Breaking the code

i psyched myself to finish the remaining breakdown of expenses, and i know i can do it even before lunch time. my momentum is building up, suddenly, the boss asked for a little favor: "Please read and correct a certain memo." i said okay for i know it's going to be simple.

as usual, i was wrong. forgive me, but my little brain has abandoned me:

"We would like to inform you of the pick-up of your child(ren) at the get-off point during take-home and the measure to be taken in the near future.

1. Current situation
The parent is supposed to meet his child(ren) and pick up at the get-off point, before the bus arrives at the pick-up point, considering that the period when the bus leaves ___ and arrives the pick- up point (except the blue pas high school student holder).

However, when the bus arrives at the get-off point, the parent and/or the equivalent is not found there. As the bus has to wait for the parent, that might cause bus operation afterwards and also troubles the parent who looks after with kindness until those who do not come on time to pick up, come there.

2. Confirming matters and the measures to be taken

The parent should pick up their children at the pick-up point at designated time, in principle.Under the special circumstances, the family maid and/or the driver comes to pick-up point to receive the children, the parent should confirm whether they are at the pick-up point.

With some special reasons, in case that the parent who is asked by the another parent to pick up will tell the bus attendants to receive the other children.

The parent and/ or the equivalents shall wait for the bus to enable the attendants to confirm them.
The parent shall inform the bus company and/or the bus delegate of his/her cellphone number or landline

The School Bus Committee expects the current situation will be highly improved. However, if it is no development, it will be discussed in the School Bus Steering Committee and the new measures taken by imposing the penalty will be examined.

Therefore, we strongly request the parent to follow the rules and observations.

Thank you for your consideration."

there.

i don't know what's wrong with me, but i don't get this. dapat sanay na ako sa ganito as i am doing the "translation" every now and then, but this time, i need to read, re-read, re-re-read and read more.

lost in translation.

and there's one more coming. waaaah.

good thing, it's friday! happy weekend, kanpai!

Black and white

i am posting these pictures to put some activity on this blog, i am not suffering from a writer's block or a blogger's block, i am just pretty much preoccupied with a lot of things (a.k.a work, work, work).

pero isingit ko na rin to (hehehe, at di rin nakapagpigil).

yesterday, i talked to a certain employee of a certain embassy (not japan), she was just inquiring about payments but she's so full of herself, and even on the phone, she is throwing her weights around. being the coolheaded that i am, i explained to her that this is like this and this is like that, and if you want this you have to do that, etc, etc.

but a loud person usually never listens.

in short, she doesn't want to abide with the company rule, our rule, and she wants it her way. why is it so? because according to her, she is from this certain embassy.

and i told her, "and so?"

and then, yadda, yadda, yadda...

i cut her off by saying "you are just an employee of the embassy, you are not the embassy! so stop throwing your weights around and for a minute, be respectful to whom you are talking to!"

and then, a moment of silence...

hahaha, tagumpay! and i am amused at myself that i say those mouthful, maybe because the last thing that i want is to be belittled by a fellow filipino that because they are in a way connected to this or that, they can think they are way above the ordinary mortals. sorry, wrong person to talk to. mabait ako kung mabait ka, pasensyoso ako pero wag kang abusado, at mas bastos ako kung bastos ka.

she deserves it anyway (and now, i am rude hehe), and name-dropping doesn't work for me, we have our rules, follow our rules. simple as that.

and did i say i have tons of work? hahaha.

a chair will do. :)

toast!

Tonight's going to be the farewell dinner/party for some Japanese teachers. It's going to be held at the Manila Yacht Club.

In my four years of stay here, I was asked many times to be one of the emcees for some of our parties (about one each month), while the other two emcees, Japanese. And it's always like this: I will speak in Nihongo (of course, the script will be provided by them, otherwise, away ito hehe) and then one of my japanese partners will talk in english and the other one in tagalog. It's quite a torture, actually, but funny at the same time as we always asked each other if we say the word/words or phrases properly, or asked each other why are they laughing or make a sign that it's his or my turn. If only we can record it on video, pwedeng ipadala sa Bitoy's Funniest Video. hehe.

