the first rain of summer Unknown 8:42 PM

Early this morning I was obliged to use my umbrella which I haven't used in months.  I thought I was never going to need its assistance because it doesn't rain that much anymore (not that I'm complaining), but since it's already rainy season (technically).. it's weird.

Normally, we get a lot of rain from June to November, until December.. mostly the entire year, actually, because it also rains on January and February.  But it all changed; we're getting a lot of sun lately, and it's so fucking hot!

It's not my fault.  I didn't wish for that to happen, no matter how many times I say "I hate rain!  I fucking hate it!"  I would never wish for rain to stop showering us with her love during her period.

So what's this post all about?

Nothing.  I just just want to share with you this lovely photo of the most colorful umbrellas I took in Pahiyas Festival.  I don't think writing about the festival this late would be a good idea, sooo maybe I'll just, you know.. make a dumb post.

xenia Unknown 10:57 PM

Xenia is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, as per Wikipedia.  It's the generosity and courtesy shown to those who are far from home and/or associates of the person bestowing guest-friendship.

I don't have a topic for x and I wasn't able to post yesterday because I can't think of any, and I'm blaming my laziness for that.  I copied the description straight from Wikipedia, and that's so embarrassing.  But I cannot skip X, so maybe I'll just leave this post like this.. looking like shit. sorry.

giggling over tiny plants Unknown 9:53 PM

But not just tiny plants, they're the tiniest, most colorful, and prettiest cactuses I've seen; cactuses and pitcher plants, and those plants in Mario Brothers.. the snap plants.. tiny snap plants.  I tried to take a picture of those slow-moving, fly-eating snappers, but then again, it was a fail.

Look.

They're not the first tiny cactuses I've seen, but they're the first tiny pitcher plants and tiny snap plants I've seen.  I was tempted to put my finger on their mouths, but it was kinda scary, and I'm not familiar with their behavior and I don't know what else I should know when around these fascinating creatures.

exploding balls for entertainment Unknown 9:03 PM

Have you played counter strike before? asked my brother.. I said, "no, I haven't, but I've seen how it's played many times, and I would like to try."  Even though I don't have that reflex to change weapons fast enough to kill and not be killed, I would like to try.  So I was kind of excited to play.

We set up our computers in the table.  It actually kinda looked like we're going to have a conference meeting in our dinner table with all those laptops and mugs/glasses of water, but I was too busy killing balls I never thought of taking a shot of our seriously engaging scene.  And yes, I did mention "balls".  We were killing balls.  We were killing each other's balls.

What are these fucking balls I'm talking about, you ask?  And how are exploding balls kind of entertaining?

It wasn't new to me, but I was surprised, and yeah, a little bit disappointed, or maybe I just expected something more challenging and fun, and more action-packed than playing with balls and exploding them.. the exploding part was really fun.  There's a lot of blood involved.

29 days later Unknown 2:45 AM

I saw the signs on the third week.  I already knew it's not going to work out, but I was still hoping that some miracle might happen.  I thought of a plan, an alternative solution.. it's not technically the right thing to do, but I took the risk.

First week.

I was ecstatic, I couldn't believe I was actually doing it.  I wasn't there to just sightsee, I was there to make a living.. to try to make a living.  The thought of residing in a foreign country excites me.

Whenever I visit places, I always try to blend in.  It's not that I don't want to look like a tourist, but, yeah, I actually don't want to look like a tourist but I always fail because no local would carry a digital camera around taking pictures of almost everything.. plus, no one's using a digital camera anymore, except for me.

oops, i did it again Unknown 1:44 AM

Yeah

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

I'm going to share some exclusive with you today.  I refused to write about it the first time I did it because it's stupid, but I did it again.  I don't think that's normal.  I'm not proud of it, but I think writing it down might remind me not to do it again.  Besides, everyone has moved on from it.. so moving on.

I forgot to bring/withdraw enough money to Singapore.  I don't have a credit card.. never had, but I had a back-up plan. tenenenenen.. yup! my brother.  That's very irresponsible, I know.. and annoying, but I had no any other option.

In my defense, and it's not an excuse; I get easily distracted.  I do make a reminder for myself, but when someone or something distracts me, that's it.  I will totally forget what I've was thinking.. and will remember that after a few hours, like let's say, an hour or two.  The chance to do what I was ought to do has already passed by then because we've already passed by the ATMs and the immigration.

hello, twenty sixteen Unknown 10:32 PM

I can't tell if I like or dislike twenty fifteen or the past years, but how can you blame something that has nothing to do with your failures; with your own wrong doings and bad decision-makings?

I do know that it was I who brought myself to those kind of situations; not the worst, but the not most pleasant of all situations I've been at.  I tried to be really careful with my actions and words, but sometimes it just happen.  I said and did things that I truly regret right after, but sometimes saying you're sorry isn't always enough.  ...if we really did apologize.

It sucks that we have no control over anything.. even if we think we do.

