thank you!

thanks to all those sent their greetings on facebook, twitter, through e-mail, and those who greeted me personally, too!

i feel the love! :)

thank you!

for surviving the quarter life, thank you.
for all the happiness you brought to my life, i am very much fulfilled.
for the hardships and sorrows, i learned.
for the people around me, i'll always be there for you, too.
for the decisions - big and small, i've no regrets.
for the love you've given me, i love you, too.

cheers to a great year, cheers to the coming years.
muli, maraming, maraming, maraming salamat!

and lord, salamat sa 26 years.

funny

this totally made my night. exactly what i thought.
read on, funny.

ALL CREDITS GOES TO JESSICA ZAFRA AND THE PHILIPPINE STAR


Calling all Klingons

EMOTIONAL WEATHER REPORT By Jessica Zafra (The Philippine Star) Updated October 23, 2009 12:00 AM

While tossing ATM receipts, table napkins and other junk from my workbag last night, I realized that I had not received a monthly statement for one of the services I subscribe to. So I called the service’s 24-hour helpline, where an automated voice enunciated the amount of the payment due. The amount struck me as excessive, so I decided to talk to an operator.

After a short wait — it was close to midnight — an agent took my call.

“Hi,” I said. “I didn’t receive my statement this month. How much is my bill?” Just to be sure.

The perky male voice said something that was rendered incomprehensible by a fake American accent. I am told that many call centers have their agents put on American accents because if the caller is American, she will prefer to communicate with someone who sounds American. It is not enough to be fluent in the English language

, one must speak it the way they do in Idaho.

This is why the rest of the world has a problem with the USA, and why the international community is grateful to have the cosmopolite Barack Obama to deal with. So grateful that they give him the Nobel Peace Prize to encourage him toward improving relations among countries. Relations among countries cannot prosper if one country insists that everyone should think and sound like them. Among other things, the Nobel Prize is the Norwegians’ way of telling Obama, “We really hated W.”

Back to the actual conversation.

“Excuse me?” I asked the call center agent.

“Wrshwrshwrsh number?” I had already typed it when prompted by the automated voice, but this must be their procedure. I gave the number.

“Wrshwrshwrsh name?” I gave the name.

More wrshwrsh. I wanted to say, “Tagalugin mo na lang kaya para magka-intindihan tayo” but that would hurt his feelings and bring up class resentments I don’t want to deal with while I’m getting my bill. I am in the income range that worries about bills. Also I should try to be sensitive to others.

If you speak English fluently in Manila, people will automatically give you a class upgrade far above your socio-economic capabilities. Thank you, Sesame Street, for the proficiency, and Woody Allen movies of my childhood for the intonation. I started with Take the Money and Run.

The agent repeated the amount the automaton had given me. “That’s twice the amount I’m usually billed per month. May I know what extra charges I incurred?”

“Wrshwrshwrsh nyernyernyer.” Suddenly I missed the Swedish chef on The Muppet Show. But I thought I was getting the agent’s drift: he was saying he would look up my payment history.

Then the light bulb went on above my head. “Oh, I know, that bill must be for two months,” I told the agent, thus resolving my own issue.

Over the years I’ve learned that the role of the call center is like that of a college lecturer: to prompt you with questions that make you rack your brain and come up with your own answers.

“Sir, wrshwrshwrsh generated in February 2009.” Yes, I am customarily referred to as “Sir.” It’s because my voice is low. It comes from having grown up among people who were yelling all the time. They took up the higher frequencies that hurt the ears of dogs, so I was left with the lower register. Also I have been told that my tone is... autocratic, which may explain why I am sometimes accused of oppressing my fellow humans. Not that they ever tell me directly, they just slink away and tell other people I have oppressed them. Which is funny because I am not in a position to oppress anyone. It’s a good thing I can’t afford a housemaid, or she’d be running to an AM station on a regular basis to report on how I’ve maltreated her. With my voice.

“February 2009?” I said. “Isn’t it already October 2009?” You never know when you might walk into a time warp and land in the past.

“Yes, sir, but if you look at your monthly statement in February 2009…”

“How am I going to look at it when I don’t have my February statement? I paid it, then I threw it away. I don’t keep my bills for souvenirs.”

