The Passion of the Christ

I watched the movie last Saturday (April 4, 2004) with Butch Gamay and Andy. I cried. I sob.

I'm Tired...

As stated...

Mom In The City

I really had fun last week while staying at the Pan Pacific Hotel. My mom came to Manila for seminar last week (Monday to Saturday) before heading to Australia. We don't often see each other so I decided to stay with her during the night. Though it's tiring to travel from Laguna to Malate everyday, not to mention what seemed to be an endless parade of vehicles along the way, and waking up 4 am every morning to head back to Sta. Rosa for the days job, I did not mind all of that. What’s on my mind is that I’ve got to see my mom. I usually arrived late so I directly go to the Slimmer's World to try the facilities. After flexing my muscles, I would go up directly to my mom's room and then we'll have our dinner on a lavish restaurant - I’ve got to choose the place I want. I felt like a prince during my stay there, just going to the gym, swimming on the pool, eating lots of food, & etc. The good thing is I don't have to think of work. Perhaps the most important thing is I've got to spend quality time with my mom and be able to catch up with all those times that we don't see each other.

Komikero March Meeting

Yesterday, March 21, 2004, we had our monthly Komikero meeting at Sampaloc Lake, San Pablo City Laguna. There were 17 of us who attended. That meeting, I think, was the most number of members who came. Among the first timers were Lynette, Ed, ?, and Jonas' baby. We tackled about the future activities for the group.

The monthly meeting with the Komikero's is a great escape for me. With them I felt no pressure - just pure fun it maybe due to the fact that we do share the same interest - comics. Some of us love to draw, some love to write, or some just love to read comics. And you know what? We click. Despite from the fact that we came from the different areas of the country, we still go to San Pablo to meet the members of Komikero's. I for one came from Kidapawan City (I am staying in Sta. Rosa now). Staying in the boarding house with nothing to do but wait for tomorrow is much more tiring than the one hour and 30 minute trip going to San Pablo. Actually, being with the group is a stress relief for me. I remembered the first time I attended the meeting last October 26, 2003, I don't have the slightest idea what will happen during that day. I don't even know how the people I'm going to meet looked like. All I got is my bag, with drawing materials, and a piece of paper with Gerry's e-mail on it telling me instructions on how to go to Sampaloc Lake. Then I saw a guy with a huge portfolio bag arrived. "He must be one of them," I thought so I approached him. It turned out that I'm right. He's one of the Komikero's and then we exchanged introduction - he's Jonas. Then Gerry came next, followed by Jac, then Johnny with Raipo (also his first time), and finally Geoff and his sister. I never thought that they were, and still are, so warm. Though it was my first time, I did not felt as one. Many monthly meetings come and go, we even celebrated our Christmas Party at Gerry and Ilyn's place, but up to now I am still looking forward to every meeting and activity that the group is going to have.

Below are the Komikero's who attended the meeting:

From left: Jepoy, Jac (Super Logo), Azrael (Super Logo), Lynette, Ed, Johnny, Ric, Raipo, ? (sorry, I forgot the guy with goatee), me (with cap), Glenn, Geoff, Rod (bald guy), Ilyn, Jonas, Jonas' baby, and Gerry (front below).

*Picture courtesy of Gerry Alanguilan.

Customer Visit #?

It's so hot outside. I just came from one our customer to discuss one Panasonic product the Watt Hour Monitor. Ang daming bus kase labasan na pag alas dos ng mga operators ng 6 am to 2 pm shift ng mga companies located sa Laguna Technopark. Normally, it will take you 10 to 15 minute drive from our company to the customer yet due to the traffic it took me 10 minutes later. When I finally arrived at the customer, I was already drained and exhausted. The feeling of excitement was taken over by sleepiness. Luckily, thank God, everything went ok. I hope so. The customer was able to understand and appreciate our product. He told me that he's going to discuss it later with his technicians and Japanese superiors since they needed the device for their ISO 1400 requirement. I'm sure glad that despite my lack of enthusiasm and interest in explaining our product he thinks I gave him a good presentation. After the meeting, the road was still packed with enormous kings of the road - buses. Well I just sighed and thought that since I have no control over the situation I just drive the car slowly, listen to the music & watch passersby come and go. I haven't realized 'till I arrived that I actually enjoyed the trip back to the office. I even caught myself smiling and singing along with the tune of "don't know what to say whenever you are near..." hahaha, see I even forgot the title of the song. Well as a whole, the trip, so to say, went well despite of the painful rays of the sun that stings my eyes and almost drained my brain and soul away.

Downcast Update #3

Yehey page 2 already finished...

Wala lang

Naku it's been days since I haven't updated my blog and now that I have time to spare I have nothing important to say. Anyway, I am just fine in case you wonder how I am and how I've been for the past few days of my absence here.

