Life Under Construction

I promised Tin I’d go with her to support her friend’s band at 19 East last night.  This was like weeks ago.  Anyway, I wasn’t expecting I’d be into studies and all so I said yes. Almost didn’t go when I found out she already had another girlfriend with her but I promised so there.  Thursday it turns out is for up and coming bands.  And La Cucarasta, Jeff & Vince’s band, were last on the list so for the next hour and a half I think,  I got to know Chaz’s friends Joey and Daks. Daks previously from Tahanan.  Joey, a dude Tin dated before but didn’t work out.  They were both nice.  Tin was up to some matchmaking but um, let’s not go there please… Anyway,  Chaz and chums didnt go in to watch the bands because of the no slipper/sando policy.  But to my thinking it was the quality of the bands performing inside;p  After watching Wiseguys, I really wanted to hear more potential OPM hitmakers.  But frankly, the two bands - Chongkee (?) and Project Fusion were a bit disappointing.  Chongkee wasn’t consistent.  It’s like metal rock but reggae.  I know some bands try to blend music and all but theirs was… I dunno, it just didnt work but at least it kept me awake after having 3 hours of sleep the night before.  Project Fusion could’ve done better.  The lead singer was also a flute player - quite unique but her voice… It lacked ummph so did the voice of the keyboardist -  he was probably new to the whole thing and didnt have confidence.  Needless to say, we were all tired by the time La Cucarasta was about to play.  Vince, the lead singer, had a hangover and Caloy the bassist wasn’t feeling well either.  But my oh my,  they sure got their sounds right.  Reggae music it is.  Hmm, makes me want to hit the beach…  Kakainis at nahuli pa sila.  I betcha even with Vince’s croak they’re the best out of all the other performers.  Jeff admitted that they were supposed to be first but since Vince and Caloy weren’t well enough, they gave em some time.  I got a few recordings.  Wished I could’ve recorded all the songs but the digicam batt could only hold out for so long.  Yes, we closed the bar. Kumusta naman?  Jeff wanted to maximize his VL so went to Capone’s even without his other bandmates.  My first time to actually go there.  Tin has been mentioning it often enough that I was curious to find out where and how it was.  It catered to what looks like the A-B crowd.  Bands were also up-and-coming… Well what do you know - this is how it works on a Thursday night.  Hmm, had two Tequila Roses and warm calamansi juice…  I was actually quite sober well compared to Tin who was horsing around with Jeff.  Funny isn’t it?  How girls can fool around with friends and act so demure when they’re with the guy they really like…  So guys learn to take a hint.  Work it!  Well, to some other guys — if the girl doesnt reply to your texts and seems to be avoiding you.  Get a clue!  Anyway, the only thing that got me bungled was my lack of sleep.  Thank God Jeff was driving from Makati to Sucat.  Amazing the way he drives competently after how many bottles of … ah, san mig light pala.  On the way home, we went back to 19 East to pick up War Machine which I left behind so I wouldn’t use up the gas… Hey, estudyante na ito;p   And now, I’m here at home loading pix and blogging even if I’m dying to sleep but can’t since I’m still waiting for water to fill up the tank with Ma and Pa out at the wet market.  Haaay naku….  Quiz later sa MS.  Tomorrow sa Pedia.  Good luck na lang talaga sa akin…    I’m getting too old for this as the Lethal Weapon line goes.  Till the next gimik Tin has in store for me which is … Saturday…. Ugh, I need a rest!    

