*sigh*

If I close my eyes forever, would everything remain unchanged?

Creative Juice #002: Tarts and Cookies

I didn't know baking was fun until my recent experience with my brother's baking tools, mixer and oven for the last three nights.

For three consecutive days, me and my blockmates in the Food Committee had to shop for ingredients, bake and prepare (until midnight!) all the goods we had to sell in our Food Booth, integrated inside our block's historic display and exhibit of Roman Architecture and culture, which is a part of our contribution for our college week and as well as a requirement in our subject in History of Architecture.

We sold cashew tarts on the first day, rock-hard cookies yesterday, and another set of tarts today. We won’t be baking tomorrow and will instead buy chocolate crinkles and sell it on a reasonable price to generate our final income.

It was exhausting staying up late to bake something, waking up early to prepare the table and setting of the booth, then walking out early while everybody’s having fun to prepare again something for tomorrow.

Out of sarcasm, all we can say while rummaging another supermarket was,

“Ang hirap talaga kapag nagka-carinderia!”

This week’s been a heck of an exhausting week!

Creative Juice #001: Tala sa Dila

Photo credit from Kevin

Mensahe ng Makata sa Makata
by Tala sa Dila

I.
Ihagis ang trumpo sa dilim ng kalawakan
Kasama ang isip ng kaliwanagan
Hilain pabalik kasama ang buwan
Isulat sa bituin lahat mong nalalaman.

II.
Ibalik ang buwan at ikaw ay sumama
Lumukso sa pagbisita sa bawat planeta
Magtanim ng soneto, manganak ng tula
Paramihin ang buto, ikalat ang makata.

III.
Sa pagsibol ng mga bunso, isa-isang sasabog
Gagawa ng malaki at dilaw ng bilog
Magsisilbing susunod na tagahagis ng trumpo
Sa pagkakahimlay ng isip, babangon at tatayo.

*******

This poem was made by a friend who decided to take a break from his paintings and focus instead, for the moment, in his rhyme of wordplay. Nice one, Kevin! You really are a born artist!

Sore Throat

I have had enough! I can't believe the organizers of the big event - CAFA Idol 2009 - is still cramming us up to the last minute! I'm not going to tolerate this kind of unprofessional behavior. It's not our fault as contestants that everything's not going too well. They should've scheduled rehearsals weeks before the event so that we wouldn't have to blow our throats out listening, practicing, memorizing, and rendering 7 new song most of us have never heard of in our whole entire life!

Putting on a show is not as easy as it looks like and they should've known better. The head organizer of our college week, from a text message this morning, said, 

"IDOL RESUMES PRACTICE TOMORROW. NO, LATE, NO EXCUSES, AND NO ONE CAN BACK OUT. THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE. TRY NOT TO RUIN MY REPUTATION. TRUST ME, AM NOT THE NICEST PERSON IN CAFA!"

 That text message really disgusted me. I'm not going to join that competition putting so much lies in my performance just so some rotten reputation won't be ruined. Ugh! I don't have even a bit of intention to do this and I never thought I'd say this, but I think I'll go on walking down Avenue Q. I have all the reasons to quit and I'm not doing this because I can't. I just can't put up with all of these anymore.

I quit and I'm very, very glad about it.

CAFA Idol 2009

 I just joined the premiere singing contest in our college.

It only dawned on me when I got home after our pictorial earlier with the rest of the contestants. We sang in front of the organizers of the event inside a room while the coordinator records the performance in a digital camera where by Monday, a video presentation of a faux-audition will be played non-stop in the lobby of our building.

It's my first time to join a singing contest. I'm feeling pretty okay and I have no issues with my nerves but I can't really tell what's going to happen on the day of the competition. I felt very embarrassed after being dumbfounded for about 5 seconds or so when I forgot the lyrics of the piece I'm singing. I really can't get over that moment. I think I never will, because that was the first time I also realized what kind of world I'm entering.

And the reason for my joining the contest in the first place? No, it's not about being known at all. It ain't about popularity or something. I just really wanted to sing, specifically, in front of many people, where in a million years I think I would never have imagined doing.

I wanted to break the status quo and face my fear. I really wanted to experience what it feels like to be up there on stage to give every spectator their share of free entertainment. This is where I can finally exercise all those hours I sing my heart out in the shower.

What happened earlier won't change my decision to enter CAFA Idol 2009. I won't be deterred. I won't be discouraged. I will practice even more not only to win (well, at least I'll try to) but also to prove to myself that I can.

Shutterbug - Wannabe #012

Afternoon Walk

Shutterbug Wannabe #011

Cluttered Home

Sinner

I wish I could just outgrow all the wrongs I'm doing right now. I wish I could just shut up my mouth and stop with my promises and all. I want to break free from what's binding me today. I'm a hypocrite... a shameful, unrighteous hypocrite...