Downcast Update #2

I already finished page 1 and I am currently working on page 2. I know that I work so slow becuase I still have to do my job. I usually go home late and tired already so it's quite hard for me to concentrate on my comics. I will assure you that I'll do my best to finish it.

All by myself

My Japanese adviser and my supervisor went to Singapore yesterday. My assistant manager went to Subic. I went to the office. Hehehe. Right now, I'm the only one left in our group (FA group). I just hope that nothing urgent or important thing will happen today.

Cherry's Birthday

Today is Cherry's birthday. She is one of my classmate in college and my friend up to now. She's a brilliant and intelligent person. I wish her all the luck and may her wishes come true. Chirps God bless and more power.

Laptop

I was kinda excited today because the other division is going to lend me one of their unused laptop. I thought this is finally a goodbye to the current one that I am using. Meaning no more hang ups, no more slow opening of files, and definitely no more bad battery pack. I really can't hide my excitement so I constantly smile. From time to time I'd ask the person in charge when he's gonna hand me the unit and he would always say he's still transferring files. Finally, this afternoon he gave me the unit and to my dismay the new (not new new but new - get my point?) laptop seems to be more slower and can't open two programs at a time. My my, I really can't believe my lack of luck regarding these things (not to mention the cellphone, but of course that's of another topic). What I did is I ask the help of Larry (ISD member who is in charge with computers and stuff) yet he informed me that he'll be able to extend his help next week coz he still has so many things to do. Naks, I should have known better, I should not get too excited and I should have not expected too much. Grrr...

Camera

My supervisor borrowed the digital camera of my officemate coz he's gonna use it at his brother's wedding. He's not familiar with the gadget so he decided to practice and he used me and my assistant manager as models. Hehehe he took so many pictures but nothing was saved. He can't seem to store the images on the camera's memory and he don't know why. After many attempts he was able to store it. Below is the sample pic:



Me and Ma'am Tere (Assistant Manager).

Birthday ni Gamay

Yesterday, Butch Gamay celebrated his birthday away from his family. I am not really sure if that was the first time away from his family like Andy (who celebrated his birthday last Feb. 16). Around 11 am Gamay texted me and asked me what time I'll be home that day and I told him that I'm going to stay the whole day at home coz I have to do my laundry and draw for my indie comics. He said that we're going to meet in Balibago to celebrate his birthday. He also requested me to text Andy and Owynne to come with us. Around 7 pm, I went to Paseo de Sta. Rosa to fetch Andy and we went to Balibago. We met with Gamay on an internet cafe and stayed there for awhile to wait for Owynne. When Owynne arrived we headed to Max. We ordered and we ate. We had fun. It was a simple celebration, with only the four of us, but worth remembering.

Downcast Update:

I still not able to finish even a single page on my project. I just started sketching yesterday with the script as my guide. It is not usual for me to ink my pencils but yesterday was a different case. Everytime I finish making one panel I just ink it right away. This maybe the reason why I draw slowly. The first page is so simple with 5 panels on it. If you may look at it, it was so simple (not eye catching or attractive to look at) that you may ask what took me so long to finish the first four panels. I do not know also. I just sketch and ink and then when I look at my watch it already took me hours in doing it. Well, I just hope that I'll be able to finish it within the set time (I'm not in a hurry though).

Just a Thought

Almost everyday there are things that irritate me. May it be the noisy ringing of the phone or the annoying empty words of the people in my work place. May it be the heavy traffic or the ever-complaining drivers of the tricycle for they don't have enough. The lists could go on forever. You may ask why these things irritate me, I could answer you just because. My life today seems so different. Maybe this kind of life irritates me.

During my elementary years I am so carefree and I don't care about tomorrow and what it might bring. I only care for today. Same with the high school years but this time you grow a bit. That was the time when you started to court your crushes, had girlfriends and experienced your first heartbreak. In college, you become more mature, responsible, since you are already preparing for your life after college. You can't afford to make even the slightest mistake for it might change everything that you were, still are, hoping for. Your relationships seems more serious right now, may it be with your family, friends or with your special someone. Those were the days.

Now, on the other hand, when you already finished college and get a degree and in my case a professional license you find the world seems larger now, so real and sometimes so empty. Gone are the days when you only care for what the day has to offer you. Gone are the days when you rely so much on people that surrounds you. This time you have to stand on your own two feet and don't expect for someone to give you something for free. You must work your ass so hard that sleeping seems to be, sometimes, not an option. This is today

You might ask me where this letter, or whatever you're calling this, leads to. Honestly, I don't know. I started with the things that irritate me, then my school days and then my viewpoint on the present. Maybe I am telling all these, just maybe, because I want to hear from someone telling me that what I'm going through right now is normal. That they are going to share their own stories and make me think and later realize that it's normal. That I am still lucky. That change is ok and soon I'll be able to handle it well, just like breathing. I hope so. Then maybe, I wanted to know why those simple things that I describe earlier irritate me. Maybe that's where I want this letter leads.