Retainers are on;p  Arrgh… I’ve just confirmed that this is a lot tougher than wearing braces… or maybe just as tough? The way I talk is blah… Buti na lang LOA ako kundi katawa-tawa ito.  Nawawala ang ngala-ngala ko.  Never realized how important it was to my sense of taste.  Jeez, food seems to get stuck in it but it couldn’t be much since the fit is ok.  Putting it on induces the gag reflex.  Weird but it even makes me swallow in the wrong direction…. hay, coughing fits and i’d need a slap in the back.  Now this is the reason why Tin doesn’t wear em when she eats but accdg to Tito Jun, the only time you can remove them is when you have to brush your teeth. It’s supposed to take 3-5days to adjust.  LM says it took her a week.  Well, enough about the retainers.  How is a bum’s (or a student only) life?  I think it’s swell…  Except for the fact that our helper just ran out or almost ran out on us.  Here’s to Lalang - who accdg to a chatty neighbor is pregnant by a guard not from the village.  Long and short of it is she attempted to leave last Monday. Nagpaalam ang loka na may ibibigay lang sa pinsan sa McDo.  Next thing I know is the guard at the village gate calls me to report that Lalang has a ‘traveling bag’ and looks like she’s leaving us for good. True enough when she was escorted back to us, she had with her a whole maleta.  She had to wait for both my parents to get back that night.  What can I say?  Good riddance?  Heartless of me it may seem but our frustrations with her seem endless.  There’s the language barrier, lack of initiative and memory gap that for a 19 y/o  is very strange…  She’s always somewhere else - perhaps at the neighbor’s disappearing for a few hours. Or with that boyfriend of hers whom she shares with another helper whom the bf also impregnated.  Swerte sya, maluwag kami. Sabi na nga lang namin, talagang la lang.  Next day I find out about her ‘condition’.  Can’t help but feel pity… Her ‘pinsan’ might be her boyfriend.  Good luck na lang sa kanya. There goes Lalang.  So yesterday being a bum/student, I got back to my old job of doing the laundry.  Forgot the zonrox and now my hands are dead meat from kusot hehehe;p  Hindi naman, just sore…  There’s always the washing machine for the regular clothes.  It’s a good feeling though taking care of our own stuff.  Come to think of it, our clothes didn’t smell like they’ve been washed when Lalang was taking care of them. Proud to say, I’m good at this hahaha;p  Maglalabandera na lang ako! hehehe.. How’s that for a career change?  Hmm, imagine if I just resigned.  I’ll just get to study and help clean the house when I’m not too lazy to sweep and wash;p  At least I get to read the MS book with no pressure of a quiz or long test later.  Advance reading is a luxury it seems…  Anyway, I need to get back to washing the dishes then reading… ta-ta!

