fuma-flashback ang good vibes

this has been an interesting week so far, for me, because of the slew of good vibes and memories -- about college, lgbt, high school, rakets, NGO -- that flashbacked to me while i was talking or hanging out with people who are just precious, true and most of all, people who could be honest with me, and who i can also be honest to. honest with? ah basta yun na yun!

i mark my week's beginning with monday, but that was uneventful for me, except for the fact that my Film 131 narrative class decided to be collectively mature this time, after a series of reprimands from me (duh), for being such a lackluster bunch. ewan ko ba kung bakit ang mga mas matatandang estudyante pa minsan ang mas iresponsable sa mga bagay-bagay, e. oh well. bahala na sila.

we actually have class tuesday dapat pero monday was a make-up class from a missed session due to lack of quorum on their part. and tuesday was really a free day for them to shoot and research. and so i scheduled my DFA trip on that day then, where my superfriend x accompanied me as i renewed my passport, and he also ended up renewing his as well. turns out we didn't really have to go there in person because the new passports being issued by the DFA were of two kinds, and you could choose: the epassport one where they need to scan your face etc and put your biometrics in a microchip embedded in your passport, or the ordinary machine-readable passport where they merely encode your data in a barcode that a machine could automatically read like a, well, barcode. hindi na pala kelangan ng personal appearance kapag machine readable lang ang kukunin mo (which is mura, 750 pesos) pero sa epassport oo (which didn't interest us because it was like 1300 pesos). and this fact wasn't made clear to us until we asked. hay luz. gubyerno talaga...

but the trip was okay just the same. my superfriend x then accompanied me to gma7 to get my bimonthly moolah so then i accompanied him to trinoma where he met this straight guy who will be giving him more moolah with a raket. yes, kelangang i-mention ang hetero-ness ng guy, because we both think the guy kinda fancied me and even went so far as asking me if i already have a husband. to which i retorted "ay wala ho ang asa-asawa na yan sa budget ko!" which i think endeared me more to him hahaha which resulted in my superfriend finalizing the raket deal hahaha. kaya sabi ko nga, next time ne kailangan ng superpowers ko like that sa pag-seal ng deal sa raket clients, 2000 pesos na ang appearance fee ko lagi hahahahahaha. so ayun, we just hung out there to muni-muni over the situation hahaha. at natutuwa ako dahil sana nga ay maayos na ang karaketang ito dahil sasagot ito ng ilang pangangailangan sa buhay naming lahat...

kaya last friday, superfriend x's best friend naman accompanied us to meet my former landlord, si doc, sa proj. 2 where i used to live, to show us a rental apartment that just got vacated para sa aming raket na itey. kasama rin of course si best friend sa raket, along with other friends of ours from film school college days pa, and some trusted former students to boot. naaliw lang ako sa apartment-hunting stint naming iyon dahil nag-flashback lang ako galore sa mga panahon kong naghahahanap din ng apartments. and it made me appreciate my current situation more, seeing na i didn't need to house-hunt anymore since 2007. i so love this homing sanctuary thing.

wednesday naman, i was able to chika again with our good friend colleague, na kelangan ko talagang makausap to give fair warnings regarding unfair workmates and fair traitors in our midst. i'm glad she told me that she also sensed some things already, and that she wants to take extra precautions just the same. this saddens me a lot, but it's true: we all have to protect our own hide, and each other's hides as much as we could.

and then there's this hideous activity that made us flashback to more hideous times in our history of work where we are now, and i just found it funny how ironic this looks, seeing that the hideous creature that caused this thing is now facing the effect years later. hahahahahahah. sorry for being cryptic, ayoko lang kasing palawigin pa ito dahil it's a waste of space. wala lang, mental note lang hahahaha. hay naku karma. pinapang-abot din pala kayo niyan. o shah!

midweek pa rin, i hung out with an old friend from the original lgbt movements of yore, mga panahong kinalimutan at tinalikuran na ng mga matataas na ihing "young activists" today. nag-touchbase ako sa kanya dahil kinailangan niya ang tulong ko sa isang aspeto ng kanyang buhay kaya i'm willing to lend my talents and expertise on that factor. masaya ito, hangout kami at update-an sa mga katomboyang buhay na di na namin nakikita ngayon o kaya'y mga dati pang nakita and all that. hindi na aktibo ang grupo nila at pati na rin ang karamihan--if not all-- sa kanilang members, dahil mas busy na sila sa kani-kanilang buhay trabaho, sining, at of course lovelife. i congratulated her on their 20 years of being a couple, silang mga sinaunang nanay-nanayan ko sa kabyaningan heheh pero young at heart and fez pa naman. kasi naman, ako ang baby dyke noong mga panahong sila ang rumaragasa sa maraming rough roads ng homophobia noon, na sadly nga, kinalimutan na ng mga upstarts ngayon ang pag-pave ng way nila/namin noon.

