and was not able to fully participate in the tours and games. Just about a month after, he died due to severe heart problems..... I tell you, just to be an instrument of those moments where these children are just allowed to be children is more than a blessing for me.

These are the moments I thank God that I'm alive.....

Job Fair

2006-01-27T18:46:00.000-08:00

Just this morning, Ekky and I went to the Ateneo job fair to help Accenture 'inspire' the graduating class to apply to our company. Mike and Czar were supposed to come with us but Czar was assigned onshore for emergency purposes (lucky girl!) and Mike had tons of work to do.

The day started out slow because Ekky and I arrived even before the HR people got in so we had nothing to do. The Cervini field, where the job fair was held, was a bit muddy so there were 'walkways' made of brown envelopes and card boards. Some of the early bird companies already had their booth setup with single banners of their company names. They had colorful bond papers in their tables where the employment requirements were printed. Some had gimmicks like fish bowls where they can get some candies and some had audio presentation of sorts. And then there is ours..... a naked booth. With only a few simple posters about our Accenture Technology Solutions and Business Process Outsourcing units, I thought that our booth was so pitiful. There we were - an industry giant with an ugly booth.

But I was proven wrong. A single HR girl came and said hello. I asked, 'tayong tatlo lang ba?' with the feeling of an inevitable embarrassment waiting to happen. But then she replied, 'parating na yung iba, may kinuha lang na gamit.' I thought, 'what things?!' Soon after, the weapons of war came. They started unrolling not one, not two but three banners! Two diagonal pieces on both ends of the booth and a vertical one on the center. From a box, they started pulling out all these leaflets segregated per target audience - ATS New Hire, ATS Experienced, BPO New Hire, BPO Experienced. Then came out these blue envelopes with Accenture logos in them containing some glossy materials. Talk about recruitment kit! And then it came - our last battle tank! I suddenly saw these two guys carrying this enormous flat screen TV coming our way. The HR girl then pulled out the DVD player and DVDs from her side. Wow! We were armed and prepared! They played these Accenture Ads that I think are only usually shown in the states along with some ads that they have in www.accenture.com (ehem ehem, plugging, hehe). They even showed presentations for BPO and ATS along with some snippets of past Accenture events like the 'If I were a Beatle' contest. If I were the job fair participant, I would definitely give our booth a second glance. Hehe. How could I think our recruiting guys would do a sloppy job? They were under pressure to sign-up all the best people. And to do that, they would need to attract all of them.

Anyway, I started to perform my forced voluntary work. I got to talk with some seniors and juniors, some of which I even guided in their ORSEM weekend. The bulk of the people came at around 10:30 AM and we became busy. We had a considerable number of people who signed up for the exam given that it was already the last day of the job fair and most people would have already visited the booth by then. I was surprised that we were treated lunch and at 12:30PM was picked up by the company driver to be brought back to GT. I felt like royalty for that. Hehe.

I came back to the office feeling good. It's not the first time I visited my alma mater but it's the first time I visited it on a school day after a long time. Usually, there's not much people around because when I get a chance, I visit it on weekends. Seeing all those aspiring seniors reminded me of the days when I was on their shoes. Hay.... I suddenly missed my college days. Looking back now, I have come to realize one very important lesson: COLLEGE CHICKS RULE!

Short Shout Out

2006-01-25T19:20:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Anthony!

Sorry bro, I am overly busy that I couldn't come up with a coherent post. My Component Test Plan creation is delayed (work stuff; not my fault. hehe) so I am racing against time to get this done before the week ends. But still, I thought your celebration is worth mentioning. For the details, just click on Ryan's post. ;p

The Paths That We Take

2006-01-24T20:47:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, I attended the Christening of my female cousin’s son. I was a Ninong so even if I had a scheduled dive that weekend, I had to cancel because this one is for a formerly close cousin. Besides, I didn’t want to get the endless interrogation from all my titas as to why I was absent on that big family event. How could I repeatedly state that I was out because I had to feed my fancy? If that happens, I am assured of their deadly scolding.

There was nothing superbly special about the event. That was my 6th time to be a godfather so I was used to how it goes. What prompted me to think are the circumstances surrounding the baptism. The baby was born out of wedlock and my cousin is just a year older than me. This reminded me of my 5th inaanak from my kabarkada. She was also born under the same circumstance.

I am not trying to judge them or anything because I don’t think I am in a position to do so. I don’t think anybody is in a position to judge anybody else. It’s the difference relating to me that made me think a bit. The parents of my last two godchildren are basically the same age as I was. And yet the state of our lives is very different. Here I am blogging, writing about my daily experiences, worrying about what next hobby to take, trying to move up the corporate ladder while still balancing my time for family, friends, ‘close friends’, God and myself. And there they are trying to raise a child and become a good parent, working very hard for a future that depends on them, and trying to sort out the complexities of their relationship with the father or mother of their babies. None is more trivial than the other. Both are equally dignified and acceptable for me.

It’s just that life has a funny way of revealing itself. We have so many options. Especially after we graduate college – no more predefined path to safe success and happiness. We are presented with so many decisions and so many choices and we just have to trust that our life experiences will enable us to take the better path. Even the definition of a better path is relative. I guess in the end, the paths that we take are an expression of who we are. It is a reflection of our world at a particular point in time.