But tonight's different, I was asked to do the toast, or offer a toast, or make a toast, basta, toast whatever. :) Not that I haven't done it before, but it's the first time that a non-Japanese was assigned to do it, and it was me they choose! (parang nakita ko si rufa mae "to the highest level tooo" hehe). Nung una syempre nagulat ako, kasi ako parati yung gumagawa ng speech ng Principal for the opening remarks o di kaya sa closing remarks, saka pati na rin yung sa toast, pero ako yung magbabasa ng speech?? kakaiba to.

The funny thing is hindi ko alam yung sasabihin ko, parang naubos na yung mga idea ko sa mga lumang speech ni principal at ng boss ko, until I look at my files and saw LAST YEAR's closing remarks! Bingo! At magrecycle talaga ako ng speech hehehe. Here's an excerpt:

"...we are saddened that you will be leaving us, but we are also glad that you share with us a very memorable three years of your professional lives." (may drama?)

"...our thank you is never enough to show our gratitude for all the wonderful things that you did to our school, for all your contributions that are just too many to mention, and for your unmatched dedication that will be remembered forever."

"...you served not just a teacher to your students, but more importantly, as a parent, as a friend, and as an inspiration."

and I have to say those in Japanese! Hindi, biro lang hehe. :)

Happy weekend. KANPAI!!!

Handwriting

When i was still in high school, or even in college, my handwriting has always been mistaken as that of a girl or maybe better than some girls (hehe). Maybe because i write smaller or finer and i think it's quite rare for a guy like me to have a little arte, believe it or not, on his penmanship.

I think i was influenced by the awesome handwriting of our class valedictorian in elementary, she writes so good that she made scribbling an art! She writes as if her pen was floating and every letter she wrote was perfect, with that little slant to the right and each word was finished with that little kulot at each end. I tried to emulate her writing, but sorry, no success on that. Still i tried and did not give up, until such time and without any realization from myself that i created my own handwriting style, my own penmanship.

It also help that I made a hobby out of joining on-the-spot essay writing contests and taking down notes on almost all of our lessons or physically transferring the content of our textbook into my notebook (so kapag time na ng pagte-check ng notebook, mine will appear like i've been so attentive in class lol). Me mga instance din na kapag tinatamad ang teacher namin (just my thought ok), ako yung pinagsusulat sa pisara (tagalog-english 101: blackboard) and of course who am I to protest, dagdag pogi points din yun sa character: matulunging bata, noted, 95 yan! hehehe. While I am strutting my wares (as if! lol), my teacher will be chatting and/or telling stories to my classmates and my classmates are either pretending they're listening or pretending they're copying what I am writing but actually they're drawing something or rushing that next subject assignment! been there, done that. LOL.

But nowadays, i thought my handwriting has deteriorated to the level that I myself cannot clearly read what I've written, kumbaga sa picture blurry ang dating o kapag salita naman ay hindi na malinaw sa pandinig. One may asked what happen? Simple lang, kawalan ng practice. With the onslaught of technology encouraging people not to use their own handwriting in communicating plus the convenience it offers, one cannot resist not to use it hanggang sa punto na nalilimutan na ang sulat kamay (hmm, parang hawak-kamay no hehe).

I've been using the computers for the last nine years, and instead of making a handwritten draft for any office memo or correspondence, typing it directly into the computer is, of course, more convenient, sabay edit na rin, mas madali ang trabaho. And don't start with cellphone/SMS/text, it does not only lessen my handwriting strength, it also affected my sfelling (anak ng spelling bee naman, wala na nga akong swerte sa spelling contest, heto at naliligawa pa ang letra ko!). From time to time, confusion regarding my spelling sets in and makes me wonder, and not to mention my failing memory on suject-verb agreement or that of the figure of speech or part of speech... whew! It's getting complicated hehehe, and I thought my only concern was my "deteriorating" handwriting, as usual, mali na naman ako. LOL.

It took a post from Toe to convince me to write something about handwriting, AND for me to write it first WITH A PEN AND PAPER and not directly into the computer. Quite a feat that i made it and if only you can see the draft of this post, iisipin nyo na "m" at "l" lang ang kaya kong isulat dahil parang puro "m" at "l" lang ang pwedeng basahin. hehe.