pero ayus lang. we weren't really interested much in talking about lgbt politics then, only talks about our personal lives and love lives of people we know who are/were in the movements, too. because in the end, that's what really matters lang naman talaga e -- true friendships, camaraderie within the banner of being women-loving-women. kebs sa [skewed] advocacy talaga, and these women know that by heart. they know what really matters, and i so miss that a lot in the current scenarios. kaya ayun, nilunod namin ang chikahan kasama ang lafangan sa ROC hehe. sarap naman ang lamb adobo. di ko lang napiktyuran sayang.

in the middle of all these flashbacks, a former workmate emailed me out of the blue, informing me of certain updates about a super-past engagement na nalimutan ko na nga actually, na akala kong di na tuloy. but we both had to warn each other of other people wanting to be in the engagement. poisons abound in the air, i said, and my workmate actually smelled the scents but didn't know how to make of it. liliwanagan ko na lang siya soon, kapag tumawag siya daw. okay! iba na ang kwidaw noh.

and then heto pa ang thursday na meeting ko sa network, which kinda reminded me of past meetings there, too, but i am pleased and surprised that these latter day meetings are actually more pleasant than the previous ones, the origins of which i was able to pinpoint to a few factors. ayus naman. masaya pa rin ito.

and i capped the work week last night by fulfilling a promise to my high school friend about our sweldo day food tripping dinner, na sana sa isang eatery malapit dito sa aming magbabarkada sa marikina, which ended up in katipunan, in the new banapple place near white plains, dahil may qc-staying barkada kaming nag-request... na inindyan kami!!!!!!!!! hay naku... but still, i had tons of fun hanging out with my high school barkada, mostly girls, one the same sexuality persuasion as mine, and a couple of young, supportive husbands of theirs plus a couple of whiz kids of one of them. aliw ito hehe. sumulit naman ang gabi kahit papaano dahil sa maraming updates at kuwentuhan galore namin, mga old issues, recurring issues at lalo na mga developing issues hehe. hay, masaya talaga ang reconnections.

di ko pa nasama diyan ang isang gabing evacuation camp moda na naman kami ng jowa ko isang gabi ngayong linggo sa bahay ng paryentes ko dahil sa ang condo ay nag-sked ng meralco maintenance from 11pm to 5am! gudlak naman sa lamok ano, kahit sandamukal nang off lotion ang ilagay namin, iba pa rin! kaya we ended up having dinner with the parents and sleeping over there. masaya naman. syempre lutong bahay ni mommy rocks, tortang giniling sans talongang nilafang namin hehe. sulit!


jampacked pala ang linggong ito. pero masaya ako kapag ganito. kasi ang sentro ng interactions ko ay kabilang ang mga totoong tao. kaya as much as possible, i try to keep it this way always, especially this year.

masaya. mukhang magiging ganun naman so... ayus!

archiving, gadget dyke-ing and tomato salad-ing

new posts are up. i began archiving the last two months' worth of columns ko for Manila Times sa new Silid-Aklatan leaflens horcrux blog heheh. meron ding latest post sa Karinderya ni Leaflens horcrux featuring my experimental gourmet tinkering featuring the french tomato and egg salad chorva i occasionally prepare. 'yan kasi ang kinain ko kanina. may recipe dun hehe try niyo.

para ngang nagkaroon ng maraming horcrux ang leaflens, aney? if you're not familiar, a horcrux is what voldemort did to his soul sa harry potter - tore them up to like 7 pieces yata if i remember and stored them in different items. remember "HP and the Chamber of Secrets?" ang isang horcrux niya ay yung diary ni tom riddle na nakuha ni ginny weasley sa book na ito. tapos dun sa huling film na The Half-Blood Prince, ito yung nilakbay nina harry at dumbledore sa may dagat-dagatang factor na locket ek. more of the horcruxes in the last book, The Deathly Hallows, which i just finished reading via ebook mga 2 weeks ago yata. can't wait for this film, although irita ako kasi yung chakang director na naman ang magdidirek. oh well...

kaya ayan, inspired ako sa horcruxes heheh.