I do “file” the receipts, i.e. I stick them in a drawer and try to make sense of them later.

The agent said, “Generated in February 2009 nyernyernyer.”

“Are you saying that I incurred a charge in February that I’m being billed for only now?”

“Urghurghurgh March 2009.”

I interrupted him. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand you.” On at least two levels, though I didn’t say so. “If you’re saying I didn’t pay my bill in February, wouldn’t you have disconnected me by October?”

“Wrshwrshwrshwrsh nyernyerner urghurghurgh...”

Was that Klingon? Where’s my Klingon dictionary? No, it’s not guttural enough; Klingon’s more like “Hshlaaakh.” Maybe I was in that Twilight Zone episode where you wake up in the morning and the meanings of all the words have changed, so “lunchbox” is now “dinosaur.”

“Stop. Please stop. Did I pay that February bill you keep talking about?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Then why are you even bringing it up?”

He launched into long explanation that was completely lost on me because it was obscured by accent. Halfway through he switched to Tagalog and I saw the end of the tunnel.

“So you’re saying that I’ve been paying the bill after the due date, and it stacks up, hence this current bill is actually for two months?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then why didn’t you just say so? I asked you if this bill is for two months. You could’ve said yes right there and spared us both this conversation. No, no, don’t answer that! Thank you. I’ll pay my bill tomorrow. Goodbye.”

i gotta feeling (oooohhh)

nawawala na talaga ako.











pffft.

dreaming again

i can't find my book of shadows (aka 10,000 dreams interpreted) so i settled for the internet interpretation.

i won't tell my exact dream, but i've been thinking about it the whole day trying to give meaning to it. i guess you'll have an idea haha.

To dream that you are bathing someone, suggests that you are seeking a closer connection with that person. It also points to your nurturing side.

To dream that you are naked, denotes the fear of being found out and exposed about your activities and misjudgment. If you are accepting about another's nudity, then it implies that you see through people and accept them for who and what they are. If you do not care about someone else's nudity, then it suggests that you need to learn not to be afraid of rejection.

To dream of your genitals, represents your feelings toward sex/sexuality and your attitudes toward masculinity/femininity. It also relates to issues of commitment and pleasure.

To see a penis in your dream, signifies sexual energy, power, aggression, and fertility
To see your buttocks in your dream, represents your instincts and urges. It may also indicate feelings of insecurity and reveals your struggles with some situation


To dream about sex, refers to the psychological completion and the integration of contrasting aspects of the Self. You need to be more receptive and incorporate aspects of your dream sex partner into your own character. Alternatively and a more direct interpretation of the dream, may be your libido's way of telling you that it's been too long since you have had sex (BWAHAHAHAHAHA). It may indicate repressed sexual desires and your needs for physical and emotional love. If you are looking for a place to have sex, then the dream may be analogous to your search for intimacy and closeness.

To dream about sex with someone other than your spouse or significant other, suggests dissatisfaction with the physical side of your relationship. On the other hand, it may be harmless fantasy. In such situations, you may find that you are less inhibited sexually and you can even bring that sense of adventure to your existing relationship.

To dream that you are having sex with an ex or something that is not your current mate, denotes your reservations about embarking in a new relationship or situation. You may feel nervous about exposing yourself or currently feel a resurgence of those old emotions and feelings that you felt back when you and your ex were together.

To dream that you do not achieve orgasm, signifies some frustration in your life. Something is leaving you unfulfilled and unsatisfied. The frustration may not be sexually related.


OKAY. SO I'M SEXUALLY REPRESSED, FRUSTRATED WITH MY LIFE, AND UNHAPPY WITH THE CURRENT STATE.