First Households

2006-01-19T13:16:00.000-08:00

Last Monday was my first household (HH) for this year with my members. My SFC bro, Allan, asked to join in since he needed some assistance. I thought of having it on a Monday since historically that day always fits into our schedules... except for mine. You see, Monday is my badminton day (aside from Tuesday, which I also haven't had a chance to participate in the longest time.) Every Monday, the company that I work for sponsors three courts in The Zone. My badminton addict officemates and I usually eat dinner before sweating our minds out trying to get that perfect smash. That is why I was initially hesistant to have it on a Monday. I needed to be sure that it was worth the sacrifice so I texted my members if they were available. Surprisingly, even those that very seldom reply to me confirmed. That was the sign for me. Service over Sports (at least most of the time. hehe.) I also asked the help of my SFC bro, Jonas, since I know that I would need help in facilitating my members. You see, my members are what they call 'pasaway' so I know I would need some more ammunition. Everything somehow fell into place this time.

My lower HH was actually inspiring. They were very happy to be there and finally having a HH again after the long holiday break. They were wishing that our group would continue on throughout the year. They were very participative and open with our topic. It was indeed a great start for us. The only catch is that Monday fits perfect for all of them.... Oh well.... Service over Sports (at least most of the time. hehe.)

Also, last night (Wednesday) we had out first unit HH of the year. This HH comprise of houshold heads and our respective unit heads. This as they call them is my upper household. It was, as always, very enriching. The thing with our heads is that they are not afraid to speak their hearts. They’re not anxious to get personal. We had long conversations on the topic at hand and we even had an extra topic while eating. I had lots of insights and realizations at the meeting that prompted me to take some actions for my betterment.

Two great nights in a row and the week isn't even finished yet.

Bowling

2006-01-11T17:12:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was a fun way to start the year for our chapter. We had a fun fellowship. You see, fellowship is to SFC the same way that team building is to my company and gimmick is to the usual yuppie. We opted to go bowling since this is an activity that everybody can participate. I don't usually go bowling but this one was superbly enjoyable. It's not so much the game but the company that I enjoyed. At first, I was a bit worried that no one would be available to come. I soon realized that there is no point worrying about these things. Whatever will be, will be. I just have to trust the other heads to do their part in disseminating the information. It was a success! Many of us came and there was so much excitement. Thanks to the dedicated heads and to our zealous new members. It was perfect! I hope this sets the trend for the year in our chapter.

The Source

2006-01-09T11:24:00.000-08:00

All of us, at some point in our lives, have been inspired by somebody else's life or work. I'd like to share my inspiration. Thanks also to my High School teacher who introduced me to him and to the world of literature and poetry. After that, I was never the same.

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The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost (1874–1963)

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

The Daily Motivator

2006-01-05T11:37:00.000-08:00

One former lead in our team used to forward the contents of this great site to all of us in the project. It's actually quite helpful, especially when one is bored with his work. I'd like to share the entry for today:

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Ever higher

Don't let yourself get too comfortable. For comfort can drain you of the ambition to follow your most treasured dreams.It is great to be pleased with where you are and with how far you've come. Yet even the most satisfying achievements begin to lose their value to you as soon as they are completed.

It is great to spend your time in pleasant, comfortable surroundings. Yet there is so much more to life than pleasure and comfort.

You are at your best when you are moving toward a meaningful, positive and ambitious goal. As each goal is reached, use the position you've attained to reach even higher.

No matter how delicious, satisfying, and filling your most recent meal may have been, before long you will need to eat again. Learn to see achievement in the same way.

For just as food sustains your body, achievement helps to sustain your spirit. As you work toward a worthy goal, you more fully become the best you can be.

You've already made much progress. Reach ever higher, and keep that golden momentum going.

-- Ralph Marston
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For more of these, just visit http://www.greatday.com/motivate/. I'm sure there is an entry suited for each of us.

BEING FAT

2006-01-04T12:46:00.000-08:00

.....is the inevitable consequence of over eating during the holidays. Take me as an example - all my hard work and sweat in the gym and from playing badminton was put to waste during the holidays. I was already Christmas partying since December 2! The last Christmas party I attended was December 30. Whew! I am not really a binge eater but I like trying everything on the menu. My only consolation was that I was able to drink enough glasses of red wine to hopefully equalize all the cholesterol that came into my system (I just heard that red wine is good for the heart; so I'm basing this on that assumption. Hehe).

This topic brings to memory a time when I used to be chubby back in high school. Just to clarify: I was not fat then. I was strictly chubby (And I am not in denial as well! Haha!) I would have posted pictures but I have a self-imposed no-picture policy in my blog. Just take my word. Besides, it's not about being thin. It's about being consciously healthy. A lot of my relatives on my father's side die of stroke. I do not intend to follow this trend. Hehe.

Lastly, I'm not worried about being fat because I have a secret weapon - super fast metabolism. I easily burn what I eat so I don't think I am at risk of being overweight.... even on Holiday Seasons. Yep, the world is not fair..... And we have a just God! Haha!

(Just thought I'd drop this topic in to all those concerned individuals ;p )

New Year Resolution

2006-01-03T19:32:00.000-08:00

What's a New Year resolution? Is it just some fancy to-do list intended to provide a glimmer of hope to the person making them but in actuality is almost always disregarded even on just the second month of that year? Well, that's what I thought of it at first. I did not believe in resolutions because I found it to be quite superficial and bound to fail. That is until I created my own resolution last year. The thing about me is that I do not find pleasure in failing, especially in my own predefined goals. Last year, my resolution goes to the effect of: I will stop holding off on things. It’s quite simple but the achievement is deep. I did all the things that I’ve been wanting/planning to do for years but always hold off for different reasons – time, resources, energy, effort etc. I intended to live my best life while I still can; while I am still a young professional. The things that I did were neither necessarily grand nor complicated, but to me they were important. Looking back, I think I did well. I was satisfied with what I have accomplished. This resolution thing seems to be working for me. So I continue.