speaking of ebooks, grabe at naaadik ako sa procurement ng mga ito hehe. ever since i decided to upgrade my cellphone into a smartphone, winner na winner na ako dito. pampatulog ko ito e, kasi di mo kelangan ng ilaw o lamp para magbasa. my new cellphone is a palm treo pro na nabili ko sa ebay. US-made at para rin siyang blackberry pero cheaper and way better ang design kesa dun sa nokia e71 series na muntikan ko na ring bilhin. at dahil windows mobile ang platform niya, marami ka ring puwedeng ma-install na software, tapos may micro sd card slot pa, at sa binili kong 8gig card, aba e buhay na tayo sa storage niyan hehe. hay umiral na naman ang pagka-gadget dyke ko hehe.

sample shot from the treo pro
built-in cam. not bad, eh.

tapos my superfriend xe taught me to download this ebook reader software called mobipocket, which converts any kind of files into the mobi format *.prc yata if i'm not mistaken. so if you download msword versions of ebooks or kahit text o notepad lang and lalo na pdf, you convert it into mobi to enjoy reading it. grabe panalo talaga ito. kahit nakapila ako sa bank, nasa jeep o fx, basta di magulo ang kapaligiran, puwede ako sumaglit na magbasa hehe. ayuz.

xe even bluetoothed to me (talagang ginawa siyang verb aney? bluetoothed hehe) some contemporary titles, kasi nga puro classics ang dina-download ko (kasi safer, part of the public domain na kasi) pero may nakikita rin nga kasi kaming new titles na libre, di mo bibilhin. he just gave me the complete anne rice vampire novels and i'm excited to start that as soon as i finish this kinda sucky paulo coelho biographical novel he wrote, the pilgrimage. nasimulan na e, so tapusin na lang. basta ang dami pang titles. grabe tuma-tumbling talaga ako sa teknolohiyang ito hehe. super-enjoy siya ha.

oh well. o siya, yan na muna.

fixing the fix

if you follow this blog, you could see some changes. well, i decided to fix the site further, to the best of my limited tech capabilities.



tanaaan! haha parang ang laki ng change, hane? onti lang naman.

i updated the header thingie there but the photo size kinda varies depende sa pagbukas mo ng window. i still have yet to incorporate the findings of my more tech-savvy html-literate jowaers kung paano ayusin iyon. ganyan na muna for now heheh. the sunset photo is mine, taken mga 2006 yata when i was in lipa, batangas for my first directorial gig for television.

i also updated the links at the left navigational side there, removing links and updating them. i also listed my new spurts, my other blog projects. when i was looking for other free blog hosts in the early 2000s kasi, blogger was the happiest of the lot. i didn't like the other sites because they are too techy nga kasi, including wordpress. but since they have an alternative now from their .org days to an easier .com model, i decided to give wordpress a try. but of course i'm not letting this one go. i still like blogger's simplicity, and i'm staying here perhaps of loyalty baga. it still works for me kasi, so there.

so i am now sharing with you guys my other sites. since mid-2009, i've been meaning to create a more varied blog pero ayoko rin naman kasing magkakasama ang lahat ng engagements ko sa iisang lugar lang. sometimes it also tires me to trawl through other people's sites like that, so ayokong i-apply sa sarili kong site iyon. kaya i decided para mas focused, gagawa na lang ako ng separate sites for my different chorvas of writing. saka gusto ko rin mag-experiment sa wordpress kasi. my friend told me i should get my domain name na lang tapos link all of these there, pero eh... this works for me na naman, e. well, isipin ko ulit in the next decade. saka ayoko na rin yata ng konsepto ng portal ek masyado, kasi nga trawling through again ang drama dun. but i'm still keeping a couple of my multiply.com sites just for storage talaga. it's really useful din that way, e.

so like i listed there sa kaliwa, other leaflens offshoots are these buds:

TAKILYA NI LEAFLENS - ito yung film review site ko. basta pelikula, nariyan. diyan ko na rin ia-archive ang mga dati ko pang film reviews mula nang magsimula akong mag-post ng reviews online. sayang nga at di ko malalagay riyan ang old old old (1999, pare) localvibe.com film review column ko entitled Cut To Cut, pero i'm still trying to trawl through the internet graveyards for stored caches of some posts. i saw some kasi e kaya kakaririn ko yan soon!