NA-UUHH!! :P

ciao!

going in circles

no matter what i do, the past keeps on haunting me.

though already fully consumed by my sadistic personality, those disturbing images are still around to remind me of what was.

i'll just lick my wounds - i have no choice.

i just don't know how long my faith in you will stand firm. but i'm. still. here.

lord help me.

sa office

kanina while having our group meeting, sinabi sakin ng officemate kong si reg:

"bryan, ang swerte mo ngayon no?"

naalala ko ulit na oo nga, swerte nga ako ngayon. kaya sabi ko,

"oo nga eh, diba? ang bait ng mundo sakin. pero mas mabait ang nanay ko! haha!"

hehehe. totoo naman. namiss ko tuloy bigla si mommy :D

******

i'm tired today. late na ko nakauwi, maaga pa bukas. buti na lang, ang sarap talaga katrabaho ng mga officemates ko. parang hindi ko naramdaman na naiinis na pala ako sa dami ng palpak sa office hehe. thank god for great officemates.

ayun lang, end of sharing

ciao!

of britney and the self

the onslaught of mental/emotional stress that manifested physically lately aroused my interest in reading things about it. i think i have it.

or maybe i'm just being a hypochondriac

in other news, i found these.

this is the original just in case.

this was the first cover i came across.

i think this is old already. but i find the mood so enchanting and amusing. galeng galeng!

and this one's the second.

eto naman, define kulot talaga! haha. it was okay na sana kaso ang dami lang naging acrobatics na parang OA na ang dating. gusto ko yung tunog niya though, may pagka amy winehouse.

that's all.

ciao!

and another one bites the dust

first, the drain stopped working. i had it checked by one of their technicians but it must cost me 2,800. i already paid the service fee 800 which is deductible from the total amount but since it's working just fine, i never got around to finally fixing it.

then, a few months after, rust ate the base of the unit. still working fine, so no worries.

then after almost a year, the base finally gave up and i had to insert a piece of wood under the base for it work properly. the drum inside cannot spin properly without it. every now and then, i had to adjust it because it cannot hold itself in place.

finally, last sunday, while i was about to dump a week's worth of laundry inside it, it stopped working.

the washing machine finally conked out on me. fuck.

the only thing i was thankful for was that i decided to do my laundry on sunday and not on monday. the laundromat i went to said it would take them 3 days to finish all 3 kilos of my laundry. so i have to pay them double to have it the next day. cost me 168 pesos. that's the cost of a month's bag of detergent.

argh!

ps. don't buy samsung.

moratorium

for the past few weeks, i feel so *blah* in everything that matters to me. pinagkikibit balikat ko nalang ang lahat, ke masakit o masayang nangyayari. and i really don't want to feel indifferent towards things that matter to me.

so, taking after alanis morisette, before i get to the point of being indifferent, i am declaring a moratorium.

I've never been this accountable-less and within
I've never known focuslessness on any form
I've never had this lack of ache for dalliance
To let go and let gone in ways I have never even imagined

I declare a moratorium on things relationship
I declare a respite from the toils of liaison
I do need a breather from the flavors of entanglement
I declare a full time out from all things commitment

I've never let my grasp soften fingers like this
I've never been careless otherless like autonomy's twin
Ah to breathe, stop looking outside
Stop searching in corners of rooms
Not my business or timing

I've never known freedom from intertwining
I start again this time for keeps in my skin I'm residing

for once

putang ina.

this is getting crazy

we were sent home earlier today to make going home for employees a bit easier. i still went home a few minutes before 5 because we had to help the people who are leaving for their provincial training this sunday.
i went to walter mart to buy a flashlight, some candles and food. medyo nakakatakot na kasi since there is news that the coming typhoon (pepeng, international name: parma) is actually a supertyphoon that is much powerful than hurricane katrina in the US. i'm not lying, the typhoon is as big as the philppines, look! (can you even see the philippines?!)


when i got to walter mart, i had to turn around. ang daming tao! panic buying! there were atleast 40 people in line in every cash register. so i ditched the food and went to the hardware. bought a flashlight but there were no batteries already. so i went home with just a flashlight -- thinking that there might be some tindahan who still have batteries. i was already soaking wet when i got home and i still have the flashlight in hand. battery-less.

i hope this doesn't make as much damage as the previous typhoon. more than that, i hope everyone will be okay. god help us all.

ciao!

it's a boy!

congratulations to michelle and niño for a healthy baby boy! :)


now the twins have a little baby brother.

ciao!