Thick, Thick, Thick

             I cant understand why our Beloved President spent all that moolah to go to Zurich when she could settle everything in Davos. It’s not like our Economy’s going to spring forth from the ashes after attending all the conventions she deems necessary for Economic growth. On the contrary, contradictory if you must. All the money she spent can be put to better use like feeding the starving and famished or better yet, investing in Education or Businesses that would employ our idle working force, if there’s such a term.

             What’s in Zurich anyway? It’s popular for the Bank Accounts (repeat: BANK ACCOUNTS), but I’m not aware of anything else. Dean Arcilla even mention a chartered PAL Airbus or Boeing. Well, yeah Heads of State need bragging rights, but that’s if every citizen you serve eats at least three times a day. Going to international "conventions and meetings" is not what you’d call Public Service. It’s Self-Service, much like fast-food chains and self-service we have because the people we elected to serve us do not. 

             Our Great Leader even mentioned that the recession in the United States would barely affect us. WHAT??! I’d know that even if I’m not in Ma’am Nalangan’s class. So would the poor people (I’m not saying I’m not poor) who feel poverty eating their intestines every painful day of their lives. Poor them. All they can do is curse the wretched politician, blah, blah, blah, they put there in the first place.

             There are a lot of things we can do to make this country better. We just need to realize our priorities and muster all the strength and courage we have to make the changes, however painful. I guess all we can do now is tighten our belts and look as our beloved country our heroes painstakingly fought for crumble into dust Economically.

Jeproks

            I always wondered where all the kanto slang in the Philippines started. The better question is "who started it." I just happened to pick up a Nonoy Marcelo (creator of the influential comic series "Ikabod") tribute book on my way to my throne, the toilet bowl. According to the book, Nonoy Marcelo, in all his weirdness and genius, invented the kind of slang that would influence the whole of Mega Manila, if not the whole country.

            "Datkilab" is widely used, especially by frat men and it's very "asteeg"-sounding, as it's shrouded in mystery if you don't understand or know how to discover its secret. The kanto lingo that gave birth to datkilab influenced a lot of people, including Ka Freddy Aguilar and even my uncles. 

            Ermats would translate to mother and Erpats to father. Erap is to pare while todits is to dito. The datkilab for pera is areps but that's pretty recent. Here are some of the words and meanings I discovered recently (forgive my ignorance): jeproks (housing PROJECTS that would roughly translate to jologs in modern time) and kachokaran means karancho.

            Weird or funny these words may seem, they still define us and who we are. Language is a vital part of Culture, and culture is what defines people and gives meaning and happiness to everyday life.   

Oh Crap.

            "Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die." I'm not really into putting this statement into practice, but I'm not exactly holding back (especially when the viand is meat or when I'm on a drinking spree) either. Even slurping Bulalo bouillon is not enough to make me feel guilty. The conscience is but a mere speckle of dust when I'm eating heartily. Tampalin (burger patties are pure beef, so my friend says. It's 70% fat, and 30% scrap meat from the ribs. Not sure where "tampalin" came from, though) burgers from Burger Machine are my favorite merienda. 

            I'm not what you'd call a regular drunkard, but I certainly wouldn't pass up a bottle of beer or two. Drunken revelry's definitely not my style. But what the hell is the world coming to? Is the pain I often feel somewhere along my nape a sign of a blocked carotid or whatever artery there is? Am I flatulent because of irregular or fatty diets? I certainly hope not.

            It's hard losing someone special, family or friend, as was the case of my lolo's passing away back in '03. Though he did not die of his ever present Diabetes Mellitus or heart problems, I still felt bad that he suffered before his next great adventure. Now I'm on the brink of losing my lola to stroke (probably mild, but still….) and I do hope God would lend her some more time. 

             My point is, we should watch our lifestyles and dietary habits. It's fine to indulge one's self to a big, crispy piece of pata every now and then, but never forget to eat oatmeal and fiber-rich food and exercise. When the time comes for reunions, a healthy alumnus/alumna, kumpare/kumare, ninong/ninang can tempt and tease colleagues by eating crispy balat ng lechon and other pampabata stuff.

Really Sucks, Doesn’t It?

            Conrado De Quiros is undoubtedly one of the coolest writers of all time. I'm a big fan of his and he is like a Jedi Master or Gandalf of print media in the Philippines, ever so enlightened and true. What else can I say? He really is the coolest. 

            I read one column of his recently and it was very insightful. He discussed the reasons for the poor performance of Filipino students and I was convinced right then and there. I wanted to shout *hear hear* at that moment. He said that the problem lies with the confusing Language usage in the Philippines, or to that effect. We Filipinos use English in reading while using Filipino in speech. Prime time News is in Filipino, supposedly for the plebeian to understand. Broadsheets, on the other hand, are all in English. The most read, according to him is the Philippine Daily Inquirer, having 200,000 in circulation. Juxtapose that to Thailand, having millions of newspaper subscription, which by the way is written in their Language.  

            Asian countries that use their own Languages in Education are now very rich countries, i.e. Japan, South Korea, China and Thailand. Singapore and India, Asian countries that use English as communication medium in education are also developed Economies, aside from the fact that the people there speak fluent English.

            It's really saddening, this dilemma we are facing. We should change the way we teach students. Why not use Filipino in teaching Sciences and Mathematics? Let's not worry about translations because words are easily given equivalents. Electricity already has a n equivalent —- dagitab if I'm not mistaken. We just need to be willing enough to change our ways for the better.