LEAFLENS KARINDERYA - ito lang sana ang isa pang offshoot ng leaflens na talagang kinarir ko before ondoy. pero since ondoy hit, nabitawan ko na nga ang mga blog projects kong ito. kaya lahat sila, ngayon lang nabubuhay talaga. at ayan na nga. bale photo blog ito dapat, pero dahil madaldal ako hehe, may kuwento na rin. weird kasi ako, mahilig akong mag-piktyur ng mga pagkain. suggestion ito ng aking faculty colleague na, noong bago ko i-devour ang sofitel buffet plate ko, piniktyuran ko muna, at sabi niya "you're really an artist" heheh. at mag-start daw ako ng food journal. huway nat! kaya eto, online. parang 'yung kakilala kong talagang food blogger at sumikat dahil doon, si lori baltazar na officemate ko once upon a time sa isang IT company, na nasa dessertcomesfirst.com ang food blog. ganda ng cam niya kaya ganda din ng food photos niya.

LEAFLENS MEDYO-MEDYO MEDIA - my media and communications blog, na puwede ring maging repository ng mga formal and informal writings ko related to media industries. pang-mass comm baga. huway nat, di ba? pero again, like all my other blog projects, hindi ito academic-style writing. hehe allergic ako sa ganun e. kahit na dapat e nagsusulat din ako ng ganun, kasi academic ako. struggle 'yan, pare. oh well.

THE DIVINE MISS L. CHAR! - eto ang multiply site ko for my students and professional contacts na gusto akong ka-network. i don't really blog here anymore kaya ginagawa ko na lang student-oriented ito, kung may announcements for classes i teach, mga ganun na lang. easier kasi to track people that way.

SILID-AKLATAN, SILID-SINING-SINING-AN - eto naman ang repository ng book reviews ko, in an effort to excite myself more sa pagbabasa. nitong nakaraang dekada, nakakapagbasa lang kasi ako kapag may kelangang i-review for work/raket, o kaya required sa MA class, mga ganun. kaya i vow to read more this coming decade. tapos dito ko na rin ire-repost ang mga manila times column entries ko para di siya mawala, archive baga. ayuz. wala pa masyado laman ito pero lalamanan ko na sa mga darating na araw, tulad ng ibang sites.

o siya, bookmark-bookmark na kung interesado ka. ipo-post ko rin naman dito kapag may bagong entry ako sa mga sites na iba. so ayun.

as for this original Leaflens space, this will remain as my personal blog. but not too personal na rin siguro. some of those musings i keep somewhere else, and some i share rin naman here. and as always, this will be my space to talk about LGBT issues and stuff. personal and LGBT-oriented na ito. lagi namang ganun e, so ipapagpatuloy lang.

o siya. farmville muna hehe.

shopping for phds

since my insomnia is back since yuletide 09, and since the internet is back, too, since last week, i am now able to spend some time surfing for things. right now, i'm shopping for phds.

at pan de amerikana
blogging during the pepeng chorva
about the ondoy chorva

yes, as in PhD baga. dagdag na pagpapakadalubhasa. colleagues like doc nic tiongson gave good advise but... i dunno, it's the production persona in me, or the creative persona, or maybe both, pero talagang di ko bet ang purely theoretical and research-oriented program. borlogs to the max itey teh. i really need something to produce creatively, kaya wala, i will stick to my original plan. sabi niya kasi, iba namang field ang kunin ko which will enhance my cinema teaching/filmmaking persona chuva daw, para ibang perspectives naman, so ang top recommendation niya ay anthropology, sociology second.

kaya pala marami sa masscomm ang kumukuha ng anthro o socio. ito ang advise sa kanila. pero dahil sa may sarili akong isip, i'll still go with my original plan: creative writing pa ring walang kamatayan. ayoko na yatang lumayo sa kal, kasi doon may creative production din like film. saka tried and tested na ang phd nila doon kaya i'll go with that. it doesn't hurt that i also know the people there already. saka may gameplan na ako dati pa sa thrust ng tatahakin kong sulatin doon kung sakali.

ang original plan ko talaga is to take a second MA talaga na malikhaing pagsulat naman, but everybody disagrees dahil wala na naman daw akong kelangang aralin sa larangang ito dahil marami na akong alam. ngek. flattered ako sa comments pero ba pa rin ang may pormal na gabay ng aral sa panulat e. para patas lang, inaral ko ang english then filipino. pero wit nga sabi ng mga tanders hehe. ayoko namang straight phd na malikhain kasi i'll be skipping a lot of essentials na sa MA level ko makukuha. wa na. saka sabi nga ng friend kong faculty sa departamento ng filipino, sino daw ba ang makukuha kong titser na okay doon sa MA hehe. kaya kahit siyang taga-doon e dini-discourage ako. now that's a bad sign, ain't it? heheh. good thing i have a lot of friends in a lot of places...

