MY WEEKEND UPDATE

Got this from a friend through email. I think this write-up about people born in November describes me to a T!:D

NOVEMBER: Has a lot of ideas. Difficult to fathom. Thinks forward.
Unique and brilliant. Extraordinary ideas. Sharp thinking. Fine and
strong clairvoyance. Can become good doctors. Dynamic in personality.
Secretive. Inquisitive. Knows how to dig secrets. Always thinking.
Less talkative but amiable. Brave and generous. Patient. Stubborn and
hard-hearted. If there is a will, there is a way. Determined. Never
give up. Hardly becomes angry unless provoked. Loves to be alone.
Thinks differently from others. Sharp-minded. Motivates ! oneself.
Does not appreciates praises. High-spirited. Well-built and tough.
Deep love and emotions. Romantic. Uncertain in relationships. Homely.
Hardworking. High abilities. Trustworthy. Honest and keeps secrets.
Not able to control emotions. Unpredictable.

***
I watched the 2-hour season finale of ‘The Amazing Race 5’ this weekend, and I thought that it was one of the coolest things I’ve ever watched on tv!:D I have only seen 3 episodes of the whole show ever since it started (man, what hole did I got stuck into?!?) and I would like to thank my friend Christian for being such an Amazing Race freak and for urging me to watch this show!

I think Chip and Kim rocked! I mean, if I were their kid I could brag to everyone that I have the coolest parents in the world, racing all over the globe and doing all those crazy stuff…:)

I was really hoping Brandon and Nicole would win though. It was refreshing to see two people who were not so self-absorbed in the quest to win 1 million dollars. And Brandon IS such a sweet guy, ever supportive of Nicole especially when she suffered from a breakdown in Calgary. Unlike Colin. Sheesh.

***
I also saw my favorite cousins today at my aunt’s birthday celebration. Yehey!:D



NAUGHTY GIRLS. From L to R: Teia, Mae, Thelzey, moi, Tita Ann, Tita Angie (the bday celebrator) and Theska




JAILBIRDS This shot would have been better if these birds weren’t behind bars.

Shucks.

I feel like ranting. Normally, I don’t encounter problems with my editing job. But this time…editing a scientific thesis written in English by a Korean writer is like watching a sci-fi movie with very bad subtitles.

Waaaahhhh!!!!

What's a Marquee?

I am the Queen of Procrastination... and you are?

In the Corners of my Mind

”I sang of leaves, of leaves of gold, and leave of gold there grew:
Of wind I sang, a wind there came and in the branches blew.
Beyond the Sun, beyond the moon, the foam was on the Sea,
And by the strand of Ilmarin there grew a golden Tree.

…O Lórien! Too long have I dwelt upon this Hither Shore
And in a fading crown have twined the golden elanor.
But if of ships I now should sing, what ship would come to me?
What ship would bear me ever back across so wide a Sea?”

-- Galadriel, from ‘The Fellowship of the Ring”

***
I was reading the newspaper when I came across an article written by a former UP Pol Sci teaching associate. The piece recounted her years of teaching in the State U, the way she apprehensively but courageously hurdled her neophyte years as a teacher, exchanging more than barbs with political science majors who were the same age or even older than she was at the time. It was her experience in teaching that made her realize the value of introspection and humility, especially in a setting where the shaping of minds was a two-way street.

Anyway, that article made me realize how much I miss the university where I came from. Only a couple of months have passed since I’ve stepped out of college, but I feel like school was a lifetime ago.

Salcedo park is no Sunken Garden. Although walking through Salcedo park and through the other streets in Makati would always be a nice experience because the mere thought of walking through one of the country’s business and finance centers is exciting, there are days that my heart longs to walk around the Sunken Garden, where instead of man-made trellises and walkways people would instead be walking in the shade of huge acacia trees. I remember commuting home would be less of a drag because I was always with good company whenever walking towards Vinzon’s Hall, which was just fronting the Sunken Garden. Seeing the Sunken Garden loom ahead always brings an inspiring and amazing feeling – it never fails to remind me that I am in UP, a place where academic freedom is always pursued.

I miss the people from school, no question. But aside from the people, I miss those idyllic days when people were encouraged to think freely and without reservation. I could say that UP is my Lothlorien. Although the university is far from perfect, it seems like sanctuary from some of the pressing things afflicting the world today. I suppose that even though there are a lot of issues that the people in school have chosen to immerse themselves in, for me the university still remains to be an ivory tower. Whether people would like to admit it or not, sometimes some of the things that they debate upon are just things that they would talk about for the sake of discussing it. And frankly, I suppose this is partly good – at least awareness and apathy are not totally dead in the university. Anyway, what I am trying to say is that this is the reason why the State U is a fertile ground for intellectual development– everything is not perfect, there would always be room for questioning and growth.