I am now more than convince to do first a handwritten draft before anything because right now, I am having some difficulty writing my own name nang dugtong-dugtong at hindi printed. Weird pero totoo yun, parang automatic na pirma lagi yung nangyayari kapag pangalan ko na ang isusulat, eh hindi naman ako artista na dapat sanay sa autograph, approval lang sa check vouchers ang pinipirmahan ko hehehe.

Seriously, we need to go back to basics, maaaring mas mabilis na ang takbo ng mundo ngayon at halos lahat na ay de-numero o di kaya'y nadadaan sa tiklada ng keyboard o sa pagpindot ng keypad, pero iba pa rin pala na nakikita mo yung sarili mong handwriting, na kahit gaano pa ito kalinaw o halos walang pinagkaiba sa kinahig ng manok, it always feels good dahil nakikita mo yung effort, or at least yung pagsubok at pagpipilit na mag-exert ng effort. And besides, it's more personal. :)

love letters

(pahabol na post sa huling araw ng buwan ng mga puso and sort of inspired by Verns' love letter episode)

when was the last time that you made or received a love letter? the old fashion, the old school one, not thru email and definitely, not via text.

hand written, in a stationery (scented or not?) and then folded in a unique way that after reading or even before reading it, you'll fold it again and again just to figure out how to do it (that you eventually forgot it's a letter, damn).

kelan nga ba? ako high school pa, and that time, i think i can make a career out of writing love letters! i am not really good at it but i can whipped one in a flash! i don't know, maybe its the hopeless romantic in me, or maybe the dreamy teenage years of puppy loves and crushes and of picking roses and heart shaped balloons and stuffed toys with a little heart in it, or simply, i was simply inspired to write love letters.

Love letter

A love letter is a popular way to express feelings of love in written
form. Sometimes sent in the mail, and increasingly
by electronic
mail, the letter may be
anything from a short and simple message of love to a lengthy explanation of
feelings.
Sometimes letters are preferable to face-to-face contact because
they can be written as the thoughts come to the author. This may allow feelings
to be more easily expressed than if the writer were in the beloved's presence.
Further, expressing strong emotional feelings to paper or some other
permanent
form can be an expression within itself of desire and the
importance of the
beloved and the lover's emotions. The expression of
feelings may be made to an
existing love or in the hope of establishing a
new relationship.
The increasing rarity and consequent emotional charm of personal mail may
also
serve to emphasize the emotional importance of the message.
As with
any letter, a love letter could be written in any structure or style. One
historically popular method is as a sonnet or other form
of poem. William
Shakespeare's sonnets are
often cited as good examples of how to write emotional themes. There have been
published books collecting models and suggestions for love letters.
After
the end of a relationship, returning love letters to the sender or burning them
can symbolise the hurt felt.
Some stationery
companies produce paper and envelopes
specifically for love letters. Some of these are scented, though
some people like to use their own perfume to
strengthen the impact of the letter. (taken from Wikipedia)

naalala ko nung minsang gumawa ako ng love letter (high school to ha), i had my pure intentions (naks) written there and i have this thinking na yung girl lang ang makakabasa. sorry, wrong assumptions. she read it with her friends (na friends ko rin naman) and before i knew it, alam na ng buong class namin, word for word, ang love letter.

dyahe.

napakamot na lang ako ng ulo. but i thought (hindi naman sa pagbubuhat ng sariling bangko) it was not badly written, not at all bad as it produced that kilig factor that i just need. hah! and we know how things in high school are: dreamy teenage years of puppy loves and crushes, etc, etc.... and that kilig factor was, well, really a factor. and that's the start of a career, errr... romantic endeavors of the teenager named zherwin. lol

(i have friends who are reading this blog, hoy, wag nyo akong pagtawanan! lol)

but that's okey, a chapter of my high school life that itself stays vividly in my mind (enter sharon cuneta singing... high school life oh my high school life, every memory kay ganda, high school days oh my high school days are exciting kay saya...)

the song certainly brings back some memories... and it made me smile, ahh, that love letter...