ondoy-damaged deped textbooks
in front of dswd office in marikina

heniwey, solb na ko sa desisyong ito. kebs sa kanila. basta, PhD in Creative Writing pa rin ang gegetlakin ng lola mo. dahil sa kuwentista ako, hindi na fiction ang focus ko kundi creative nonfiction, tutal doon naman ako napapunta eventually sa course ng pag-lie low ko sa fiction. ewan, mas makulay at mas excited ako sa larangang ito lately kaya heto, gusto kong karirin hehe. at least may production, kahit may theoretical and research courses din na included. balanse. all theoretical and no creative makes bayli a... boring academician mwahahahahah. and we don't want that heheh. cheka.

siya sige, hangga't libre aral ako sa peyups, getlak lang ng getlak. maybe after this phd, if ever i'm still teaching in peyups, i'll getlak the second MA in malikhaing pagsulat na ever. bakit ba, gusto ko e. at dahil may phd na ko by that time, wa na say ang mga tanderiffics ever. ayuz.

achieve!

forecast broadcast, before i forget

reminding myself of reminders this year. i decided to check three aspects: life in general, career, and love. doesn't hurt.

2010 Taurus Forecast

Answer the call for change

Your natural reaction to being pushed is to hold your ground, but if you don't respond to subtle calls for change this year, the pressure will only grow; you may be forced into even more difficult adjustments in the future. On the other hand, your willingness to seek new solutions can transform minor annoyances into major opportunities. The issues that threaten to unravel your cocoon of comfort signal a need to adjust your course. The world is moving quickly; gear up and participate in the unfolding adventure.

Traditional Saturn and revolutionary Uranus form the last of their five stressful oppositions on April 26 and July 26 in your 6th House of Habits and your 12th House of Spirituality. Increasing pressure at work can motivate you to consider leaving your job. In addition, your own restlessness could make it equally impossible to stick to a boring routine. Explore alternative paths to your employment to provide the stimulation you desire.


hmm restlessness is right. parang ngayon pa lang, nararamdaman ko na ito e. kaya nga patalun-talon ako sa ginagawa in a span of, what, two weeks? sobra lang teh. wow, 50 weeks to go.

call for change, huh. yeah, just the other day, i was talking to a friend about changes, and he was suggesting some changes for me which i were afraid of, really. nope, as much as i want to help, i will not give up my privacy for anything. i learned that from jodie foster my love heheh.

2010 Taurus Career Forecast

Ideals over income

The year opens with high hopes for your professional life: opportunistic Jupiter is completing a sweep through your 10th House of Career, where idealistic Neptune remains throughout the year. Your growing compassion for humanity and the planet motivates you to consider work that's of greater social value -- and more rewarding to your soul than to your bank account. Practical Saturn performs a balancing act in Libra the Scales in your 6th House of Employment for most of the year, showing the importance of creating harmony on the job. Working in tandem with a reliable partner will increase overall productivity. However, if burdens are not shared equitably, judicious Jupiter's opposition to Saturn on August 16 could produce a crisis. This clash of titans may be what it takes for you to see the big picture and deepen your commitment where you are. It could also lead you to contemplate a new job -- even a different career.

hay naku, can the stars lay off the crises and clashes this year? dami na last year, e. hm although okay ang kaperahan. well, mukha namang ganun pa rin this year, so that's good to know.

so, soul over bank account, eh. wala, this year, ganun pa rin ang goal, and it has something to do with banks hehe. no, not rob them. confident naman ako sa aspetong pinansyal lagi e. sa lalo yata akong tinitira ng mga panget ang soul, lalong lumalago ang bank account ko heheh. truli pramis napansin ko 'yan. o sige galit na tayo.

2010 Taurus Love Forecast

The heart of the matter

While you will certainly have some playful moments, this year is quite serious when it comes to love. In a pattern that should be familiar to you, pressure will expose weaknesses that you may address or deny, provoking radical transformation. Pluto, the ruler of your 7th House of Partners, is locked into rigid squares with strict Saturn on January 31 and August 21, requiring commitment and a clear sense of direction to keep a relationship on course. If you're single, these could be dark moments of doubt, yet you may be hitting a bottom from which the only way to go is up.

Attractions grow stronger when Venus enters sultry Scorpio on September 8, followed by passionate Mars on September 14. This erotic pair meets in your 7th House on October 3, further intensifying feelings, though their consuming heat may cool rapidly. Venus turns retrograde on October 8, prompting a review of recent events and, perhaps, a deeper reexamination of relationships. Old resentments may surface during the following six weeks, yet revisiting wounds and sprinkling them with compassion and forgiveness can be a significant step to healing. Blame is a losing game, so seek solutions instead of labels that tend to reinforce disappointment. Delve deeply into your heart and you will reemerge with a new power in relationships.

we actually both had a big scare so early in the year, which we were able to hurdle immediately, as instantly as the situation arose. yes, mas mabilis pa sa instant coffee, chos. and i am really impressed with the way we both handled that situation. it really shows that we're strong and sturdy, no matter what, and that we are one in objective, still, and that makes me tremendously happy. tremendously. sabi nga ni kuya germs, walang iwanaaaaaaaaan! ay, tulugan pala yun. pareho na rin.

