Earth Hour

Start:	Mar 28, '09 8:30p
End:	Mar 28, '09 9:30p
Location:	Earth

Turn off your lights for an hour, from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm (local time).

Visit the Earth Hour Site at http://www.earthhour.org/home/

Anik-anik, Atbp., muling nagbabalik!

Isang taon na ang nakakalipas mula nang huli akong nakapaglagay ng entry sa isa kong blog, 'yung Anik-anik, Atbp. Kanina, naisipan kong magsulat muli para sa blog na 'yun. Ang pamagat, "May Buhay After UPBaguio". Nagsilbing bintana ko ang blog na yun ng aking buhay noong bago at habang nasa Baguio ako.

Noong paalis na ako, sabi ko iiwan ko na 'yun. Medyo masakit kasi para sa aking alalahanin ang mga karanasan ko sa Baguio, kaya parang ayaw ko na siyang palaguin pa.

Nito-nito lang, binisita ko ang blogsite ko na 'yun. Nagbasa, natawa, at bigla kong naisip na hindi ko pwede kalimutan ang lahat ng mga nakasulat doon dahil magaganda naman pala ang mga karanasan ko. Ika nga ng bakla kong sarili, "in fairness to me" may matino naman palang bagay na nangyari sa akin doon.

So, kanina, nagsulat lang ako. Binago ko na rin yung layout niya. May ibang alaala kasing napapasama sa tuwing nakikita ko ang layout nung blog ko na yun. E since matagal nang panahon yun at hindi na uso ang magdala ng sandamakmak na bagahe sa buhay (kumbaga sa Cebu Pacific, 15 kilos na lang ang limit ng bagahe!!!) kailangan nang magbago ng diskarte. I'm still figuring out kung anong gagawin ko dun, kasi tatlo na yung ime-maintain ko na blog. Kaya ba ng powers ko, o sapat ba ang mga kuwento ko para sa tatlong blog? Well, malay natin. Tutal, sabi nga nila, schizo naman ako. Haha.

Bisitahin n'yo, baka magustuhan n'yo rin 'yung mga dating nakasulat dun. May mga tsismis din, kung gusto n'yo. Pero siyempre, tungkol lang sa akin 'yung tsismis. Haha.

Hindi ako makapaniwala

...pero dahil inagaw nila ang buhay mo nang wala sa panahon, itatago ko na lang ang naiiwang alaala mo sa silid-aklatan ko, ang isinulat mong kuwento sa Literary Folio ng Kule na ipinagamit ko sa Humanidades class ko nung nagtuturo pa ako sa UPBaguio, 'yung mahaba ang pamagat, yung nakakatuwang basahin.

Ipagdarasal ko na sana mabigyan ng katarungan ang iyong paglisan. Badtrip e, ang dami mo pang pwedeng gawin.

VJ, salamat sa pagkakadaupang-palad!

Khok Charoen, Lopburi

Here are some of the snap shots of our trip to Khok Charoen, Lopburi Porvince, Thailand for the Gender Analysis and Gender Responsive Development Planning class under Dr. Kyoko.

Capital T

"... as in Tanga!"


Siguro, hudyat na ito na kailangan ko nang umuwi. O kung sa termino pa ng mga galit sa akin at nag-iisip na ilusyunada ako, panahon na para lumibel ako sa dapat kong kalagyan.

Nabagsak ko ang isa sa mga exam ko, at yun pa lang ang resultang nakukuha ko sa ngayon. Nangangamba ako na pare-pareho ang kalalabasan ng apat ko pang exam dahil, una, tanga naman talaga ako; pangalawa, pareho lang ang takbo ng utak ko simula ng una hanggang huling exam.

Pagod na ako sa totoo lang, pagod na akong makipaghabulan sa mga gusto kong abutin. Huling pagkakataon na ito at anong ginawa ko? Hindi ko alam kung hindi ko lang talaga kaya o nawawala na naman ako sa konsentrasyon?