Certified xxxHolic Addict!

It's official. I'm so hooked in xxxHolic! I'm a frequent reader of its manga in Onemanga.com. I guarantee you'll love it if your ga-ga over anime and stuff.

I was particularly drawn to its famous ,"To change the world, you have to change yourself" line said in a certain part of the story. Its' kind of creepy and mysterious in some way showing the diverse beliefs of the Japanese in their traditions and because of its dominant concept of hitsuzen, a term with no direct English translation but can be renderred or interpreted as inevitability in the context of the whole manga series.

My other side comments? I love how its story line crosses over with that of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and Cardcaptor Sakura. And yeah, maybe it's in the hair, but is it me or does Yuko Ichihara looked strikingly similar with Ai Enma of Jigoku Shoujo which I also love?

Ngarag: My First Filipino Post

There's been a lot of things going on inside my head about blogging in my native tongue. I don't know what's holding me back for so long but today I've finally made up my mind with what language(s) to use. Sure, English is what we consider the lingua franca in the Net, but I'm not going to limit myself with that. I'm proud to be a Filipino and this first Filipino post goes out to all the Filipinoes out there!

*******

Ngarag(n.) - isang urban word na ginagamit ng mga Pilipinong mag-aaral upang ilarawan ang hitsura o kalagayan ng isang taong mukha nang bangag sa sobrang laki ng eyebug dahil sa ilang araw na pagpupuyat para sa isang nalalapit na submission ng kung anuman. Maaring gamitin interchangeably sa terminong cramming o panghahapit.

Ngarag-ngarag na naman ang hitsura ng mga pagmumukha namin kanina dahil sa buong magdamag na paggawa ng Design plate. Grabeh. Sinabayan pa ng ibang subjects kaya hayun, kahit medyo nakahinga na ng maluwag e hindi pa rin tapos ang aming paghihirap.

Ito ang buhay ko bilang isang estudyanteng arki. Medyo sanay na nga eh kaya kahit sinabayan pa ng ulan kanina, go lang ng go. Natatawa lang ako sa kwento ng isang kaibigan ko kung paano nya naranasan ang isa sa mga kahabag-habag na pedeng mangyari habang gumagawa ka ng plate dis-oras ng madaling-araw - ang mawalan ng malay habang nakamulat! Eto yung tipong mulat ang iyong mata at gumagawa ang iyong kamay pero ang isipan mo nagblack-out na. Ang mas masaklap pa dito eh yung biglang pagbalik ng diwa mo para lang malaman na ambaboy na pala ng ipapasa mo bukas.

Tungkol sa Adaptive Reuse yung plate na pinasa namin kanina. Naku! Kung hindi lang yon tungkol sa Bahay-na-Bato eh hindi talaga ako gaganahan. Kulang pa nga yung nagawa ko, pero okey na'ko dun dahil sobrang laki na ng naging improvement ko lalo na sa paggawa ng perspective at pagle-lettering. Hindi na kase mukhang kinayog ng manok yung handwriting ko at to my surprise, eh for the first time, hindi lumabas na mukhang cartoons yung perspective ko. Hopefully, this time hindi ko na makita ang kalunos-lunos na letrang VVPIL (or Very Very Poor In Lettering) ni MamP.

Yung picture sa itaas ang hitsura ng kama ko tuwing at pagkatapos kong gumawa ng plate. Don ko kasi tinatambak ang lahat ng mga kagamitang pede kong gamitin para isang abot-kamay na lang. Nakaclose-up yung headphones dahil bukod sa orasang nasa pader na naging bestfriend ko na sa pagmumura ng nauubos na oras, yung radyo at MP4 ni Ate ang naging kaagapay ko sa buong magdamag na nakasalampak ang aking puwit kaharap ang aking drafting table. Pramis, updated na uli ako sa mga kasalukuyang musika na pinakikinggan ngayon and it only takes two or three nights to realize this after listening to all the songs all over and over again, iba-iba man yan ng station at minsan kahit nasa isang istasyon ka lang makaka-ilang ulit yan bawat oras.

Radiohead daw ang tawag sa'yo kapag mas adik ka sa radyo kesa ibang uri ng media. Insomniac naman kapag gising at namumuhay ka sa gabi. Parehas yata ako nito, pero hindi rin kase tuwing "Ngaragan Nights" lang naman ako nagkakaganito.

Ngarag. 'Yan na naman 'yang salitang iyan. Kung pede lang gawing philosophy 'yan ay siguradong magiging magandang ehemplo ang aking academic life. Hay naku...