*

so it looks like the stars are navigating me better this year. dapat naman. bawi lang sa last year, noh. early with the happy news and early, too, with the could-be-life-altering news this year, and i think that's a good sign that i'm going to be better in a lot of things i was sick at (or sick of, or sick with) from last year. basta, laglag na ang mga sickness at sicko. on with my happy life ahead with my loved ones and dedma pa rin everrrrr sa mga nega. oi doctorate ko yan no, PhD. Iwasnega major in Pangdededma Fatale. wanna see my diploma?

happy monday.

haggard na me, tanga na u?

...also known as the globelines epic saga repair...

hay at last, my continuing saga with globelines' idiocy ended this week. it's supposedly my first week of classes but i decided to push it back to next week, also to give time to the kiddies to polish their projects, as i know, from experience, that the first week back after the yuletide holidays are the slooooowest sa kanilang katawan at lalo na sa utak (iyon ay kung hindi pa given na slowness talaga ang utak-utakan nila, but that's another angst post).


right before ondoy hit, mga 2-3 days before, i reported that wala kaming makuhang internet connection kaya supposedly, that saturday when ondoy hit, a repair crew were on their way here from mandaluyong. they called once to say they are on their way, and then after 3 hours, they called again to say they cannot make it due to the rising flood waters in mandaluyong. and of course, after that call, the rest is philippine natural calamity disaster history.

come october, i received my latest billing for the september cycle (my cutoff date is every 12th of the month) and i checked if i am being billed for the time i had no service (our condo buildings were all victimized without phone lines the rest of 2009 since september ondoy). we were all ready to take the consequences because we understood the enormous amount of time, effort and of course money the repairs would take. nag-swimming kaya lahat dito sa ground floor, na umabot hanggang kisame ng lobby ang tubig-baha, leaving the gym, day care room, the admin office, all elevators, function rooms, mailboxes, electricity and phonelines thingamajigs under the sea. ayuz. so kaya october and november passed and we still didn't have any phone lines, although the electricity and water supply came back and normalized mga within two weeks after ondoy so bet lang. the phone lines are a different story.

my dad has been a longtime manager of pldt all his working life before he retired and he knew about repairs and stuff like that, and he found a lot of anomalies both the building admins and globelines were doing which made subscribers like me suffer unnecessarily. in the end, globe had more problems than the admin side, as i found out the masaklap way.

two months and a day after ondoy, globe gave us all love letters and said that repairs are still ongoing and part of it is that we all need to have our phone number changed, a move which my father says is unnecessary because those are merely numbers assignment. during that time, we monitored the phone and found out that there was a dialtone already by november 26 but we cannot make outgoing calls or receive incoming ones; you just hear a recording from globe saying calls still cannot be made chenelyn. we also had to sign a form that we are okay-ing the new number reassignment and so i went to globelines in sm marikina to submit that form. that was december 4. they said in 2-3 days' time, my new phone number will be operational and thus my old package of phone line+broadband will resume automatically. in addition, a repair crew will visit my place and check my internet connection which i originally asked them to do before ondoy.

of course, hindi naganap iyon. nasa pilipinas tayo, remember? inept customer service land.

december 7, i discovered that i already have a working dialtone and i can call outside na. but the incoming, wala. so i called globe to ask about it, plus the internet thingie. may darating daw na crew in 2-3 days' time to see the problem. lumipas iyon at walang naganap. so tinesting namin. i asked my mother, who lives in a faraway and higher place village here in marikina, too, where i grew up, to call the new number and old number i had, just to see what's working. the old one isn't working, pero sa new one, may sumagot. aha, at ang sumagot... kapitbahay ko. sa higher floor than me. aba teka, malabo. so i reported this to globelines at least twice, and they have a term for it: interchange of numbers. so now, i don't know what number is working sa akin sa outgoing calls. i told them that i don't care if they give me my old number or another number, as long as i have a number and an internet connection!

again, hindi naganap ito... kaagad.

