Ethol and the 2 Morons

It was Ethol's wedding today with the love of his life, Mildred. Ethol is my bestfriend, brother, bodyguard, personal assistant, partner-in-crime, and when mom had her chemotherapy sessions, Ethol helped us take care of her. He's practically family to us than other people whom we share the same last name with but doesn't know what a family is.

It was bittersweet seeing Ethol promising forever to Mildred. I am very happy that they both have found their happiness, at the same time, I know life would never be the same as he now has his responsibilities and priorities, and he would not be able to be with me in all of my future adventures. He was with me in almost all of my adventures ever since we first met when he became my student. He will now be having new adventures with his new family.

The wedding was very simple but solemn, and was going on really well, until a couple of disrespectful bastards ruined it. Pardon my french, but there is no other nicer word I can use to describe them. Two insecure animals who lack attention and recognition trying desperately to be important: The pea-brain security guard and the lazy sacristan of Redemptorist Parish.

The wedding was scheduled at 10:30 in the morning, but since the priest came from a mass at Consolacion town (12 kilometers from Cebu City), the wedding started at 11. Before the wedding started, the sacristan was already complaining about how he was supposed to be going home already. He was very grumpy, prepared the things needed for the mass half-heartedly, and even shouted at the priest as if the priest was his slave. Though I was furious already, I tried my darnest best to control myself and just let it pass so as not to ruin the day.

During communion, we noticed that it was getting warmer and warmer even with the electric fans surrounding us. We found out that while the mass was going on, the guard was already closing all the doors of the church except one, as ordered by the sacristan. That was it. Their being disrespectful was too much. I was about to confront them when my dad beat me to it. The whole time, he was just silent in a corner, and was just observing. He jumped off from his seat and stormed towards the guard and sacristan. At the same time, we were forced to rush the ending of the mass, and we were not able to take pictures after the wedding. If not for my mom's intervention, there could have been a bloody fight from dad and the stupid guard, who instead of apologizing, was actually blaming the sacristan and anatagonizing my dad. I've seen disrespectful people all my life, and the stupid guard and hypocrite sacristan are on the top of my list.

It pains me to know that there are still heartless entities in our world today. That's the difference between humans and animals, we're supposed to be rational beings who can understand and make decisions based on what we see and what we know, rather than be like animals. We have the power to choose, I just can't understand why others would choose to be morons.

Cavs Sweep Pistons

Best Record in the Regular Season, Check!

Coach of the Year, Check!

Sweep the First Round of the Playoffs, Check!

My Cleveland Cavaliers just swept through the First Round of the Playoffs a few minutes ago. Their victim was the once-mighty Detroit Pistons, a team that once reigned in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs is the only unbeaten team so far in the playoffs, and eliminating the Pistons early means that they have a little more than a week to rest while waiting for the winner of the series between the Miami Heat and the Atlanta Hawks which the Heat currently leads 2-1. Cleveland did not just beat the

In the series against the Pistons, Bron Bron once again showed his leadership, his all-around brilliance and his total dominance. Now add that to his amazing regular season performance, it will be close to impossible if he is not awarded his very first Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. Lebron James is a Beast, and I'm just happy he's on our side.

4 wins in the bag, 12 wins to go for the Championship! Go Cavs!

Stubborn

One of the main responsibilities of my job requires me to speak with customers who request to speak with a supervisor or manager, and most of the time, the reason why they ask to be transferred to us is because the representative they spoke with wasn't able to do what they wanted.

Once we take the call, they again ask the same thing from us. And since we are following the same procedure and guidelines with our representatives, we tell them the same thing that we were already told - that we cannot do what they want us to do. Some people would understand, and some people just wouldn't.

After they are declined by the representative and myself (or another supervisor), they will again ask for someone higher so they can again insist on getting what they want. Other people just don't understand the word NO. They would want to speak with someone else until they get what they want, throwing in some threats and dropping some names every now and then. Duh! As if threatening to cancel their account or mentioning names of powerful people can make any difference.

Pay What?

Today was supposed to be a special day because it's Pay day. Very early in the morning, I was so excited to check my mobile banking if my pay already was credited to my ATM. It took the bank almost 2 hours to send an automated reply, and the reply shocked me. Yes, the pay was already in, but it was way off the amount I expected. I texted my other officemates, asking them if there are some "discrepancies" in the amounts that they received, and true enough, I received a lot of replies from a lot of people who, like me, were also ranting and complaining of the pay they got.

A lot are already updating their resumes as I'm writing this. I can't blame them. The main reason why we went with our company, and why we stayed in this company for a long time is because of the higher pay and the bonuses. Now that the pay is just ordinary and the bonus is starting to become non-existent, people are getting discouraged already. Working here used to be fun. Since the new account took over, it sucked the life out of us.

I'm again seriously comtemplating on going back to the academe. I want to give the company and the new account two months "transition" to put everything in place for the employees. Then again, I might not reach those two months and I might just join the exodus. Only tomorrow knows.