I tell you one of my experience here in the big city - Manila. It was on the month of May of 2003 that I started to apply seriously for a job. I found an ad in the paper that they are looking for ECE preferably licensed, willing to be trained, hardworking, etc. The ad was so eye catching and so well presented that I can't help but to apply (not to mention that I badly needed to have a job coz my supply depot seems to be depleted). There I sent my resume with an eclosed letter and papers that says I'm good - no, excellent. After a day or two, someone called from the company that posted that ad telling me to go for an interview and later seminar and later still consultation. As anyone who's been applying for quite a while, I also felt excited, in fact thrilled. Then the day of the interview came, I came to the agreed place. I was shocked at finding that they're going to interview a hundred or so wannabees. "My God, such a circus," I said to myself and trying to hide my dismay. I felt that I am so stupid not to investigate further. That's not the worse thing yet. As I said, there were too many people so instead of the interview, the seminar started first instead. Then the speaker came in front and introduced himself (herself? not really sure). He wore to much accessories and jewelries that he looked like a walking Oscar Statuette, only with sagging tummy. He told us stories of his past and how he came to be and he cried and shouted in front of us. It was a shocking scene for me, I never thought that person like him could exist. Exposing himself in front of an unknown crowd. I am feeling very uncomfortable right now so I begin to look at the people surrounding me and I saw someone cried (either touched by the story or felt stupid of going there), someone got mad, someone slept, etc. After the drama so to say, I hurriedly go out but someone called me and told me that I still have to be interviewed. I just said I am not in to selling shampoos and soaps (that's their product). Then I hurriedly went to the LRT station to get out from that area the soonest. That was a terrible experience for me. I thought that was the last time that I am going to undergo such a, no words could describe that experience I had, thing??? I was wrong but the following experiences were just a breeze as compared to what I just told you now. You see, in real life things like this happens and it irritates me.

Living a life that's somewhat different from the one you used to have may either break you (makes you crazy) or make you (crazy still haha). Now, I am trying to live my life one day at a time and yet still looking for my future. I try not to loose my grip. I make sure that my time does not only revolve around my job (selling still, but huge machines and softwares, not shampoos and soaps) coz there's more to life than that. From time to time I go out with my friends and call them so not to lost communications with them (they are very special you know, they keep you sane). I meet new people and do some new activities (to escape routine jobs). I hope that time will come that I no longer struggle to live (not that I have don't have money kind of struggling) and no longer get irritated on things that I have no power to control (they just make you uglier even older, trust me, hey not that I am ugly, I am sure not). Living can be so difficult at times but you have no other choice but to live so try to accept things that you cannot change and try to do your best on those you can. Life's crazy you know.

Downcast

I already finished making the script of the preview of my indie comics. It was entitled downcast after the name of the main charcter. This preview is a 10 page comics. I still have to buy materials to start making the comics. I also finished designing the costume of the character but still subject to changes. I have no idea when I'll be able to release it coz I still have other things to do aside from writing and drawing. I try my best to finish it before the 19th of March so that I'll have time to have it check with my friends and edit it if ever there are major changes that I have to make. I just hope that whoever is going to read it, will like it.

This the main character. She is called Downcast.

Indie Project

Yesterday I can't concentrate on my job, or I choose not to, because I can't stop thinking about the story that I am planning to write and later make into comics. Though I know that I am not that good in writing stories I still try hard to make it more pleasant or I should say interesting. I already have the framework, how to start, what will happen in every chapter and what will happen in the end so on and so forth but I still do not know how to present and develop my characters. I spent almost all day yesterday thinking mostly of the characters. Eight hours seems to be so long yet still not enough for me to develop at least one character. Maybe the problem is that, I am trying too hard to make my characters likable, hated for that matter, that I am now confused with so much idea. Waahh. My head ached so badly that I decided to have a haircut so that I could relax a bit and take my mind off of these story and characters that I am building. Later that day, I decided to draw instead, trying to study features and possible costumes of the characters. Then I headed to the gym to work out.

Also, a friend of mine e-mailed me yesterday about her problem. I wish she (and her family) will be able to go through it all and become a much better person after. She asked me to pray for her (and her family) and I did and I hope you (the readers) will also do the same.

I make a new blog today for my batch (AdDU ECE 2002) and I already informed them about it. They can write their own stuff on the same page. I hope through this we will be able to update each other always.