I Wonder….

I just had a dream. I can’t say it’s a prophetic one. More like an insight to what the future will look like after World War 3. After the recent events like the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and the raging extremism between Israel and Palestine, World War 3 is not so remote anymore.

            Back to my dream. Horrible is what my dream is, to say the least. The world (the Philippines actually) is flooded and people are in despair. Everyone is eating….fast-food! I’m not even sure if what they’re eating is fresh. I’d definitely eat stale food if I survive the nuclear fallout. I’d probably be mutated anyway.

            I was also wondering: Would the world be like in the manga “Fist of the North Star” where people fight over food, especially water and cluster into gangs? I sure hope none of this will happen.
 

We’re not sure what the future would be like, what with all that’s happening around us i.e. Global Warming, wars and stuff, but let’s work for the betterment of the entire human race. As Michael Crichton (via Jurassic Park character Ian Malcolm) said “The Earth will surely survive, but the Human race may not.” Or something like that.

Can We Really?

            I was almost disheartened when power failure stopped me from finishing this entry. What if Filipinos really can't?

            I have been hearing this statement quite often. Many say "The Filipino Can," but I have yet to see otherwise. Or maybe the Filipino really can, but the Filipino doesn't or doesn't want to.

            We Filipinos are lazy. I'm not saying I'm not nor do I say that everyone is.  I'm working on it, though. Changing my habits and work ethics (I wish). Filipinos are also stupid. Or maybe not stupid but we just don't think about what we do. Kinda reminds me of Homer Simpson. Act first before thinking. Impulsive seems to be the word. We tend to let our emotions and feelings take over before rationalizing our actions (Pilipino nga ako). We Filipinos are also impractical. Well, so am I, given situations that I can't seem to solve or when I face tasks that seem daunting and impossible.

            The show "Jessica Soho Reports" featured a parent who has an unbaptized 2-yr old kid. The reason for this is downright unbelievable: The parent wanted a grand baptismal celebration that would be able to feed the whole barangay! And that's just for one child! We can't always use lack of education to justify wrong decisions and irrational decision-making.

            Another related problem (Is there an end to Philippine Socio-Economic problems? I guess not.) we're facing is overpopulation. I mean, are Filipinos that horny to not be able to hold the heat in and control themselves (look who's talking) and release it through other avenues? What about masturbation and porn? Aren't these made for the purpose of achieving worldly pleasure without paying the price? Or are these also contributing factors to the problem? Whatever.

           I recently saw Itchyworms perform. That was in SM Mla. last Saturday and Whoa! They perform really well. They sang a song entitled "Noon Time Show" and yet another problem popped into my mind. Noontime shows are cool. I watch them whenever I have time, especially when the EB Babes are on *snicker*. But we Filipinos rely on luck too much. When we "professionally" rely on luck, watching the shows, joining the contests live, through text, and what have you, we become too hopeful that we forget our priorities and livelihood. I mean, it's good to watch these show for entertainment and if lucky, then well and good. But fanaticism is too much!

            I hope the Philippines still has a future. I honestly believe we still have, but we also have to do something like read or study, even if we hate to.

ARGH!!!!

DAMMIT! WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE PHILIPPINES!!!! I'M MAKING AN ENTRY AND THEN BOOM! POWER FAILURE! EVEN THE DAMN BROADBAND CONNECTION SUCKS! 

Why Monthsaries Seem Impractical To Me

            Romantic traditions like monthsaries bother couples every month on the same date as when the romantic relationships became formal. These so-called "special days" become hellish routines and defeat the real purpose of and meaning of "love" in more ways than just being simply bothersome.   
            Now, I'm quite aware that a lot (and I emphasize the word LOT) of people out there would kill me for saying this. I wouldn't be surprised if I would be stoned to death the minute I get out of the house tomorrow morning, but I'll say it anyway. Monthsaries (it's not even in the dictionary) are IM—-PRACTICAL. Period. Let me count the ways:

            First, a person in a romantic relationship will need to fuss about remembering the monthsary date, notwithstanding finding ways to greet his/her partner.
            Second, for the day to be special, arrangements must be made. However simple the settings or plans, and even the so-called spontaneous dates are, they still require a lot of effort.
            Third, Monthsaries are time consuming. All's well if and when the couple goes out very seldom. Seeing each other every damn minute of the day is another thing.
            Fourth, monthsaries, again, become routines becoming more and more like brushing your teeth. You just do it 'cause you need to. The reasons are endless!

            Now, you may think I'm bitter, but YES, I AM BITTER ABOUT THIS NONSENSE! Whew! I'm not altogether saying that Anniversaries are impractical too. I just hate the hell out of monthsaries. God knows how much ruckus and headeaches monthsaries cause

            I don't give a damn cow manure if you think I'm crazy (I really am, though) for not liking it. They say constipated people don't give a s**t! And I'm constipated, mind you. I'm not saying you should agree either. What, I just forget it's the sixth, the thirtieth, or whatever date it is and all hell breaks loose?

            I would rather express my feelings on ordinary days, especially rainy ones (figuratively and literally) and that is what I consider sweet and special. Am I just weird or unconventional? Nah, I don't think so. That said, to hell with monthsaries!