After the first 3 days of classes, I feel drained.  It must have something to do with last Friday night’s 1 hour wait for that jeep in Pasay then the 2 hour ride going to Sucat.  Monstrous!  Ate at Jollibee.  Bunch of possibly drugged teens tried flirting with me. Arrgh! Read the eyebags please - layas!  30 minute wait for parents at 7-11.  Then when I lay on my bed I can’t sleep…  I ‘wake up’ after 3 hours to go back to school.  The prof is one hour late and I’m falling asleep on her.  Jeez, mukhang ito lang ang magaling naming prof out of all that we’ve met.  She’s Dra. De Mesa- Pasamba, pioneer of Pediatrics in OLFU.  Quite impressive if I may say so…  Akala namin tariray but she turned out nice, friendly and chatty.  Especially liked her voice… Reminds me of Bella Flores with a sosy twang to it.   Good thing with her is she’s frank and didn’t make any false promises.  I swear, nakakalula ang topics to cover which actually got me very challenged.  Challenged because I’ve been told that if I don’t resign during my 3rd year, I would definitely do so on my fourth.  Honestly, I don’t know if I’m up to juggling studies and work this time.  Just studying… heck! Just commuting to the place with this heat is killing me.  The commute is a killer because there are two bridges under construction.  The first is the Sucat bridge near the tollgate.  I’m praying it’ll get finished by this coming week.  Imagine, my Thu and Fri classes start at 1:30pm.  Kumusta naman at ala pang kalahati ng biyahe ay dugyot na ko.  The second bridge is the Tullahan bridge just a kilometer or so away from OLFU.  What is so near yet so far?   There’s a 5-10 minute walk to cross the bridge under repair.  They say it’s gonna be finished by September.  If you ask me, try December.  Just thinking realistically given the typhoons which will hit us any time now.  It can’t get this hot without any reaction from up above.  I don’t know which is worse.  Getting all sweaty and dirty before you even get to class or getting soaked from up above and under because of flash floods.  You really can’t say with that temporary bridge they have us crossing.  I should probably take pix of the places I pass through.  Quite embarassing for our country… You’d probably smell the stink just by looking at the pix.  Haay, the things one has to go through…. When you get to school, it’s like a stopover with lots of  electric fans but still you’re bathing in your own sweat… What is el nino?   Then I have to go home and go through the whole thing again.  Seriously?  Seriously.  Now, I’m getting that from Izzy (Grey’s Anatomy).    I can’t even begin to imagine how it’s gonna be when I go back to work….  Malabo na ito talaga.  I’ve been sending feelers to my mom.  Would it be too much if I ask to stay in a dorm?  Hehehe, now there’s a fantasy…  Hmm, going back to teachers… I dunno what’s going on but I don’t like the idea of newbies teaching seniors.  No offense but the teaching style of my MS and Psych profs need a lot of polish.  Our MS prof said it wouldn’t be a reading lecture and that she hates checking names of students for attendance, she’d rather give us quizzes. This was during our orientation.  What does she do on the first day of lecture?  She checks attendance through our index cards and  woo-hoo no quiz.  She’s not even sure about some of the topics she’s discussing.  Okay, I understand teaching is not easy…  But please, confidence at the very least.  Give us an outline and try sticking to it.  These are second-coursers you’re teaching.  Time is precious.  Speaking of time,  our Psych prof was no better.  Remember my horrendous Friday night, imagine Saturday after lunch our prof turns out to be a newbie and wants us to share what we knew about PBB and share our personal lives in front.  Who would like to volunteer please?  Her reasoning is that she knows how it is being a student not wanting to discuss anything on the first week of classes.  Boy, I’d rather go into discussion than the awkwardness of waiting for people to ’share’.  Our section is not exactly into that kinda thing.  There’s this group, that group and those who just came to be in our section.  By the time she asked if we wanted a discussion, I was already embarassed to raise my hand because she started the whole bruhaha of showbiz talk.  I’d probably come out as a nerd. So, for more than two hours I was barely able to keep my eyes open and I’m sitting in front at the middle. Wow, what a place to be when you’re truly bored….  Hmm, I really don’t mean to badmouth.  I guess I’m just frustrated.  The two profs are actually nice and approachable.  It’s only my luck that I got them when they’re just starting.   Only good news is  I’m still on vacation mode for the next 3 days since our duty sked hasnt been given out.  Can’t wait to get my hands on that Lipincott Pedia book.  Really need to start studying or else mapapasakarera (is that right, doktora?) ako.  I guess that’s it for tonight.  Tomorrow I’ll get my retainers and probably hit the gym.  Our Father’s day/Lord’s day celebration has got my tummy doubling in size.  Arrgh!  Tsk, tsk, tsk…  I’m hoping and praying for a better week ahead.  Who knows?  I just might win the next lotto raffle if I actually placed a bet;p

Quick update.  I’ve gotten my braces removed last Tue.  It feels weird.  I know I should feel great but I’m used to having crooked teeth or having metal on my teeth.  I’m afraid I’ll go back to being Daisy Duck w/o the metal.  I’ll just wait till Sun or Mon to get my retainers.  According to my friends and sis, that’s going to be another challenge. Anyway, school just started.  My bro and I got stuck in Sucat traffic for an hour or so trying to get me to Magallanes. Jeez, I even gave myself more than enough time.  What is scorching heat?!  I probably have ‘bungang araw’ already.  Where is my Fissan? !  At school, I’m finally back with Luisa, Ate My, Shawie, Em, Mike and Felix at Sec 54.  And I’m starting to miss Alan and the whole crew of Grp 8C.  Strange how you can be happy and sad at the same time. Reason why this is supposed to be short and sweet is we have a ’surprise’ quiz tomorrow.  How nice of Ms. Feliciano to inform us… So I better get my lazy butt up and moving after I finish reading a couple of emails from you gals;p

1 hour waiting for AJ.  AJ rebonds over 5 hours. 1.5 hours waiting for hairstylist Calvin.  30 minutes on the cut.  Pambawi?  I finally got to watch the first installment of Heroes during the rebond session.  After waiting for Calvin, I had quite a conversation with this Korean hairstylist.  A real pro - man, AJ was right about the way he handled those scissors.  He’s kinda cute with a great genuine laugh that comes out as kinda shy.  Tsk, tsk,tsk… sayang!  It looks like he has a thing for morenas.  What did he describe his ex as?  "Coco"-skinned.  Yihee!  hehehe, feeling coco-skinned naman ang bruha.  Hey, it’s not everyday you meet a cool guy who’s your age and single.  Kawawa is how he describes himself.  Works six days a week till 9pm.  Yeah, we’re both busy…  So all you huntresses out there looking for a Chinovela leading man, check out Tony & Jackie at West of Ayala Building, Buendia near Makati Med.  Haay, what a girl has to do to achieve great hair;p 