This year, I am elevating the goal a few more notches. The goal will require more from and of me. Face your fears – that is the resolve! And by this, I do not mean fear of spiders or high places or the dark etc. The fears I am referring to are the little things that requires us to extend outside our comfort zone. I have 2 aspects in particular. I am not divulging yet but rest assured that I will let everybody know by the end of year. It seems simple enough, but in a world where almost everything is handed down to us, very few people are willing and able to move out of the things that make them comfortable. Discomfort becomes a no-no especially to those who are in love with their own little worlds. A respected philosopher in my university once wrote, ‘lundagin mo beybe!’ That is exactly what I am going to do….

So I guess this is one entry that has no ending yet. I am doing this to better myself. I’ll touch base in a year. Chow!

Nicer Ones

2006-01-02T14:25:00.000-08:00

I'm not really a fan of using quotable quotes, but here are some thoughts that made me smile and sort of think. I got these from one of the emails in my yahoogroups.

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Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely, in one pretty & well preserved piece... but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting -- “Holy Shit, What A Ride!”

- Author Unknown

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Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover...

- Mark Twain

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“A good friend will bail you out of jail. A best friend will be sitting right next to saying, ‘Damn, that was fun!’”

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“The most wasted of all days is one without laughter”.

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"It's not what you do during your job that counts in life. It's what you do AFTER."

Farewell Dinner

2005-12-23T14:14:00.000-08:00

I really thought that the night of December 22 would be a terrible night for me. I have to go to 3 simultaneous events that night! I thought ‘Good luck!’ Hehe. There was the Christmas dinner party with my college friends, the movie night out with my SFC group and then the despedida party of my AAT bud, Mike. I had to let go of the movie night because they wanted it in Gateway mall. I was able to persuade my AAT friends to have the despedida in Greenbelt so that I was able to divide my time to get the best of both events. Yehey to me!

I actually want to put the spotlight on Mike’s farewell. I left Seafood Club and got to Fish & Co just in time for the main program. I was pleasantly surprised that ALL the ATT guys are there, including the non-office members! This rarely happens to us lately because there usually is someone missing on a particular event. Come to think of it, we never had an AAT outing where all of us are present. We’re usually missing a person or two for different reasons. But I guess last night was different – we were all there not just to have fun but we were there for a good friend.

The main program of the night was when we lit up a candle, said our farewell message to Mike, and then gave our gifts to him. Everybody was smiling and accommodating; partly trying to hide the tinge of sadness we were feeling. The mood was mellow-dramatic and the messages were purely honest. It’s not very usual that we enter a company thinking that we’re there purely to work but then find people who will transcend the confides of the office space and share our life-memories with. That was AAT for us. It made working enjoyable and tolerable at times.

With Mike signing off, I really do not know what is its effect on the dynamics of our group. He was there from the start – vehemently organizing and participating in all our ATT outings in the beginning. In those trips, he always finds a way to juice out all the personal details of our lives. We might have hated it at first but that was the bridge that brought us closer to one another. We exceeded being just co-workers and started being good friends. Case in point is Sean & Omi (need I say more?! Hehe)

Even at the office, Mike was a loud voice. And I mean that literally. He never fails to express all his thoughts and feelings disregarding or maybe purposely including other people who might hear him. He always had strong opinions on everything, specially management decisions and policies. Hehe. Most of us will admit to being embarrassed at times by his loud opinionated mouth but for the most part, we are secretly glad that he expressed those things out in the open – things that would have been suppressed if not for his nonchalant attitude. We might not admit it totally but Mike sometimes becomes our own voice in the office. He becomes the microphone of the group. We have a lot of office talks in AAT and everybody knows the sentiment of everybody else. So I’m sure that most of what he says is influenced by other people in the group and thus their sentiments as well.

Well that is Mike for us (or at least the ones I am able to write; this is getting too long!) He is one hell of a colorful character! It’s either you love him or you hate him! No in-betweens! Of course you know where AAT stands right?! Hehe

Apart from these there’s a couple more things that Mike is – a father and a husband. These are probably the 2 main roles that lead to his resignation. He not only dreamed for himself but for his family as well. He will not only work for his own but also for his wife and little daughter. That side of Mike, we all respect and bow to. For the courage to take your destiny into your own hands, the strength to endure the loneliness in a foreign land and the determination to give your family the best life that they deserve, you are the man!

So Mike, here’s to your good life ahead! Good luck on your new job! Show those bastards what a Filipino can do! We will miss you and God bless to you and your family! Cheers!

PS: Give us your new email address so we can send you our resume when we’re ready. Haha! ;p

Stag Party

2005-12-20T18:07:00.000-08:00

Two of my friends in the community are getting married on Wednesday. Congratulations to them!

As part of the pre-wedding rituals, the men had their stag party last Sunday. Although I am a person who usually fills my blog entries with descriptive words of all my experiences, I am shutting up this time! I want to stay alive and worry-free in the coming days so my lips are sealed! I only have one thing to say about our stag party: It was authentic.