Spill-proof?

I hate spill-proof mugs, or mugs pretending to be spill-proof. Well, not really all spill-proof mugs, just the mugs the office gave me. Aside from my headset, it's my partner while taking calls. And just when you're confident enough to use it, it let you down. Now I know why they call it Spill-proof, it's because it spills and leave a proof... in my case, it is iced tea that is spilled, and the proof is on my white t-shirt.

Totally uncool.

I Dreamed a Dream

Here are the lyrics of one of the most beautiful songs ever written, written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg for Les Miserables, the same song that made Susan Boyle a star...

There was a time when men were kind,

And their voices were soft,

And their words inviting.

There was a time when love was blind,

And the world was a song,

And the song was exciting.

There was a time when it all went wrong...

I dreamed a dream in time gone by,

When hope was high and life, worth living.

I dreamed that love would never die,

I dreamed that God would be forgiving.

Then I was young and unafraid,

And dreams were made and used and wasted.

There was no ransom to be paid,

No song unsung, no wine, untasted.

But the tigers come at night,

With their voices soft as thunder,

As they tear your hope apart,

And they turn your dream to shame.

He slept a summer by my side,

He filled my days with endless wonder...

He took my childhood in his stride,

But he was gone when autumn came!

And still I dream he'll come to me,

That we will live the years together,

But there are dreams that cannot be,

And there are storms we cannot weather!

I had a dream my life would be

So different from this hell I'm living,

So different now from what it seemed...

Now life has killed the dream I dreamed...

Go Cavs!

I am so ecstatic and excited that my Cleveland Cavaliers finished with the best record in the regular season, which means King James and his court will have homecourt advantage all throughout the playoff. How important is that? Well, it means that if ever they play a Game 7 in whatever round in the playoff against whoever it is, it will be played in Cleveland where the Cavs lost only twice the whole year, the second loss happening yesterday, their final regular season game, where they only lost by a point. Technically, that loss doesn't really count since King James and three other starters didn't play to prepare for the war ahead.

Speaking of the war ahead, it starts this Saturday (Sunday, Philippine Time) in Cleveland when the Allen Iverson-less Detroit Pistons come to town. Will the Cavs finally go all the way this year? I really hope so! They need 16 wins in the playoffs and finals to win it all, here's hoping win number one will be this Saturday.

Susan Boyle

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

Martin Luthor King, Jr.


Discrimination is universal. I don't think there is anyone in this world who have not experienced being discriminated at some time in their lives. I know I have - A LOT of times. That is one of the reasons why I usually root for the underdogs. Seeing an underdog surpass expectations and prove her detractors wrong is just priceless.

And recently, in the TV show Britain's Got Talent, an underdog brought almost everyone to tears and brought the house down. Her name is Susan Boyle, an unemployed 47 year old lady.

When she walked out on stage, you could tell no one expected her to do well and when she gave a little hip gyration before she started singing, you could tell by the looks some people were giving her that they expected her to flop, big time. But she had the last laugh when she belted out a song no one expected her to be able to sing. Her performance was near flawless and her personality makes you like her right away. I wasn't able to control my tears watching the video, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

When she started singing "I Dreamed A Dream" from Les Miserables, she was quickly rewarded with a standing ovation as well as shocked faces from the judges. Simon Cowell sat with a huge smile on his face as she sang. The audience stood and clapped as she gave an emotional performance and then started to walk off the stage when she was done.

The judges had to call her back to let her know how shocked they were as well as to tell her she received three yeses from them. One of the judges, Pierce Morgan, told her that he was giving her the biggest yes he has ever given anybody.“I am so thrilled because I knew everybody was against you, I honestly think that we were all being very cynical and I think that’s the biggest wake up call ever,” were the words of Amanda Holden, a judge on the show, referring to how dismissive the audience was of Boyle before she took the stage.

Until now, I never get tired of watching the video again and again, and every single time, it still makes me cry. I was a part of the Les Miserables cast for more than ten years, and I've heard a lot of interpretations of "I Dreamed a Dream" but Miss Boyle's version made me cry after hearing just the first line of the song. She is simply amazing.

Susan Boyle may have shocked the audience with her stunning singing talent and her vibrant bubbly personality before her performance, but according to Yahoo! Buzz, she was the shocked one when her church gave her a standing ovation when she walked in.

Susan said she has always dreamed of becoming a singer, her voice was a stunning surprise and I'm sure I'm not the only one wondering how no one found her before now. You can't always go by first impressions and this is a perfect example of why that is true.

The thing that people seem to look at first is looks, but this is a talent competition not a beauty contest. We will be seeing a lot more from Susan Boyle, her voice will be gracing the airwaves even if she doesn't win this competition.