Sinusumpong man ng di nakakahawang (sabi ng tita kong doktor) ubo’t sipon, lumabas ang lola niyo.  I was too groggy to attend the 930am mass even though I initially woke up around 8am. Great! God was waking me up but I was feeling too lazy and hazy.  Anyway, LM came in around 10am from Kiko’s birthday concert at Adler’s house so we decided to catch the last mass this morning. Unfortunately, we had quite a storm - maiksi lang naman pero effective.  May matching mini-baha pa going to Festival mall.  Didn’t feel like hearing mass in Resurrection.  Hanggang 11am lang pala ang huling sked kaya di na rin namin naabutan.  So we just went around window shopping then got lunch at Gourmet’s Palate.  My Killer Tacos and her Chicken Takaw.  Really nice place to eat.  Went back home and got Don to Slimmers in Festi.  Went to PhilamLife Audi at UN Ave.  Watched Novo Concertante - wonderful performance as usual by Judith and her pals.  I think I’ll be able to make it to their next gig on July 7 at Christ the King in Greenhills.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed.  I was able to meet up with Arnie, Jay and Vonn whom I haven’t seen in what?  3 weeks?   It’ll still be some time before I return to work.  Hmm, July 10 I believe.  After the long goodbyes, LM and I drove back home to catch the last mass in our parish.  Arrived during homily.  Went home for dinner.  Chat with Lara first.  Dinner.  Walked around the park 3x w/ LM.  Went back home.  Finished Sweet Liar.  I’ve probably read the book more than 10x but who cares?  It’s Jude;p  Now here I am typing — greeting friends Happy Birthday.  Isn’t it nice we have birthday alerts in Friendster?  I’ve never been good with dates=P Shows my strong masculine side - what an excuse!  Anyway, that’s today Sunday.  Trying to make the most out of this short breather before I start school again this Thursday.  Meet with AJ tomorrow to get my hair fixed.  Tue or Wed get these freaking braces (finally!) off=)  What is jubilation?!  Six years!  Ahem… Then I start school looking (and hopefully feeling) brand new;p  I get to watch a gig on the 21st with Tin. Then I’ll wait till the end of the month when Felesita lands back in the Philippines… Oooh, I can’t wait;o  Then the next day - the double wedding lagari hehehe…  Who said that focusing on only one thing would be boring?  Hehehe, I’ve managed to pack in everything else to fill up the spaces…  Wonder if we’ll really start classes this week?  I’ve got this feeling they’ll move it again.  They’ve been doing it for the last two sems.  Buti na lang Thu pa ang start namin.   At least we’ll get a clue by Tue.  So there you have it…  My sked.  A bit of fun on the side and wait!  Could I just announce?  LM’s got a job!  My sis has landed her first job!  Wow, all of us kids are working;p  Wonder how Mama feels about that… Haven’t chatted with her yet since I arrived late yesterday and both parents have gone to Luisiana for Tito Pedring’s first death anniversary.  God bless his soul…  I feel kinda guilty not going because I was a bit under the weather and I’ve already promised Judith I’d attend this concert months ago.  Anyway, I’m hoping they’ve gotten lots of bonding. Both of my uncles working abroad are here so it’s really special.  Hmm, I guess this is where the buck stops tonight…  Nytynyt!

I’m down with cough and colds.  Coughing and spewing out phlegm on my way home from duty this morning…. eeew!!! Tonight it’s not as bad but yesterday, I think I was getting paranoid about infecting others- wondering if I was infected by my patients (jeez, it’s kinda weird especially if you get visits from TB and hepa patients - no offense meant.  TB patients aren’t really infectious once they’ve started treatment)…  This is what I get for not sleeping right and taking my vitamins… Arrrgh! Buti na lang, alang fever… So here I am bored but lazy — can’t stand what’s on TV.  I’m thinking of walking around the park but it’s too late.  Eating after 6pm is not an option given the weight increase I mentioned before.  I’ve already read two novels so that’s that.   It’s time for a blog update then.