(fast forward: after two years, we broke up and during college i was a freelancer *wink, thus the career, wink* and it was six years ago that i (or a friend who's the ex-boyfriend of a friend of lyn) finally found lyn, or since then, happy days.

i did not wrote a love letter to her (maybe just a couple of short notes), and she's asking me why not. i reason out that who needs a love letter when i can always tell her face to face how much i love her...

(kilig, kilig)

hmm, i just had an idea of a surprise...

trees

parang puno, ganyan tayo.

may buhay, may panahon ng taglagas,

kelangang kumapit sa lupa kundi mabubuwal

mamamatay.

san ba tayo dadalhin ng hangin?

igugupo?

sisirain?

hahampasin?

sasabay, lalaban?

kakampi ba natin ang ulan?

kaisa ba natin ang araw?

sa pagyuko natin kasabay ng buwan

may bituin pa kayang

hahalik

sa hamog ng nakaraan?

sa muling pagsibol mula sa kinasadlakan

makikita pa kaya ang dating natatanaw?

o kawalan na lang

ang sasalubong sa dahon ng pagmamahal?

yumukod na lang sa takip silim

hayaang yakapin ng lamig

hayaang hagkan ng usig

sapagkat sa paggising

isang tinig

ang maghahatid

ng isang damping

kasing kinis ng tubig.

on the block (writer's block)

some years ago, when i was still in college and was busy with accounting and some of my org's and school activities, i still find time getting busy with the school paper. yup, i was a newspaper guy and i don't know if i was a good one or a bad one.

back then, i concentrated mostly on essays and poems, and as i always wanted to put it, parang lyrics ng kanta ng eraserheads ang takbo ng pagsusulat ko. easy to read, spontaneous at walang pretensyon. minsan tipong parokya ni edgar naman sa pagkamababaw but just the same, easy to read. medyo off lang sya para sa isang hardhitting school paper.

i must admit na hindi ako kagalingan sa pagsusulat, but if the creative juice is flowing, sige, sulat lang. marami na rin yung oras na pinipilit kong magsulat pero halos wala akong mapiga, tuyot sa ideya, lost for words. writer's block!

writ·er's block (rtrz) KEY NOUN:
A usually temporary psychological inability to begin or continue work on a piece of writing.

ngayon, i am experiencing a "partial" writer's block or a blogger's block for this case. pero teka, can a blogger's block be also considered a writer's block?

sa dami ng nagba-blog ngayon, pwedeng ikonsedera yan. pero marami rin ang pumupuna at nagsasabi na blogging is not really writing (duh!) kasi raw walang disiplinang sinusunod dito. siguro kung old school writing ang pag-uusapan, itsapwera nga ang blogging, pero who cares di ba? (uhm, teka lang, ano ba ang old school writing?? hehe)

i believe writing should not be put in a box, yung hindi tipong ganito dapat, ganito dapat at hindi ganyan. siguro kung script yang binubuo mo, maaaring you'll follow a certain path, kung nobela naman, ibang usapan din yan.

sa blogging, sariling atake na yan, walang pakialaman. kung ayaw mo, wag mo. c",)

pero ngayon kahit sa blogging, parang trying hard ako, ilan taon kayang nabakante sa pagsusulat? hala, matagal na rin pala. kinalawang na rin, wala kasing practice. inisip ko na once you have it, you'll always have it, tama, pero di ko naisip na you should also nurture it at yun ang mahalagang part. na binalewala ko. hindi pala ito katulad ng pagbibisekleta na kapag natutunan mo na, for life na yan, kahit 48 years ka pang dehins mag-bike.

i am trying to bring it back, and blogging is a good exercise for it at bonus pa yung "interactive mode" nito. just like the day after a first gym workout, i am feeling the pain for using my longtime stagnant writing muscles (talaga lang ha lol) pero pakonti-konti, i'll get there. dahan-dahan lang hanggang masanay ulit, just like lifting weights, start with the light one and as your muscles get used to it, dagdag pa ng weights! sana lang maging maskulado ako pagkatapos nito. hahaha.

motto ko pala nung high school: try and try until you die, if you die at least you try. (hanep, slum book na slum book ang dating!)

but it's true, im gonna try and try writing again wag na lang sanang umabot sa die part, ayaw ko pa yata nun. hehe

and with the writer's block? itulog na lang yan!