Christmasy

2005-12-20T10:05:00.000-08:00

I haven’t really felt that it’s the Christmas season. This is probably due to the tons of non-Christmas things that I have to deal with before I can feel the holidays. There are the never-ending office requests that apparently only I can address because of the functional requirements in delivering them. There are the News Bureau deadlines that all needs to be done ASAP (did I mention that I’m starting to hate these four letters?) And then there are the chapter concerns that only heads get to bear because we want the members to enjoy their newbie stages as to not easily burn.

I guess Christmas just started for me last Saturday. For the first time in quite a long time, I was fully relaxed. I didn’t need to worry about work because I was already on leave then. All the people bugging me to write articles for the sector suddenly became quiet. I didn’t need to concern myself on any Christmas party program because I will only be a participant enjoying all the events. It was good that I had time for myself.

The day started with the SAGIP Christmas party in the morning. I rarely have a chance to visit the SAGIP kids in our GK site and that was the perfect opportunity to see them again. The fun was simple but penetrating. I witnessed the little miracles of God when what used to be a primary concern of the facilitators became an overflowing abundance – gifts for the kids. There was the one coming from our chapter, from the other chapter taking care of the site, and another kind-hearted sponsor. Wow! Seeing all those smiles and radiant energy coming from these kids reminded me why I was serving Gawad Kaling in the first place – to give back to this country that has been very good to me. I was reminded that what we here do matter to this people and that we are affecting lives little by little, step by step and one by one. That was a good way to start the day.

That day ended with another Christmas party – our chapter’s. They wanted it done in our house and I was just so willing to show the new paint job and garden decorations done! Haha! I was excited preparing knowing that all the new SFC members of our chapter are coming and have prepared tremendously for their group presentations. Their enthusiasm is infectious! The night was a blast. Everybody was laughing their hearts out and having so much exuberance participating in the games, presenting, getting on conversations, giving gifts and greeting each other. It was a whole five hours of Christmas night for me!

Christmas may have come late for me but it surely came with a big bang!

Random Thoughts

2005-12-06T20:02:00.000-08:00

Our CLP is through.... at last! We were able to graduate 12 lucky people!

Got my 13th month bonus.... now it's gone.... haha!

I haven't started creating the articles for the Operetta. I hope to finish them soon before the Dec 22 deadline.

Preparations for our chapter Christmas party in underway; I hope that the program is fun

My SFC brother, Ryan, is now a household head..... Good luck to him!

My AAT kapamilya, Mike, is resigning soon..... Good luck to him if ever!

I can't wait to be on leave and rest for the holidays.....

Our house looks extra fine because of the new paint job.

I'm planning on buying something big next year.... stay tuned....

I found out that I will be on Release 3 of our project.... new challenges at last!

I am infatuated again.... Sorry, I won't tell.... ;p

Bought a new phone.... but not a new model.....

My katambayans are planning to go to Shanghai next year... I hope I get the resources needed.....

My former colleague in Chicago got promoted to Manager..... Congrats to her!

My desktop is still in safe mode.... I'm thinking it might really have a virus.... have to hand it for inspection.

I can't wait to be on training starting this Thursday.... just to break the monotony.....

My friend, Raymond, just celebrated his birthday.... Happy birthday pal!

I already bought new pants, shirts, bags, and cologne for myself this Christmas....

I really would like to get to know her better.... did I mention I am infatuated?! Haha!

Certified!

2005-11-23T18:49:00.000-08:00

"Today, you are no longer strangers to the sea, but her ambassadors on land. Take care of her." -- This is one of the messages given by our instructors underwater. Wow! I can't believe I did it! I am finally certified as a diver! After all the long hours of training in the pool and four fun and tiring dives in Dive & Trek, I now have a license to dive at will. I can now go and discover places that not many people get a chance to see. It’s really a hall pass to the Heaven below. I really can't fully describe the feeling. Of course it's exciting and happy. But it's more than that. I now realize that there's more to diving than fun and excitement. There's also the aspect of discipline, learning to follow protocols, being accountable for your actions, having the ability to care for a buddy, appreciating God's little miracles and accepting that you are not the center of the universe - there's a whole world out there that we are not a part of. We only serve as visitors underwater; 'Bosero' as my instructor puts it.

For me this is a nice way of ending my to-dos for the year. Last January, I started the year with the conscious effort to do all the things that I wanted to do especially those that I was holding off for quite a while. "Live your best life and stop holding off things" -- this was my resolution for the year. Actually my first resolution ever. I just wanted to try it out if it will work for me. It seems to be working. Let's see what it will be next year.

On Being Single

2005-11-07T19:22:00.000-08:00

OK, I am facing the music! Some recent events prompted me to talk about the topic of me being single:

1. A few weeks back, I and my katambayans had our quarterly dinner in Oyster Boy and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that 3 of my previously single friends are now in a relationship. Two of them brought their better halves in the said event. I am honestly happy for them because I have been witness to all their heartaches and waiting time for someone to come along for them. I can only hope that they'd be happy together.
2. The room assignments for our check-out dive became such a big deal. The couples in my group wanted to get only twin rooms and I was left looking for roommates. Honestly, I don't know what fuss was all about. The last time I checked, we were going there for a checkout dive and not for any weekend honeymoon getaway. Just give me a decent room with some people that I at least know and I'll be fine. No worries.