eto na. nakaka-apat na yata akong tawag sa globe at nakaka-tatlong bigay na sila ng customer reference number, dahil ilang ulit palang kinansela ang repair crew visit dito sa unit ko dahil may "ongoing system maintenance" sa buong building daw. ang bilin ko lang lagi, sana sa cellphone nila ako tawagan dahil di ko alam ano'ng phone number ang gumagana nga sa telepono ko. oo daw.

mapagpasensiya naman akong tao kaya dinedma ko na ulit ito, until i found out na may repair crew palang pupunta sana dito, at ang tinawagan nila ay ang phone number kong bago na sa kapitbahay ko bumabagsak. and what's worse is that nung hanapin daw nila ako doon para sabihing may system maintenance pa rin kaya di pa rin sila makakapunta, ang sagot ng isang taong nakausap nila na itago natin sa pangalang nicole eugenio ay "wala po siya rito" (meaning me, dahil they asked for me) at nang tinanong kung sino si nicole, sabi niya ay "pamangkin po niya ako." TUMBLING!!!!! dahil ang nakatira lang sa unit ko ay ako siyempre at ang girlfriend ko, at hindi nicole eugenio ang pangalan niya. HAGGARD!!!! at wala kaming paranormal resident by the name of nicole eugenio na kayang itaas ang telepono at sumagot. nubah!

so finally, nakarinig sa akin ang globe, thrice yata, reiterating na please, ano ba ang mahirap intindihin sa "tawagan niyo ako sa cellphone kapag pupunta kayo dito" dahil nga sa hindi sa akin bumabagsak ang landline calls kundi sa kapitbahay!!!! by that time, tinubuan na ako ng aking unang set of white hairs. pramis teh!!!!!!

ang ending, nagpunta dito ang globe once, right before christmas, kung kelan naman sumaglit kaming nag-late lunch sa mall sa tabi, and we were gone for like 30 minutes lang. no, they never called my cellphone. the next visit, right before new year, may dumaan daw ulit sabi ng lobby guard pero wala daw tao. e ang jowa was in the banyo naliligo dahil susunod siya sa akin sa riverbanks mall at kasalukuyan akong may student consultation meetings doon, kaya di naman alam kung ano'ng katok ang ginawa nila. again, they never called sa cellphone. hay... okay fine, baka nga naman di narinig dahil nasa banyo, so sige lang...

so eto na, nag-taning na ako. i called up again and dictated na, na hindi ako papasok sa opisina for them from jan 4-7 kaya dapat lumanding sila sa haybol ko sa days na iyon, kundi, i was already set on getting skycable with broadband, and a wireless bayantel landline. okay na ko, naidulog ko na sa universe, at ayoko na sa globe. pero jan 4, aba dumating, isang gusgusin-looking repairman at 6.30pm, naka-tsinelas. okay, inayos niya naman ang phone, at di ko talaga siya pinaalis hangga't di ko nache-check lahat ng kelangan i-check: incoming, outgoing, internet. all go. sige, lusot, alis na siya. all is good. farmville ako buong magdamag.

until the next day.

dahil nga sa gabi siya nag-repair at ang phone line box ko ay nasa loob ng kuwartong dark-colored walls, aba, nung umaga ko lang nakita na ang pag-yank pala niya sa aking phone box ay hindi maingat, at sa kasamaang palad, natuklap ng bonggang-bonga ang malinis at makinis na paint job ng wall ko. punyeta talaga. madilim kasi yung wall na iyon nung gabi dahil nasa gilid ng kama, kaya ayun... hay. naglunod na lang ako sa sine, chocolate mousse at isaw para mawala ang bad trip ko.

pero di pa diyan nagtatapos ito. dahil kinabukasan, biglang nawala naman ang net connection ko sa kalagitnaan ng aking surfing. at mga 2-3 days ko ring kinalabog ang aking techie friend na si roda for help, na nakatulong naman nung una, pero sa paglaon, pareho na kaming namisteryosohan sa prublema (pero i still love you roda just the same!!!! ililibre kita margarita sa susunod na pagkikita!)... until i tried to do a simple thing kanina right before this post. yung internet cable na naka-rekta from globe modem to my wifi router sa lan1 slot, i tried to put sa lan2 slots (kasi hanggan lan4 ang slots doon), wala lang, nothing to lose, and tatataaaaaaaaaaaaaan! eto na. tanga na me. haggard na u? okay na ang broadband life ko. kaya makakapag-blog na naman ako ng walang katapusan.

hayyyyyyyyyyst.

but wait, there's more!!!!!

aba hindi pa tapos ang pagtutuos sa globe!