Anyway, I miss those days. I miss those days when the world seemed like vast ocean, when life was brimming with possibilities…when people were quite idealistic even though some refuse to admit it.

My boss asked me whether I believed in architectural determinism, a state wherein one thought that architecture could solve the world’s problems, where simply altering the environment where people inhabit would create magnanimous changes in the way people lived. My head said no but my heart believed otherwise. And I can’t be blamed for that – I am young and I feel I have much to offer.

But now I am not so sure. I feel that I am bogged down in routine, and I don’t think this is something that would go away even if I changed firms. Is it actually possible to be learning so much yet gaining so little?

I don’t know. I long to go back to my Lothlorien.

PULLING OUT MY WISDOM TOOTH

Ignorance is bliss. Promise.

***

I just survived my first wisdom tooth extraction. And looking back, my ignorance about the after-effects of such an operation probably served me well. I walked into the dental clinic knowing about the pain but not really bracing myself for the pain, since I couldn’t imagine how that would feel like. Anyway, after the operation, I couldn’t believe they extracted that huge tooth from me! I couldn’t believe that that piece of white stuff sticking out of my gums was just the tip of my tooth! My orthodontist and her sister (also an orthodontist) had a hard time pulling my wisdom tooth since it was set deep into the bone (whatever you call that bone). Though I’m not in any major pain right now, I feel weak and I couldn’t swallow without flinching. Hence…drool galore. Not a pretty sight.

I wonder if I could psych myself into having my other impacted wisdom tooth extracted. Ugh. My minimum deadline is six months from now…

***
One good thing that has come out of this is I get time off from work. Yehey! One officemate actually asked what happened to me. Hehe.:) It feels goooood to be just lounging in the house.

Plus, the pain isn’t really that bad. Wearing braces for the first two weeks was definitely a more painful experience. I felt like every tooth I had was moving and …shucks, I was just in excruciating pain. I couldn’t even chew on a single Pringles chip without grimacing, for crying out loud! I remember going to the ASAPhil induction fab party (hay, memories) and a field trip in one subject I had back in sophomore year. The food was all there laid out, but I couldn’t take a single bite of anything!:( Heh.

***
So there. I would start enjoying my 3-day vacation by polishing off some Double Dutch ice cream. Yum. Just what the orthodontist ordered.:)

Faces from work

Instead of writing about my friends from work, I’ll just post some pics my friend Marvin took. It makes for a nice entry anyway.:)



#1 Gabby’s pool
You’re currently looking at the shed where we apprentices usually have our lunch. We used to eat our lunch inside but when Marvin Ngo (the taller of the two Marvins in the office) came along, we started eating outside by the pool. Hmm….I thought that was because he finally has room to stretch his long legs for a while…



#2 Some of my officemates
from L to R: that’s Michelle, Lorraine, Mia, Marvin Satingin, moi and Kuya Nath. Most of them are in production, and Kuya Nath is the one doing most of the 3D stuff for our projects.



#3 Inside the elevator
This was taken inside the elevator. The tallest, leftmost guy in the pic is Sir Jun, one of the senior architects in the office, while the rest of us are.... the youngsters? Hehe.:D

A message to my dear beloved friends:

Not assuming is not the same with not knowing. And the questions I have been raising lately are rhetorical ones.

That's all.:)

The GF Curse
Sir Nath, one of my officemates, told me about it. If you enter GF attached, most likely you’d break up afterwards. However, if you enter GF single, most likely you’d find yourself having a girlfriend/boyfriend.

It’s a general observation everyone at GF holds on to .

Hmmm…should I be happy or sad with this piece of superstitious belief?

***
Yesterday was my first time to work overtime on a Saturday. My boss had me print a lot of spec sheets for Monday’s deadline. I was with some officemates working on the project that also had a deadline on Monday, and another group having their weekly Saturday OT.

Being in the office on a Saturday feels weird…there are less people around. I also felt the same way walking through the Makati CBD area…I’m not used to seeing the area deserted. Oh well…how I wish everyday was a Saturday if it meant seeing the CBD area with less people.:)

***
I watched ‘The Notebook’ yesterday with a friend. Shucks. It’s the ultimate weepy movie. The story has a way of pulling at one’s heartstrings. I remember reading the book when I was in high school and though I couldn’t really remember the details of the story, I recall liking it and wishing I could see more people (aside from myself) experiencing the same thing. It’s really nice to witness two people love each other so much, even in old age.

Mr. Nicholas Sparks, if you’re anything like your character Noah Calhoun, I would marry you.:)