I haven't really looked at it this way but here's a summary of relationship in my social circle:
A. Most of my SFC friends are single
B. All my kabarkadas are in a relationship
C. We have almost an equal ratio of single and attached people in my Ateneo circle
D. Until just about a month back, all of my AAT friends are also in a relationship

So why am I still single? Well, the last time I reflected, I still loved women and all their bodily functions! Hehe. Seriously now, it’s simply because I haven't found someone yet. As a guy, it is quite easy for me to court the next girl that comes along. But I do not want to do it that way. I don't want to get a girlfriend just for the sake of having one, or just because I'm lonely or bored in my life. As cheezy as it may sound, I will enter into a relationship for Love and not for anything else. I don't want to waste the girl's time making her believe that something substantial can come out of our relationship if I am only using her as a practical companion.

It has been almost 3 years now since I entered into a relationship (formally committed at least) and one thing I realized in that experience is that I am not waiting for any person to come before I can start living my life. I have to be whole and complete as I am. That is why I am doing all the things that I like to do and not hold off until I am with someone to pursue my interests - this includes my service to God. I want to be the best person that I can be so that when I enter into the next relationship, I am coming in with a bit more insights on life and little more appreciation of all its many blessings.

There is this term in SFC pertaining to your girlfriend or boyfriend. They call it 'GG', which stands for 'God's Gift.' And to me it is what is says – a gift. Just like a gift, we will not fully know what's inside when we receive it. We just know it is something that we will love. Just like a gift, it is not something that we cannot initially claim as ours. We just have to be thankful that it is given to us. It is a gift given by the greatest giver of all in his own perfect time. With this in mind, I really cannot worry because He has given me a lot of blessings. I truly believe that the great Lord has good plans for me the same way that he has plans for all of us. I entrust to him my life and that includes my relationships. I am living my life the way that I believe he wants me to. So that when the time comes that He gives the one for me, I know I'll be ready because He has prepared me for it.....

Legend

2005-10-19T11:58:00.000-07:00

I am putting up a legend on my life. Hehe! It will be hard to introduce/describe them every time I mention them in my entries. These are the groups that comprise my active social life. Of course, this is not to say that they are my only friends. I have come to meet a lot of outstanding people that do not necessarily belong to this group. These are just the ones that I can mention collectively.

Kabarkada/Barkada - as the name implies, these people are my kumpares. We go back from our High School days in La Salle Greenhills and still managed to maintain a good friendship even if all of us are living our separate lives. These are the people that I've been with from the time that I haven't really established any identity yet up to now that I am quite comfortable with myself. They have been there all the way as I change interests and girlfriends in my younger days (Yuck! As if I'm that old!)

Teka-teka/Katambayan/Tikling-Cogeo - actually there are a lot of names that can describe this group. These are my friends back in my Ateneo days. Teka-teka-teka is the name of our yahoo groups (don't ask why; long story). In college, you need to have a space in the university that you can call your own (at least for your stay there); that would become your tambayan. Thus, they are my katambayans. All of us come from different areas, but most of us come from the Tikling-Cogeo area here in the East side of Manila. These are the people that implicitly reminds me to maintain that level of idealism to achieve a lot in life and not to settle to just being average. We have also managed to maintain a healthy relationship even after college because we are able to take time out form our schedules and our current lives to meet at least once every quarter.

AAT friends/family - AAT stands for Accenture.com Adventure Team. These are my colleagues at work that eventually became my good friends. We really are an adventure team because we've traveled to so many different places (Baguio to Boracay) which helped us get to know each other outside the confides of daily work. They are my punch bags in every bad day at the office and they are also the first to know every major milestone in my career. They make working enjoyable for me.

SFC friends/family/brothers/sisters - These are the people that I interact within the community that I belong (Singles for Christ). This one is a broader group because this constitutes a lot of people from varying walks of life, ages and lifestyles. They are my comrades in service, spirituality and fun. To be specific, I can also use 'chaptermates' to point to a more specific group in SFC - the chapter that I belong to in SFC. They are the people that I interact regularly. It's a different kind of friendship that I would not even try to define. You'd have to be SFC first! Hehe.

Whew! Looking at these, I am quite pleased and thankful that I have maintained good relationships throughout the years. They are all still actively participating in my life right now and I feel blessed for that. Oh well, end of legend!

DIVE!

2005-10-10T16:13:00.000-07:00

It didn't start as the best day of my life. I was still sleepy because I stayed up late for an SFC activity. I had to wake up earlier than all of my friends because I will need more time to travel from Antipolo to Makati. I hitched up with a friend because I didn't know how to commute to the venue and they were 30 minutes late (hehe. Peace Leah. I don't have the right to complain because I'm just hitching with you guys). So all my hurried moments lead to nothing because we were obviously late. When I got there, the fins that I am so dearly excited to use was not prepared. You see, I asked the people in Scuba World to reserve that set of fins for me last Friday so that I can use them for yesterday's session without having to take them home. Apparently, they forgot! I had to contend with some overused fins. Oh, and did I mention that I wasn't able to read the diving book because I didn't have time so I didn't really get the entire quiz question correctly? Hay....

OK, my day started on a bad note. I wasn't going to allow it to end on the same note. After all, I was beginning a journey that not all people take, or at least couldn't afford to take. I was in the process of being a certified diver! From the class presentations, to performing exercises in the shallow pool, to the actual descent to the pool, it was a BLAST! Breathing underwater was initially weird but soon it became like second nature. And the gears were savvy! I felt like I'm on a space suit getting ready on a galactic expedition. Our first diving class was really a thrill to me! I felt very free in a way that I can't fully describe. Nonetheless, it something that I am looking forward to doing in the open water. I CAN’T WAIT!