as soon as the globe gusgusin guy fixed our phone last monday, i immediately went to sm marikina the next day with my mom to ensure that i will not be billed for the past month that they activated my phone (dec 5-7) until the time they actually repaired my phone (jan 4). too late kasi, dahil naka-receive ako ng automatically-generated phone bill covering november to december 09 asking me to pay my bill package worth 1k something. e gago ba sila, wala ngang phone line that time, e. ano babayaran ko? this is war!!!

in fairness naman to them, by november, right after we received that change of number letter, we received a billing statement enumerating their Globe Bangon Pinoy rebate package, and they gave us rebates na binawas-bawas sa supposed bills namin at the time na walang serbisyo, at ang sumatutal nga ng sa akin, may extra pa akong 400 pesos na sobrang binigay sa akin bilang rebate. tinawagan ko pa ang globe twice to check and recheck this, and to ensure na wala na talaga akong pending amount to pay, aside from studying and scrutinizing the itemized rebate billing statements they gave, which all looked proper and in order. wala naman daw akong utang o babayaran. so happiness, right? wrong!!!

when i went to sm marikina last monday, this newbie-looking customer service guy was assigned to me, at eto ang sample conversation namin.

siya: how can i help po?

me: kahapon lang ako nakabitan ulit ng linya kaya gusto kong ipa-adjust itong latest billing statement ko dahil wala naman ako dapat bayaran during this time.

kalikot siya sa computer, take notes-take notes, for 7 minutes. then...

siya: mam, eto po ang mga billing statements ng account ninyo, at may utang pa po kayong 400something pesos, dahil hindi niyo po nabayaran sa cut-off ninyong sept 12 to sept 26 na nag-ondoy.

me: huwat??? e ilang beses kong tinawagan ang globe, a, at sinabing wala na akong pending payment.

siya: ito po yung nakalagay sa account niyo, o (hinarap ang computer monitor sa akin).

me: e may rebate nga ako that time e, at may extra 400 pa ako sa inyo, so dapat mag-zero balance yun, kung may utang akong 400 at kayo may binigay na 400 sa akin, di ba? e wala naman yang utang na sinasabi mo sa any of my bill statements.

at this point, inulit-ulit kong tanungin kung nasaan yung sinasabi niyang utang at itinuturo niya ang isang accounting scheme na hindi lumabas ever sa mga statements ko. ever.

me: bakit ngayon ko lang nakita iyan? bakit wala iyan sa past two bills ko? saan niyo hinugot iyan? bayad na ako sa lahat, a!

siya: mam, i-disregard niyo na lang po ang last two bills ninyo dahil ito po ang mas tama. mali po kasi iyan.

me: ano????? paano naging mali ito????

siya: masyado pong mataas kasi ang naibigay sa inyong rebate kaya negative 400 pesos ang nakalagay sa account ninyo, kaya tignan niyo yung latest bill, nagdagdag sila ng 600 pesos na positive, para mawala yung negative.

true enough, may 600 pesos additional service doon covering nov-dec 09, basic phone package amount daw ito -- sa panahong walang teleponong gumagana sa akin!!!!!! nubahhhhhhh!

me: huh???? ano???? e bakit nila ako bibigyan ng mataas na rebate tapos babawiin din later?

eto ang tumbling niyang sagot.

siya: mam kaya nga po kami nandito para itama ang mga mali sa statement ninyo at para sagutin ang mga concerns ninyo.

me: ano??? ang sinasabi mo, may mali kayong ginawa, tapos kayo din ang tatama sa mali ninyo???

siya: opo.

me: ano'ng logic nun? e bakit kami ang magsa-suffer kung may prublema pala kayo!

siya: kaya nga po i-disregard niyo na lang ang last two statements ninyo kasi mali yun. ito pong nasa computer ang tama.

me: alam mo, parang walang logic ang explanation mo. bakit mali ang binibigay sa aming statements?

siya: hindi po perfect ang system.

ay naku, teh, makailang ulit kaming umikot sa mga ito, kaya after 30 minutes, i simply gave up, paid the damn 400 pesos daw na utang ko, and just made sure they won't bill me again for an absent phone service.

potah, sa bata ko pang ito, dahil lang sa kanila kaya ako tinubuan ng white hairs! tangeeena.

asar.

tapos ang pagtatapos, di pa pala nila in-activate lahat ng features sa package ko, namely the direct distance dialing, so i can't make calls to cellphones and long distance calls.

hay buhay sa pilipinas, hangsayasayaaaaaaa!

kaloka.

parang sarap tuloy mag-migrate, hane? parang masaya talaga sa vancouver...

ewan.

siya, iwan ko na muna ito ang magcho-chocolate mousse muna ulit akoh.

ay, happy new year nga pala.