Weird Moment of the Day

While browsing through the bookshelves at Powerbooks Glorietta, I saw a copy of Jessica Hagedorn's Gangster of Love. Unfortunately, part of the price tag was torn off (namely the part with the price). I looked at all the other copies and their price tags were similary torn.

Looks like someone either doesn't like Hagedorn, or really likes her but can't afford to buy her books and so in retaliation tore off all the price tags from the books.

New Discovery of the Day

Well, I did see a hardcover copy of Robert Jordan's New Spring: The Novel, which is probably the short story he originally published in Legends extended to, uh, a novel.

But that's not the new discovery of the day. After being deprived of food for the past seventeen hours (my dentist appointment was this morning), I indulged myself in milk shake, which is a new stall in Glorietta.

Now it's been a guilty pleasure of mine to drink milk shake ever since I tasted them, of all places, at McDonalds (in the US) more than a decade ago. Unfortunately, while there was milk shake available at McDonalds until several years ago, they never tasted as good.

Of course earlier today I saw milk shake created. The girl whipped out some vanilla ice cream (I never knew ice cream was such a vital ingredient in milk shake), a teeny weeny cup of milk, and there's this strange mixing device.

The end product was as tasty as I imagined milk shake to be. Except this one was a whole lot harder to drink (it felt like drinking pure cream rather than a shake).

Not that I'll be having more of it since it costs P80 and the only other drink I indulge such as a price is Big Chill, because I really really love carrot juice (yes Vin, cringe). Unfortunately, I don't drink the carrot concentrate because it costs P100+ and paying that much for a drink doesn't fit my budget (I make an exception to Starbucks, but I'm mostly paying for the ambience and the chance to sit down and read in comfort).

Trick or Treat

Strangely enough, this Halloween saying espouses my attitude. I'm usually either the god of mischief Loki, or I'm doting on you with presents or with sweets (errr, literally... I am known for giving out chocolates you know).

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Cram Week

For the rest of January, I'll be busy with my block's Fine Arts Festival. Which really wouldn't be so bad if they did not inform me at the last minute. For example, yesterday they told us we (and when I mean we, I'm talking about all four of us scrawny guys in the block) were required to show up today and tomorrow for the construction of the tent where the play is going to be held. And of course, it's also straining my budget since we're required to sell a number of play tickets and cake raffles, all of which are considered sold.

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Some Things That Matter

I read from a friend's blog that he's applying for Canadian citizenship (which isn't bad in itself) as a contingency for whatever crisis hits the Philippines (again, which isn't bad in itself).

While backup plans are nice, I can't help but feel disappointed that many Filipinos would rather flee (again, with qualification, because just because one makes plans does not mean they'll actually abandon the Philippines at the first sign of trouble) than work on improving the country.

As my friend said, the state of the Philippines is beyond the first sign of trouble and that he really can't imagine the Philippines getting better in the future. While the first statement might be true, the latter can still be changed. And even if it can't, I'd like to point out that how there are some things in life we just can't abandon.

For example, we can't get rid of our body (at least not with our present technology). If we discover we have a genetic disease or cancer, we can't switch bodies and opt for a "better body". Sorry but we just have to make do with what we have, with all its flaws (and strengths).

Some people even view family as indisposable. A lot of parents love their children no matter what they become (and vice versa). You just don't leave them be but rather exert effort to carve out better lives for them (even at the cost of your loved one alienating you).

The same goes for our planet. I mean if people could relocate to another habitable planet, they'd probably done it by now with all the pollution in the world and the hole-in-the-ozone (and global warming, and el nino & la nina, etc.). But we strive to improve this world despite its present living conditions.

Can't people exert the same effort for the country? Why abandon the Philippines just because you have the option to do so? I mean there are countries in worse conditions than the Philippines, yet its citizens still make the effort to continue living there and making it better. You don't see fathers and mothers disowning their children left and right for all the problems (and expenses!) they've caused (and in a sense, didn't this country give birth to who we are?).

Of course in the end, it's a decision we all have to make for ourselves.

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HTML

It's actually been a long time since I built a website from scratch (especially with all the style sheet techniques I need to re-learn and the HTML book that's still with El). Suddenly, changing my blog layout seems... difficult.

I guess today won't be it.

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It's a Hazy World

I don't know if it was because of the grade of my glasses (and the imbalance of astigmatism between my two eyes) or if it was because I was using my spare (which have oversized lenses) but my world yesterday was, uh, quite shaky.

Tight Leash

I'll *hopefully* be graduating soon but I guess that means it's my last few months of having an actual allowance.

So goodbye to spending for the next few months (especially on food since who needs food anyway?) and here's to saving and building up credit.

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Schizophrenia

I'm probably doing injustice to this psychological term since technically, split personality should not be equated with schizophrenia. But anyway...

I've said it before and I've said it again: I'm "masama, makulit, mayabang, nakakainis, weirdo, stalker, NR" (evil, [no direct translation but somewhere around the likes of being stubborn and pesty], arrogant, annoying, weird, stalker, short for no-reaction or stoicism). Having said that, I really want to emphasize the arrogant part. Because no one really is as proud as I am.

I mean I'm someone who always screams for attention when in the company of others (uh, that's not why I have a loud voice... that's more due to lack of volume control). Because deep down inside there's an insecure feeling that I'm only people's friend as long as I have a use for them. Hence the need to buy gifts for people, me constantly babbling to the point of incoherence, or even me making the most inappropriate jokes at times.

But of course, there's also my more docile moments where I just sulk in a corner and read a book. Or trap myself in my room (like I did during the Christmas break). Or decline invitations people's parties, lunches/dinners, celebrations, and gimmicks (not that I get much offers in the first place). Or even silently plotting plans of infiltration and world domination (and the occassional revenge).

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First Day of Class

Started the day with Sacha greeting me with a wave and then later by telling them there's an automatic mechanical pencil.

It's also not everyday that I get to see Scott McCloud's comic strips used as an example in a Philosophy group report on Immanuel Kant.

Got a low grade on my Theology exam, but there's a God smiling on me since I got an extension on the Pol. Sci. paper.

It's also on the same day that I found out my latest version of The Librarian got junked but my other, less revised fiction, Gemini, got into our anthology (which until now really baffles me... I expected The Librarian to get in or both The Librarian and Gemini to get rejected). Of course come fiction class courtesy of Krip Yuson, The Librarian suddenly gets taken up with a more favorable concensus.

On a side note, apparently, for Aristotle (the philosopher), democracy is a bad thing since it's the good of many rather than the good of all (whatever happened to the minorities!).

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Cleaning My Room

At the spur of the moment, I just cut by half the amount of "junk" in my room. Of course what really makes it difficult for me to clean my room is the fact that my allergies start acting up. I am, after all, allergic to dust, and you cannot avoid contact with dust when you start cleaning.

Of course there are things I wish I had when cleaning my room. Such as an infinite amount of handkerchiefs because of my sniffles. As well as a bottomless trash can. And probably a vacuum cleaner as well. And a bigger bookshelf, because a lot of my books are really littered on the floor.

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