Balitucan

The morning going to Pampanga was a disaster.  Okay, my procrastination got the better of me. I had this idea that it was alright to be late because previous batches left around 12nn despite the 7am call time.  Long and short of it is both of my parents had to bring me to Balitucan which we later found out was in Magalang, Pampanga - almost at the end of Pampanga I think.  Truly an embarassing experience… Paano bang tumanda ng pabaliktad?!  Eto na siguro yun.  Going back - when we got there, we picked up Alan and got lost going to the dorm.  The dorm as you can see on my multiply site is quite cramped with 10 double-deckers; a few cabinets that smelled like something died inside of them; one miserable restroom that would have to be shared by 21 people; a sink and a water dispenser.  Yes, you read that right.  In that space, they fit 21 people- boys and girls.  We were two groups with the same sked. The other group was composed mostly of first-coursers.  We were able to co-exist well until the last day.  That day belongs in another blog=P  Well at least they brought an iPod which played mostly R&B hits like those of B2M.  Day and night ito - what is a bittersweet reminder of Wiseguys.  Hey, everything was still quite fresh that week.  We didn’t have duty for the first two days.  Could’ve died of boredom if it weren’t for Scrabble - which equates with death for some people, I know;p  We were assigned to the ER-OPD area 3-11pm shift.  It was okay when there were patients to tend to - assist the good doctor with suturing, take VS, chat with clients waiting their turn, try to learn from the cases despite the language barrier. I swear, it’s like living in a different country - tagline na ata namin ang ‘Tagalog po’…  Buti na lang at Pampanguena itong si Ella - we have an interpreter at least.    And yes, how can I forget - the photoshoots=)   I swear, that was also a boredom killer.  I’m not much of a photographer but it doesnt take any smarts to click away and the charger is just in the dorm.  I’ve got around 200+ photos and a couple of videos.  Phew!  Filipinos and our love for hamming it up in front of the lens.  Hmm, what else?  There was also the food…  Grabe, bow ako sa canteen food.  Kung dun ako kakain araw-araw at ala ako ginagawa, patay na ko siguro sa kabusugan.  Roma, I miss you na hehehe;p Generous with servings at a reasonable price=)  As far as exercise, I didn’t get to go around much because the roads were dusty. The hospital grounds weren’t that big and interesting.  And it rained every afternoon.  Before you could get in the restroom to take a leak or take a bath,
kumusta naman ang pila.  Buti na lang at pumayag yung kabilang grupo to
give way to the oldies hehehe… Stroke of genius ang pagbili nila Ja ng badminton set nung Wed or Thu ba yun?  Anyway, that has got to be the worst day of our stay there.  Alang ilaw tapos nawalan pa ng tubig!  Tsk, tsk, tsk…  Ni gapatak ng ulan ala - talagang pinili pang wag umulan sa init ng araw na yun.  What is?!  So, we sweated it out.  The badminton games were great fun.  At least it’s an enjoyable way to burn fat.  I swear, pumuputok na ako sa uniform ko.    So much for my so-called fast metabolism.  What else?  There were the IV insertions.  Initially, I was dismayed at the thought of going through it.  We were given the option to either have our final quiz or just practice IV insertion on each other.  Eventually, IV insertion won out for the heck of it.   Might as well know how it feels, right?  Nakakaawa lang talaga kapag baby kasi di madaling makita ang ugat.  There was this one baby na tawag nilang si 100 tusok dahil sa hirap mahanapan talaga ng ugat.  You could only feel helpless in the face of that. 

Hmm, that’s it for tonight… I’m getting dizzy already. I’ll finish the tale some other time.  VAVOOM!

I’ve gained almost 10lbs. I’m tired, sleepy… but hey, I’m back;p  Back from Balitucan, Magalang in Pampanga.  It’s quite a long story.  I’m not sure I’m up to telling the whole boring, exhilirating, irritating, gastronomical tale… BUT the pix have been loaded at my multiply site.  Just check em out and let the pix tell you a story of their own=) When I’ve gotten my fill of sleep on my own bed, finished Season 3 of Grey’s Anatomy, gone out gift shopping for my sis and all that other jazz,  maybe I’ll get the whole thing down on this blog;p