I'm OK with it

2005-09-27T21:16:00.000-07:00

My friends usually hear me whine about how hectic my schedule is, about how I don't get enough sleep etc etc. But at the end of the day, I think I actually like it that way. I like the fact that I am productive and I actually contribute to something. I do not need to color my world because my days are colorful as it is.

Take our chapter’s CLP saga: after minutes of personal sermon by our parish priest, we were finally allowed to conduct our CLP in our mother parish. With only 1 week left before The Day, we spared no time evangelizing single people to participate in our chapter’s CLP. It was a full day that started at 8am and ended at 8pm. There was posting banners in the church, giving out flyers to each mass in the village, going to each and every house of possible participants and getting our hands wet with water mixed with starch to place posters in almost all the light posts in the long stretch of our main avenue. Yes it was tiring but it was also fun. I really felt the camaraderie, teamwork and commitment of my chaptermates/friends to make our CLP successful. And so with only one day of evangelization, we were still able to get 15 participants. In East A standards, that is high! I hope more will come in the coming weeks.

And then there’s deployment work in the office. The first days were really a struggle. I had to find a way to do my work while being bombarded with questions regarding the module that I left with the team. I was singled out as a resource here in Manila and I know that puts higher expectations in my performance. In effect, I really have to put in extra time and effort to ensure that my deliverables are given in time and with very good quality. Yes, it is tiring but it’s also fun! I enjoy any chance to learn and to do sometime new. And this is that opportunity. I am continuously learning and at the same time enjoying what I do. I’m pretty OK with technical and functional work. Now, I’m improving my skills in managerial roles among others. I hope I exceed the expectations that I have for myself. I really like testing my limits sometimes.

Oh, and did I mention that I still have GK news bureau work in this very big stage production of our sector, 2 households per week (1 for upper, 1 for lower), diving certification classes coming soon with my AAT friends, out-of-town overnight party with my friends in Ateneo (dunno how to fit this in my schedule), drinking sessions with my barkada (this time they’re La Sallians. hehe) and of course I have to attend to my love life (sorry off limits)!

So there! A very hectic schedule with just enough time for rest makes TA a happy man!

Keeping It Together

2005-09-13T03:44:00.000-07:00

Don't you sometimes wish that you could just walk away from everything that is happening in you life?! Wahhhhh!!!!! There are so many things in my plate right now that I'm having a hard time balancing everything.

1. Newsletter - We are coming up with our very first Sector Newsletter and I am having issues with one of my writers. I needed his article for 1 GK site and at the last minute he backed out saying that he's not satisfied with the article and will just give the story on the next newsletter. WHAT?!?! We cannot afford to have 1 site excluded from the newsletter. We have articles for all our GK sites except for one! That would appear like we are discriminating that site or that we didn't do our work enough to get a decent story on the site. It would be like selling a car with one wheel missing for the same price. Nobody would buy it. In the end, we had to wait for that last article. Oh, correction: we ARE still waiting and we are running out of time.

2. CLP - Christian Life Program (CLP) is SFC's means of getting new members. Through some very rare opportunity, our titos and titas from CFC gave us their Saturday night slot in our chapter parish. This is a big thing for our chapter because it has been a gazillion years since we were allowed to hold our CLP in our home parish where there are tons of interested participants. We use to hold them in one of the smaller chapels in a smaller village. Guess who was tasked to lead that CLP?! Me! It is my first time to lead a CLP and I’m undergoing trial-by-fire. Why? Because for some reason, the letter did not get to the Church office on time. The people, who were supposed to give it, gave it late. Added to that, our parish priest, who had seen our letter a couple of times hasn't approved it yet. This is important for us because we cannot do anything (invite people, go house-to-house, give flyers, place posters and banners) until the venue is finalized. Our CLP starts on Sept.24 and we are still stuck in step 1. We are running out of time!

3. Household - A household is like a prayer meeting only cooler. Hehe. We are not confined to simply praying. Anyway, being a household head, it is also my responsibility to conduct weekly household with my members. This is one of their main sources of pastoral nourishment. We haven't conducted any household for the past 3 weeks because there were events that we needed to attend in lieu of household. Now, I couldn't find time to have a household because of all the things I need to do! And I am one of those SFC who hate not having weekly households because it destroys the momentum and members can start backsliding because they are not growing spiritually.

4. Work - Did I mention I have a full time day job and everything that I enumerated above can only be done on weekends and after office hours? Hehe. I was transferred from fix-it to a deployment role. Actually, this is a welcomed change. This is something I haven't done before and this will basically end the monotony of my fix-it life. But on the other hand, I know that I will be working more hours to finish my deliverables since there will be higher learning curve on this new role. More time for office will mean less time for 'other things'. And less time for 'other things' is the last thing I want given all the things I need to accomplish.

So lately, everything is touch-and-go for me. I literally have to schedule friends months in advance just so I know how my calendar will turn out.

I am SO trying to keep it together! I know that with the help of my friend upstairs, I will be able to do all his will. Sometimes we try so desperately to hold on to things to keep it together that we forget that the best way to keep it together is to simply surrender everything and offer it to him.

Recuperating

2005-09-07T15:53:00.000-07:00

Wow! I actually found time to update my blog. It's quite a while since I posted anything here.