But it's all over now.. I guess.

first laugh in the morning Unknown 8:52 PM

We decided to play volleyball in the middle of the day, in a court.  It wasn't not that hot.  I don't remember complaining about too much sweating.  We're a group of four and the two guys decided to pair up.. hmm, alright, fine.. it's girls vs. boys, then.  

We'll try to win.

I served first.  

The ball hit the net. wahahahha!  I'm sorry, let me do that again!

The second try was again, a miss.  It flew pass by them.  It was too high.

Damn it, that hurt.  I've only hit the ball twice and my arm was reddish already, and it seemed like it hit an artery.. and they're fucking laughing at me!  WHATEVERR!!  

But on the third and fourth and fifth try, I was still holding the ball, laughing at my failure, and I woke up.  I woke up laughing.

He's one of the boatmen in Calaguas.. I don't know what/who he's laughing at.

happy #InternationalMensDay, men Unknown 2:12 AM

I had no idea that there's such a thing as #InternationalMensDay.  I thought they never like celebrating their masculinity.. or do they?

I was reviewing my shots on Flickr and I noticed that 80% of them, of my models are men or boys.. why is that?  

I think it's easier for me to shoot them because it's easier for me to figure out men than women.  I myself can't understand myself most of the time.  I mean, it's easier for me to know if he won't think he's being violated by some random girls taking his pictures.  And I do appreciate that they never get offended by a little paparazzi.  

So in return, I'm featuring you guys, the men of my file, to this special day of yours.. but never ever think you're special.

all the feels involved in this digital marketing seminar of 2015 Unknown 4:23 PM

I've been debating with my head if I'm going to write about this recent event I attended to because I'm not quite sure if I'm the right person to do that and if this blog is the right place to read about that, so I'm sticking with my genre of nonsense talks of feelings and pretentious photos I took -- photoshopped to make them look better in my eyes.  Sounds annoying isn't it?

Ok, so I decided to just share all the feelings felt during this whole weekend event.  I'll even add the uninteresting happenings when I got home (if there's any), and I promise not to mention anyone involved in this shit.  Don't worry, I will not make the same mistake again.

So I'll start on Saturday.  

I went with my friend who's a hardcore seo, and we're supposed to meet at 6 o'clock in the morning to have breakfast because the bus leaves at 7:30am.  I was 30 or 40 minutes late, but I told her we still have enough time to eat breakfast but she said the bus leaves 15 minutes earlier, so we ordered our food and decided to eat it on the bus.

I never planned to attend this seminar because it's a bit pricey and I'm trying to save money for other plans but I don't know what happened.  She managed to convince me to come.. "alright, fine.. I can use it (all the knowledge I could get) anyway".  

So why am I saying this?  It's because I didn't know any information about the event.  I didn't even know which bus terminal we're going to until I asked her after ordering our food; Five Star.. I know that.. this way.. I guess.  But she said, "no, it's that way."  "Are you sure?"  "Yes, I checked Google, it says, it's that way."  I cannot compete with Google so I followed her lead but I was still asking her if she's sure about that.. but, ok, it was still early, anyway.

if only i knew what they were talking about Unknown 10:14 PM

I didn't realize how Filipinos look a lot like Malaysians.  We were asked by our taxi driver in Singapore if we came from Malaysia, and I responded immediately "no, we're from the Philippines", smiling back at him.  He said, there are a lot of Malaysians going to Singapore, he thought we're one of them.

That taxi driver speaks english really well, and we never had problems with asking for directions in Singapore because most people speaks english really well.. except that one time on the bus.

There was an old Chinese woman who talked to me in straight Chinese.  We were going home, I mean to my brother's house, kind of tired from exploring the Universal Studios (which was a free ride btw), when an old Chinese woman asked if she could grab on the handle in front of me because she barely could stand while our bus was flying.

Actually, the bus wasn't really flying.  The driver's just got a really bad driving skills.  Is it a requirement for bus drivers?  I barely have had encountered fine bus drivers.. oh, except for that one in Sagada.. I will never forget that trip, and he really was a very responsible driver.  Thank you, manong!

Okay, so the old Chinese woman talked to me in Chinese and I didn't know what to say, but I think I knew what she was saying.  I just thought she was thanking me for letting her grab on the bar for her to stand firmly.  But you know what, I replied "yes", or was that "ok"?  And I can see the sincerity on her face; she was smiling at me, and I was smiling back at her, but then she kept on talking in Chinese and I just looked away.  I didn't know what to do!

Apparently, she's with the other two people standing beside us and she was talking to them.  I was standing awkwardly between the three of them, so I went for the other handle to grab on.. trying my best not to fall, and in front of a cute kid, I've found a refuge.

errands and rain Unknown 6:23 PM

My mom was in the hospital last week for about 5 days.. she got out on Tuesday.  She's got a health card which is pretty amazing; we need not to worry about the bills plus she's got PhilHealth for seniors.. additional awesomeness.  What's not awesome is that I needed to run to PhilHealth's Cainta branch (a bit far from the hospital, actually, quite far.. plus it's always traffic on that area) to fix her name so she could use the benefits.  Apparently, she got her name all mixed up, she used her name when she was still single.. like what, she forgot she's married?

