5 obvious sssh-sssh i won't blog about

1. (to practically everyone) ...
your favorite 'kwek kwek' vendor
uses the same washwater
(after the shell is removed from boiled quail egg)
from sun-up to sun-down. he/she also didn't wash his/her hand
after answering nature's call. harroojosko.
(so much for being so-oh-observant).

2. (to self-proclaimed teacher's pet) ...
your highly esteemed
professor just shared your story
to his/ her colleagues over lunch and my my, they were amused!
(now you know the reason for those glances).

3. (to parents of a yuppie/ student) ...
your baby is converting
his/her flat/ dorm room/ boarding house to a motel.
his/ her lucky gf / bf doesn't only get free meals
(sometimes free laundry service) but free 'bed-service' as well.

4. (to ever-caring bf / gf) ...
your adored gf/ bf used up all
her/ his savings in trying to help your
hopeless-loser-needing-a-kick-in-the-ass-friend.
(and you still wonder why the 'friend' isn't bugging you lately?).

5. (to you who spend scandalous time online) ...
your webclicks are monitored, saved and sold.
(but hey, what you don't know won't hurt you, right? hala!)

now you know why i won't blog about these obvious sssh-sssh. ciao!

mantra: ganda-ever-so-much I AM!

i have always been a wannabe-writer. but since (then president) fidel ramos wanted me (and other iskolars ng bayan) to study economics, i did. i figured i could still be a writer (in my own time/ in my own way) and an economics professor if i so think and want it that way. 'organized' as i am (no violent reactions please), i alloted to spend some of my free time online -- sharing my thoughts (even tutoring for free) to my students and friends. i even junked my old diary and shifted to this page... and sometimes i do what teeners call "surfing". oh my, that surely beats library time!!!

one fine day, i spotted a page with a picture of someone who looked familiar. was he the manager of my bank (well, not actually MY bank, but i have an account there!)? oh yes, he is the 'orman manasala'! he was all candid in his shots and ever darlingly-frank in his words. he was all he is even when i see him in my miga anji's office.

so i 'favourited' the page and since then have been craving (pardon my word) for not just his personal thoughts but of the happenings of my ever-beloved-adopted-hometown gensan (he's the usual fairy behind the fests).

fast forward: i got to know him better and somehow up-close (as with http://www.gandaeversomuch.com/)  when his ever-active kuya avel made me an official member of the soccsksargen bloggers, even as i am miles away from gensan (hopefully temporarily). the two sure is the duo that completes the circle of gensan living (huh, that line has a spark of genius!). thanks heavens for them!

super fast forward: i intended (for days now) to make a tribute entry for the blogpage that has been amusing and informing me for so long (it's the blogoversary!!!) but so oh oh, here goes the dreaded 'block' again (excuses, excuses)... so what i did was visit the page once more...and...woot! contests to the max! prizes-ever-fabulous-to-be-given-away. what a way to celebrate! ganda-ever-orman-style! beat that!

will i join? do i know how to? oh well, tech-idiots sure do know how to find ways. now, if only this tech idiot can find a way to at least make the page orman/lyle-readable before this week's contest ends . oh well, whatever happens, as inspired by ganda-ever so much --- ganda-ever-so-much-i am! (how's that for my new mantra?)

CONGRATULATIONS GANDAEVERSOMUCH!!!

pixs you see in this entry is my weird-almost-futile-attempt to promote myself to a tech-slowlearner from a tech-idot. (doh) failed!

writer's block (doh)

according to wikipedia- WRITER'S BLOCK is a condition, associated with writing as a profession in which an author losses the ability to produce new work. the condition varies widely in intensity. It can be trivial , a temporary difficulty of dealing with the task in hand. at the other extreme, some "blocked" writers have been unable to work for years on end, and some have even abandoned their careers. . .okay. okay! haaaaaayyy, i' m so having it now. after writing this starting statement, i have to go back to 'lower case' everything, for some reason, i forgot that  i intend not to use upper case in my blogspot unless extremely needed. why? --style lang! so what will i write about? nothing. i can't even start to continue with my literature review, i've been 'blocked' for weeks now. but here's an idea that came up seconds ago--- i'd like to share the latest from the philippine daily inquirer, ranked according to how i liked reading them (not how i liked them)  :)