I was out for 3 days on vacation before the fiscal year of the company I work in starts. I was able to accomplish a lot of things which included having the time to play badminton after a long time of inactivity. We played from 8pm to 11:30pm. This was the start of my temporary physical decline.

I woke up the next day with an aching body. I knew I was supposed to rest but that was the last day of my vacation! I needed to maximize my break. I went out and got a NBI clearance for travel (ehem ehem) and spent the whole day looking for that perfect pair of rubber shoes. At night my whole body was aching more, especially on my legs because of the continued walking in almost all the malls in Manila. The day didn't end there. I attended our weekly household (more on those on later posts) and got home at about 1pm

The following day, I woke up at 530am (whaaaat?!??! Is that me?!). Just for the sake that it was the first day of the fiscal year and it was my fist day as SE, I thought it would be good if can start a practice of coming to office earlier. Wrong move. Hehe

When I got into the office at 730am, I didn't know that we were required to render overtime hours! In effect, I got home at 9pm.

It was probably the overused aching body, lack of sleep, working 11 hours straight and below zero temperature in my work area that all contributed to my sickness.

An unwelcome leave was taken the next day – a sick leave. I was not able to get total bed rest throughout the weekend because there were commitments that I had to attend to. But I was able to visit the hospital to get some tests done.

Since I didn't have enough rest, I was still dizzy the following Monday. Good thing that my body is fighting back and I believe I'm getting better.

DND

2005-08-29T09:53:00.000-07:00

Today is the start of my three-day leave. In effect, I am getting a five-day break that started last Saturday. For somebody who has zero (0) sick leave and only two or three vacation leaves distributed only on one-day intervals for the WHOLE fiscal year, I believe I deserve this break. I wanted to take my mind out of work before I start my aggressive ‘campaign’ in the following fiscal year. I take my vacations the same way that I perform my job: with utter seriousness. So I hope nobody calls me for anything work-related. To my co-workers: Do Not Disturb (DND)

Sagip Olympics

2005-08-28T23:40:00.000-07:00

Note from the author: I am suppose to describe my Sagip Olympics experience. Instead of creating a totally new entry, I decided to simply post the article I created for the event. Enjoy!

Children’s Play
By TA

What happens when you pack more than 3,000 kids in one venue? The result is chaotic fun! It was Olympics time once again last August 27,2005 at the Marikina Sports Complex! But this is no ordinary Olympics. All the games were participated by kids. And these children are not ordinary either. They are all members of the Sagip program of Gawad Kalinga.

I arrived just in time for the parade and field demonstration of sectors. The bright colors worn by each sector along with their banners were a feast for the eyes. The display would have given United Colors of Benetton a run for their money. Sagip Olympics began in full swing and the Gawad Kalinga (GK) sites of East A were in full force! Thirty-five (35) kids came from Janssenville. Another Thirty-five (35) participants were from San Andres. Hapay na Mangga site had thirty-six (36) kids and the Karangalan village site had twenty-three (23). An additional fifty (50) participants came from Rizal.

After singing the Philippine national anthem, listening to the opening remarks and watching a dance number from the SFC dance ministry, it was time for the torch lighting ceremony. No wonder why Sagip kid Wendel from Janssenville wouldn’t move from his post even after the facilitators asked him to go to the bleachers where all his friends were. He was tasked to pass the torch for our sector so not even the scorching heat of the sun could deter him from his role. It was apparent to me then that all these kids were taking this event seriously.

After a few stretching exercises, it was sports, all sports and more sports the rest of the day! Our sector participated in Athletics, Basketball, Badminton, Chess, Field Games, Soccer, Swimming, Table Tennis and Volleyball. We also had a storytelling booth that presented ‘Mga Likhang Ngipin ni Benito’ featuring our very own SFC actors and actresses. As I walked around and observed each competition, I saw our Sagip players battle it out with other sectors in the hope of winning and bringing home the bacon as they say. This was the result of weeks and weeks of practice and preparation. Who would have thought that most of these children were once squatters who lived in depressing houses and belonged usually to criminal neighborhoods? Today, they can just be normal children – playful, active and without a care in the world. The competitive spirit was so high that not even the rain could stop the momentum of these participants.

Our sector had its shares of ups and down, of victories and defeats. But ultimately, we had our share of fun! I realized that at the end of the day, it didn’t matter much whether you win or lose as long as you participated, shared your talents and gave your all. This was what we delivered – our best shot.

My heart goes to the facilitators and coaches of the different events of our sector. The facilitators for their unending patience and hard work. The coaches who behaved as if their pride and dignity was at stake on each game their team played. They were the first to be happy when their teams win and secretly sad when they don’t. A big thanks also goes to the East A CFC and SFC communities who provided the lifeline that made the participation of our sector possible.

So who said that the work of nation building is boring and serious matter? Well for sure they were not in the Sagip Olympics. This event is one proof that the work of Gawad Kalinga is exciting and enjoyable! See you all next year!

Team Building

2005-08-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had our office team building. From a company where team building is as common and necessary as brushing one’s teeth, this one was quite different from our previous activities. We are very used to lunch-outs, dinners, parties or beach activities as team building events. But a race in the heart of Makati?! This ought to be quite interesting.