But it wasn't her fault, it was those in the Barangay who didn't assist her properly when she applied.. she's old and confused.. like all the time.. and I had to fix their idiotic mistake.  So I got there, it's got fixed and she was released before the sun sets.  But what I went through is the story here.. rain, remember?

I left the hospital with nothing but the papers; enveloped, my phone, my coin purse and my sunglasses.

It was sunny and hot, super hot at 2pm.. a few minutes later after boarding the jeepney (naks, boarding.. parang airplane) going to you-know-where, it rained.  It rained harder when I got there.

I honestly had no idea where exactly it was, but I know the place so I thought I'll just ask when I get there.  I asked 3 guys for directions, and one of them was strange.. I mean, there I was asking where the fucking Philhealth's fucking office was and he didn't even look at me.  His eyes were out there on the rain, looking a bit worried? or freaked out? or scared of me? I don't know.  He looked down on me once and he didn't respond, he was like shooing me away!

the grandest fireworks display which i almost missed Unknown 11:08 PM

Everybody was at the field, at Melvin Jones field, waiting for the main event of Panagbenga's closing ceremony.  I went there for that very reason; the fireworks display which they said would be the grandest you'll ever experience.. for FREE!  It was massive, colorful, and lasted for about 30 minutes.. or less, no, I think it was more than 30 minutes.  It was quite long, and I almost missed it.

But I was at the park first.  I was actually everywhere.  I was at the Session Road.  I was at the market.  I was at 711 for more than 2 hours, charging my Coby player and I was quite happy one of the cords matched mine because I would literally cry if I wasn't able to charge it. 

After 711, I braced the heat of the afternoon.. scoured every stalls which I've scoured the day before because I had nothing to do anyway.  There I found the cutest puffer fish I've seen! and he's the first puffer fish I've seen! I had to take him with me, and I did, and he's now hanging nicely in my room, together with Owly and Woodcat (I thought of Woodcat's name just now).  He's a cute addition.

After shopping, I went back to the house, because it was really hot and I thought I'd go back to the park at around 5pm.  I had dinner at 5pm, at this restaurant I found at Burnham, but I can't remember the name.  The food was nice and quite affordable.  The coffee's nice too.  I tried to read there, but it felt wrong to read at the restaurant, but they didn't disturb me.  I left after a few pages, and went back to strolling/window shopping while looking for a vacant seat; a bench, a rock, grass, whatever, and I found a very nice spot at the lake, facing the people happily paddling together.. making memories.

So how did I almost miss the grand fireworks display?

i bought a pufferfish! Unknown 8:39 PM

I was scouring every stalls in this long tiangge in Baguio when a tiny-googly-eyed-spiny-pufferfish caught my attention.  It's a little bit expensive but I already knew that I'm going to buy it when our eyes met.  I tried to do a bargain, but I'm not that good at it, and there were other people who kinda joined the scene so I agreed to the price before someone else grab it out of my hand.

I named it Puff Puff.

shit happens.. but you definitely have to move on Unknown 11:47 PM

It all started with the news, the heartbreaking news that Kamikazee, one of our favorite bands has decided to go on indefinite hiatus.  So my friends and I went to one of their last gigs which was ok.. it was ok but we really wanted to hear more.  The more, the more the merrier.. as they say.

But that's not the shit I was talking about.  It's about the small incidents which created a somewhat big impact on me.. and uh.. yeah, they're the results of my stupidity and my being maarte.

So I told my friends that I'll just wait for them in the venue instead of the meeting place we all agreed on (because I was excited like that.. also because it started as early as 5pm).  And so I did what everyone else was doing; listening to the music being played by the artists/bands behind the high walls in the Sunken Garden.  Actually, the stage was in a very low area that everyone outside could still see who were performing.

Ayala in the morning Unknown 4:05 PM

There's nothing much to say about this photo, except that I think some of my seatmates in the van were sort of puzzled what was I shooting.. whatever it was that I found interesting.  They saw me immediately searching for my cellphone in my bag then snapped outside.  

I think I even made a weirder face when I looked back into their faces, looking at me, wondering.  I hope we don't share the same van again, at least for a couple of days.  That was so embarrassing.  I don't why I did that; looking back.

kandila Unknown 9:33 PM

silent sunday Unknown 7:25 PM

how's this for a Halloween portrait? Unknown 10:38 PM

The first time I saw this portrait of a man and a baby, I was amused, but I was also a little confused why it was hanged on that season.. it was last year, when we were decorating for Halloween.  So I was admiring it when I noticed it changed!  They transformed into a terrifying scene!

Apparently, the guy is a monster!  He's a blood-sucking vampire!  And the baby looks as terrifying as the vampire!

show them off Unknown 9:10 PM

This one's taken a few years ago.. Christmas gifts from my brother, and yeah, the purpose of this photo is to show them off and also to show appreciation to our brother.. and yes, I also have one.  I was actually surprised that he also gave me one.. and that was really nice.