Sasabihin siguro ng mga galit sa akin, "HINDI MO KASI TALAGA KAYA, ILUSYUNADA KA KASI!" Putang-ama n'yo! At least ako, sinusubukan kong habuli at abutin yung mga gusto ko kahit minsan e suntok sa buwan talaga! Kung ano mang kahinaan meron ako, pinipilit kong i-overcome yun! Nakakapagod na kaya! At oo, ilusyunada ako, kasi ayokong nagsesettle sa ganito lang.

Nakakapagod na lang talaga.

Masyado na akong matanda para sa mga kapalpakan! Pero eto na naman ako, pumapalpak pa rin ng bonggang-bongga! At lagi't laging may repurcussions ang mga bonggang-bongga kong kapalpakan, i.e., hindi na ako makakatuloy mag PhD kasi kamusta naman ang grade ko, diba?

Ngayon, hindi ko alam kung titigilan ko na 'tong habulan na 'to o mas lalo lang akong tatakbo kahit wala na akong lakas. Pero kasi, baka naman hindi na ako kasali sa habulan e takbo pa rin ako ng takbo? Diba katangahan 'yun?

O baka tanga lang talaga ako?

I will miss you, Dr. Nowee

Life is so short to realize you're missing half of it.


This morning, a phone call from Nur, my Indonesian classmate, woke me up. "Dr. Nowarat died this morning."

I didn't want to believe what I just heard.

It's not like I didn't know this is going to happen. She's been sick since last semester. She was confined to the hospital for months and she only returned during the finals. She was one of the nicest professors I've ever met, not to mention that I really admire her intelligence. She was teaching Nanotechnology here in AIT plus Environmental Engineering subjects. She was an Applied Physics graduate from Mahidol University here in Thailand and she continued her graduate and postgraduate studies in the US. She was my academic adviser. We were never really that close but since she has that refreshing personality, I've always liked her. Our last conversation was during the registration period and before she took her leave this semester.
But even though we already knew her passing will eventually happen, I didn't realize it'll be this soon. Maybe I was expecting a miracle, that her life will be extended just for a couple of months... or years. She was still young and she still had so many things to do. But as what they always say, you'll never know when your time is up.

I didn't know her well enough so I cannot say she wasted her life for unimportant things. Her work was probably her most valued possession, and maybe she had so many plans to improve the quality of life of many. But then, what's the use of all these when you don't have the strength to even lift a pen? She took her work so seriously that maybe she forgot to take care of herself.

I am sometimes like that. Sleeping really late and even being awake for 48 hours straight just to finish a requirement for school, not eating on time, eating unhealthy food, etc... and for what?

We only live once, and we have to use it to the fullest and most meaningful way possible. But since our lives are relatively shorter compared to our plans and dreams, it's better to try to prolong our lives, or at least not try to shorten it, so that we can at least achieve half of the things that we intend to accomplish before the last straw of breath leaves our frail human body.

And maybe the thought that our lives are not entirely ours, probably we can have that sense of responsibility not to waste what was entrusted to us. We are accountable to the way we live our lives.

I am going to miss you, Dr. Nowee.

Reflection

Bundat, while sleeping in one corner of his 'crib' (aquarium).


*This is a raw pic. I did not edit this in photoshop.

Visiting Chachoengsao

Five-day fieldwork in Chachoengsao Province for our UEM Workshop class this semester. At the end of the semester, we are expected to draft an urban revitalization plan for Muang Chachoengsao, the most urbanized municipality in the province.

On the first day (15Feb), we went around the tourist-spots in the Province. We went to Wat Sothorn, Baan Mai Market, Bang Khla, and others. The next days were mainly for business, but of course, we still managed to find some time to fool around. hehehe

ED 79.10 Fieldwork

Start:	Feb 15, '09
End:	Feb 19, '09
Location:	Chachoengsao Province, Thailand

Urban Revitalization: The Case of Muang Chachoengsao

Missing Arjay

Sa mga ganitong pagkakataon, alam ko na ang sasabihin mo:

"Ate, ang dami mo nang pinagdaanan para magkaganyan ka dahil lang sa ganyang mga bagay-bagay."

Miss na kita. Isa ka sa mga taong alam kong hinding-hindi ako iiwan sa ere kahit pa anong mangyari. Gustong-gusto ko nang bumalik sa Pinas.

I miss you.