1. erap on gibo: what a pity, he's most qualified (erap's brains are somewhat regenerating-wow!)
2. gov't debt hit P4.44T in january (i told you so, 4 is a bad number!)
3. marc abaya loves his cheetos (i love him, he loves his cheetos, his cheetos loves me, fine!)
4. china quake kills 400, buries more (there's always something to remind me of 'life is short', amp!)
5. happy to see 2  pals move forward in show (AI didi said so about crystal and siobhan, i say so too!)
6. palito's last movie screening on sunday (now when he is deado, as with FPJ...they're doing it again!)
7. politics stalls biomass plant project (oh my gas!)
8. evat and and watered-down cheaper medicines act are not pro-poor (PMAP can afford a full-page?!)
9. bishops condemn basilan bombings (what's new? what else can they do?...they condemn a lot lately, next!)
10. GMA accepts 'green award' (@#$%^^&* !!!- my keyboard isn't working now!)

:) have a great day!
[postscript (i seem to be having a lot of these lately): the picture? those are tombs in himlayang bayan (resting place a.k.a. public cemetery), your unique linking of the pic and the text is always welcome (winks)]

of atty. adel tamano, and of hurried (somehow-bad) writing

what could be more delightful to a blogger but to have a subject that's open, vulnerable and yummy (read: clean and handsome)? that was my feeling when i got invited/adopted by the gensan bloggers, one saturday evening (thanks to kuya-ng-gensan-avel and ganda-ever-so-much-boss-banker orman) to join them in meeting atty. adel tamano---i was del-ighted! adel, as he is fondly called by many is vying for senator in 2010's circus-of-an-election. i am not a block-voter, i have never been... and guess what, i have him in my to-vote list for 3 reasons:

1. he is qualified to be one of the leaders of the land (being a realist-academician, a lawyer, an economist, a good public speaker and a writer)
2. he is a son to one of the few good senators of our times, and a hands-on-slash-cool-father (to 2 cute kids)
3. he is a true-blue muslim ( i am a true-blue catholic but i have grown to understand, respect and love islam since i transferred to mindanao state university, you will too-trust me on this).

while waiting for him, i am stating and  restating in my mind the questions i intend to ask him. (i have in my list at least 3 questions:)

1. how much (in your heart) do you want to serve the philippines/filipino people?
2. what are your (target) priorities given the chance to serve the country as a senator?
3. are you proud to be a muslim, how do you deal with non-muslim colleagues?

i was able to ask these questions (other bloggers too) and got satisfactory answers (thanks heavens)--- i was afraid i might end up loosing faith (happens all the time lately).

1. he first remarked he didn't want the position too much to do dirty tricks/gimmiks but he later admitted he wanted it just as much as he believes in a dream/vision of a better land (still)
2. his target priorities (to my joy) are the youth and the education sector. he is quite confident he'd be able to put his funds into good use by prioritizing scholarships and retoning skills of the stakeholders in the said sector. he however confessed that he might not do as well if he will be given a cabinet position in such sector 'coz of its wide and deeply-rooted issues, problems and concerns. (it's human to be afraid)
3. he is proud to be a muslim and he understands what muslim youth have been feeling when joined with the christian majority. he learned to blend, respect and have harmonious relationships with non-muslim colleagues nevertheless (somehow,even moros couldn't tell that he is one of them---but he is, with all his mind, heart and soul)

these and other questions were answered in both serious and funny manner (he might consider being a stand-up comedian too). adel surely knows how to charm people (his 'artistahin' looks is both a blessing and a curse) as much as he knows how to make them listen when he is seriously stating a point. after about two hours (yes! 2 hours and we didn't even notice!), the meeting ended in a very light mood (some even went to KTV with him- missed it, i know he sings well, heard he is 'kundirana baby').

oh well, this entry is (long-)overdue, as usual... and yes, is in need of some polishing (i can now imagine my journalism-mentor-now-friend-gilbert tan wondering if i ever learned anything from my writing classes (too few, sad but true)--- but what the heck! i made it. congratulations for making it to this almost-last-line too (hopefully, you are still okay). finally, i learned 3 good lessons from the experience:

1. adel isn't just a pretty face- he is young, he has a vision, he wants to serve and he is getting my vote (yes, i didn't change my mind...now, if only i could save enough for my fare come 05/10)
2. one shouldn't underestimate the power of youth-vote, the z-generation even if they don't vote, they influence others (especially those who are so-oh-visible online) hence, they must be well-equipped with information and guided opinions every now and then
3. my words in parenthesis are my favorites (coz unlike others who consider them negligible, mine is done for emphasis--- why? style lang! :) )


[postscript: thanks to arnel joshua lim and orman manansala through ms. jinky for the pictures]