Actually it was. And it was tiring as well. We had to run from GT Tower to Glorietta 2 to catch up with the other teams who had an early lead because they were able to finish the first pit stop by correctly answering a puzzle. We also had to dance to an unknown beat, get a picture with strangers in front of a Jolibee mascot, buy anything in the grocery that amounts to exactly 101.25 pesos and figure out the last stop by counting letters back and forth from a chapter of a novel. The last stop was National Sports Grill, where we also had buffet dinner. It was a good feeling that we were able to finish the race. It would have been better though if we won. Hehe. But in the end, I think everybody enjoyed the break. After all, our fiscal year is ending and we all deserve to reenergize before we start another one.

Activities etc.

2005-08-25T12:01:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that another year has passed. It was again time to meet my counseling family. Last night after work, we had dinner at Krocodile Grill in Greenbelt. There were a lot of new faces this time. Out of the 9 or 10 counselees that were in the dinner, there were only 3 old-timers. I didn't really have a lot of questions since I am already acquainted with the performance evaluation process in my company. I went there primarily to see my counselor again, to meet the new counselees, and of course the food! The dinner was short and sweet and it was refreshing to meet new people from my company

After the dinner, I hurried off to attend our chapter gathering. I was super late but I had to attend because I have some announcements to make to my chapter mates. When I entered the venue, I was surprised to see that a lot attended the meeting! This was not common in our chapter. Hehe. We have around 80% attendance and I thought that was great. I announced the formation of the sector news bureau and thankfully I got an interested volunteer! Thank you Lord! Now I have 3 interested writers for our GK site! Whew! The next for them is to get trained like we did.

It was a good day.

GK News Bureau

2005-08-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

The Meeting

It was my first ever official meeting as a Singles for Christ in the CFC Center. I thought it was just going to be us SFC guys. When I entered the room, I was surprised to see all the titos and titas in the room! Apparently, the meeting was about setting up the local news bureau for each sector. I guess the meeting was for the higher level leaders in the ministry. Nonetheless, I was not to be intimidated. Perhaps, it's one of the perks of having a Cluster head father. Leaders go in and out of our house for years. So I was quite comfortable. But more importantly, I was a man on a mission. Jay and I were the only representatives in our sector and we are tasked to start the news bureau in our place. The meeting was very productive and the localized GK news bureau is slowly taking off

The Service

I have been involved with Gawad Kalinga(GK) for almost 2 years now. I wouldn't say I'm working full time for them because I am still keeping and enjoying my career. I am, however, giving my extra and personal time for this effort through the various builds in the GK site of our sector. I was also initially part of the SAGIP program in the GK site assigned to our chapter. I wasn't able to sustain that service because I could not commit to the regular early Saturday sessions. I didn't have enough time to prepare for the classes and just couldn't wake up on time especially on days when I have a gimmick.

Then came this opportunity. It was almost a light bulb moment for me! I knew I would be able to contribute a lot to this service because it combined two things that I love but do not have enough time to pursue: Writing and GK. We are only at the early stages in the formation of our sector's news bureau and I am excited more than nervous. Thanks to my equally dedicated brothers JM and Jay plus with the guidance and blessing of our Lord, I believe we can make this work!

The Reason

That is the reason why I created this blog! I needed to find an outlet to channel my creative/writing side. I am constantly bombarded with all these technical stuff that I somehow lost my way to creative writing. It usually only took me 1-2 hours to produce quality articles. Now, it's taking me twice or thrice the time! I have been so used to communicating the corporate way that I forgot how to write in a 'neutral' way. For the past 2 years, I have always been writing from the mind that it became harder for me to write from the heart. So what better way to write from the heart than to write about you!

This is my exercise. So please feel free to correct me on any grammatical, verb tense, or spelling errors.

I probably would not post any articles that I created for GK here. But if you're interested to view them, along with the other stories, just go to this site:http://www.gawadkalinga.org/

Pinoy Big Brother

2005-08-23T10:57:00.000-07:00

I wanted to know what the hype was all about. ABS-CBN is putting a lot of their advertising money on this new show called "Pinoy Big Brother." I wasn't able to watch the premiere last Sunday cause I was out so I tried to catch it last night. I watched the primetime edition and it was quite entertaining. It was a good from escape from all the scripted drama, fantasy or action that we see in our local shows.

They have one more show. Something like a midnight edition where they supposedly can show "more" scenes that are not allowed for viewing on primetime. The show was after "The Correspondents." It was actually quite boring. They should have directed the show immediately to the good parts instead of stalling the scenes. It could not keep a sleepy head up. I slept at 2am not getting any entertainment value from the midnight show. Oh well, lessons learned.

Hesitant Mind

2005-08-22T15:04:00.000-07:00

Alright I give in! I’m starting my own Blog site! Not because of some narcissistic quest to be known or to be in on what’s happening in the cyber world. I actually value my private life and I like the fact that only a few people really know a lot about me (ok I’m having second thoughts now. Hehe) I’m doing this for a simpler purpose:

1. Ultimately, to keep my writing juices flowing. This purpose has become a necessity for me. Why? I’ll explain in the coming posts.
2. Additionally, to have an instant alternative outlet in my oh-so technical line of work. I think I owe it to that seldom used side of my brain (I’m not sure if it’s left or right) to at least provide something to process.

Photos will be rare because I will just allow my words to paint the picture.
I would avoid mentioning real full names. If I do, then maybe they deserve to be recognized.
I would avoid bashing other people. If I do, then that means I’m really pissed.
In short, this is supposed to be just about me and my random thoughts…

Oh and by the way, Welcome to my life! (at least the part that I intend to tell you about)