I also draw something crazy and paste some scratch paper then marker and alas below is the result:

3 Lakes Down, 4 To Go

Last Sunday (February 29, 2004), my monthly meeting with the Komikeros was somewhat different. Different in a sense that we had a different venue this time - Pandin Lake (one of the seven lakes found in San Pablo). I was late, as expected so no need for any explaination, and I texted Jonas where were they. He said at the "Spaghetti House," so I went there and we had our lunch. We had two new members - Rod Andres and Jepor Hilario. After lunch we went to the park where we saw Gerald without Bunny (akala ko talaga me pupuntang bagong girl na member). Gerald told us that Bunny could not make it for some undisclosed reasons (baka tinakot ni Gerald). Our trip was almost cancelled due to rain and strong wind but Raipo and Johnny were so persistent to go so Gerry gave us the go signal. Gerry admitted that he was, maybe still is, not familiar with the way but our willingness and determination to see Pandin lake, we went on on our journey. After minutes of walking and tracking the unfamiliar, unknown hehehe, we were able to locate the lake. Pandin lake is so much different with Sampaloc lake mainly because it's quite smaller, peaceful and clean (sorry to bring this up). Gerry took pictures, we draw, and we really had a great time, or at least that's what I though. Then after a while we decided to visit lake Yambo, it's quite near lake Pandin but the way is much more difficult, narrow and so many s#!+ along the way. We manange to locate it without a guide and was able to enjoy it's breathtaking beauty. I already visited 3 lakes (Sampaloc, Yambo and Pandin) and there are 4 more to go. Maybe later (soon I hope). After we decided to go back and we went to Shakey's. There we eat, talk, laught... Then we all head our separate ways and wait for the next month's meeting.

Below is a link to the gallery. All pictures are courtesy of Gerry A.

Tomorrow's a Holiday

Finally, after weeks and weeks of harwork I can finally relax for a day. I really look forward to either sleep all day tomorrow or spend it all just doing nothing in particular. Hahaha, I'm just so happy.

At Long Last

Yahoo... I'm so happy coz finally our midterm plan is already finished. I can relax a bit tomorrow. Meaning - no hard work for me on. Hehehe. I can just read and send e-mails or visit some of our customers. Hahaha.

Watta Week

Since last Sunday me and my assistant manager were busy preparing for our group's midterm plan to be
presented and submitted by our president to Japan. Yesterday we finished the draft and already presented to our president for evaluation. Luckily everything was ok except for some consistency in currency that my assistant manager was using. She has to choose either Japanese Yen or Philippine Peso. This afternoon, I checked and calculated every data and make some minor changes. Tomorrow, my assistant manager still has to polish it and submit it to our president.

I never thought that being in sales was, and still is, a very difficult job. Just Imagine handling so many customers and have to analyze if there are going to be some investment or major changes on their part. Our group (consist only of 4 person) has to think of the future always. We must always be alert. This was not an easy job for me. However difficult my job is, I take it as a challenge. I might be ready or not I still have to do my job no matter what.

BACK TO SUBIC

Hello pips...it's been a while since I haven't posted anything here. Hmmm. Well, tomorrow I'll be back to Subic again to attend the meeting with the customer. Then the following day, we're going to have dinner with them. I'll be coming back to Sta. Rosa on Friday.

This coming Saturday is Valentines Day already and I don't know yet if I'm going to spend it with my date or spend it doing pending jobs. I hope I'll spend the day with my date. I think I should spend it with my date. I mean, this day comes only once in a year, right? By the way, this coming Saturday is also the wedding of one of my officemates. He'll be tying the knot to spend the rest of his day with his special someone. I still have to check my schedule if I can attend the ceremony or not. Sigh. What a busy individual I am.

MORNING MEETING

I woke up very early today because we're going to have our company's morning meeting (we do this every 1st Tuesday of the month). I was not listening well since my attention was preoccupied by my hunger. Yes, I was not able to take my breakfast and it's all because of the morning meeting. I had to work all morning with empty stomach, thus, I felt so sleepy and so weak. I can't consentrate well with my work. Huhuhu.

FORMER BOSS

My former boss, together with his GM, returned to Philippines from Japan to discuss new rules, org structures, customers and etc. We had meeting with them this morning for our company presentation. Everything went smoothly. He changed a lot. He became whiter (twice as much I think) and got fatter. Hehehe. I think some things never change, he's still funny, makulit and still smokes a lot.

SKETCH PAD

I finally found my sketch pad with drawings of Carlo Pagulayan, Jac Ting Lim, Wilson Tortosa, Carlo Vergara, Leinil Yu and Gilbert Monsanto. Most of the drawings were made during the 1st San Pablo Comic Art Festival last Dec. 7, 2003 at San Pablo City.