Tired

I'm tired of working. Well, not really working, but working in a call center. I'm tired of giving out my real name to total strangers in almost every call. With the technology age that we are in, I don't feel comfortable giving out my personal information to persons I don't know anymore. It's so difficult to follow the guidelines that we're given, at the same time, having the customers blaming us. Who knows what they'll do with our personal information. And there's nothing we can do since we are required to give out our personal information whenever asked by the customer.

*Sigh*

Happy Easter!

Just got home from work. Let me share a beautiful poem by one of my most fave poets, Joanna Fuchs.


Jesus came to compensate
For all the wrongs we do.
He came to earth to die for us,
So we'd be born anew.

"The bitter cup, let it pass from me,"
He cried, in a plaintive voice;
"Yet not My will, but Thine be done;
"He said, in His faithful choice.

The Judas kiss would seal his fate;
He faced a hostile crowd;
The governor, Pilate, saw through it all;
Jesus' guilt he disavowed.

"I wash my hands of all of this,"
Said Pilate, "Let Him be."
But the crowd yelled "Crucify him now,
And set Barabbas free!"

Pilate yielded to their wish;
And Jesus was led away.
The soldiers beat him, and mocked Him, too.
Yet He continued to obey.

A crown of thorns lay on His head,
As His sentence was carried out;
His hands and feet were pierced with nails,
But He did not scream or shout.

"Father, forgive them for this crime;
They know not what they do.
"He said this despite His torment, because,
He was thinking of me and you.

"It is finished," he sighed in His anguish and pain,
As His body gave up to death.
The curtain tore, and darkness fell,
After He took His last breath.

The best of the story is the very last part;
It’s why on Easter we’re filled with pleasure:
Death could not our Savior hold;
His power is beyond all measure.

He rose from the grave, and was seen all around;
Ever since, He’s inspired devotion,
And we’ll be with Him for eternity,
When we get our heavenly promotion.

That’s why Easter is a major event:
He suffered and died in our place.
He rose and forgave us and loves us still,
Our Savior of matchless grace.


Happy Easter,
everyone!

Policies

Different companies have different policies. That's common sense. But if you've been with different companies in more or less the same industry, you can't help but compare, among other things, their policies.

We may not agree with some, but in the end, we still have to comply and follow those policies without question.

*sigh*

Good Friday

Today is Good Friday and I'm on day off. There is no holiday in the Call Center Industry so for the past two years, I have been working during the Lenten Season, particularly Good Friday. This year, nevermind the double pay and the additional Vacation Leave incentives, it feels good to be off and to be with everyone in the family.

I woke up late today because I slept early - early in the morning that is. I spent the night (and early morning) watching Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and Far Cry on DVD. I bought those DVDs a long time ago, I just didn't feel like watching them before.I enjoyed the former, while the latter helped me get sleepy faster.

The whole day, all of us were just at home because as much as I wanted to enjoy my day off by going somewhere like maybe eat out or watch a movie, all commercial establishments were closed so we were stuck at home with our lenten meal.

It's almost midnight now, I'm watching Gran Torino on DVD, writing this blog, and listening to the growl of my tummy. I'm so hungry. I'm enjoying the movie, but my stomach is distracting me. After the movie, I may descend from our home in the mountains to look for food in the city, or then again, I may just go to sleep.

zzzzZZZZ....

Maundy Thursday

Got off from work at seven in the morning, and was rejoicing because after five days, it's my day off at last. Went straight home, got on my PC, checked my emails, facebook, and a couple other sites I regularly visit. I was about to sleep because I was planning on going to a basketball game in the afternoon, when my dad suddenly suggested the whole family go to the beach. So much for sleeping! Luckily, it was also he who suggested that I just sleep instead of going with them so I can watch the game in the afternoon.

I wasn't able to sleep when they left for Porto Fino since I was enjoying myself organizing my songs on the PC. Next thing I knew, it was already almost three in the afternoon, and the game was scheduled at four. I was surprised to arrive early at the Cebu Coliseum despite its distance from our house, and then it occured to me. Today was Holy Thursday. Or others would call it Maundy Thursday. No wonder the streets were deserted!

Not a lot of people watched the game because not only was it just an exhibition game, it was also held on Holy Thursday! But in fairness, it was a good game. It was between the Cebu Niños and the Talk N Text Team. It was actually the second game of the their two-game friendly tune-up game. Cebu won in Wednesday, and TNT won while I was at courtside.

After the game, I went around the oldest street in the Philippines. The malls in the city were closed, and only the department stores in downtown were open. It was a good exercise, at the same time reminiscing the days when I used to pass through Colon everyday. It has been a good two years. A few things have changed, but if there's something that hasn't, it has to be the cheap(er) prices. If you just know where to look, you can almost always find a good bargain in Colon.

Went home in time for supper, which again reminds me. Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday actually commemorates the day Jesus had the Last Supper with the Apostles. After I had my supper with my family, I spent the night away watching the new DVDs I bought, more about it soon.

Theatre

I miss theatre. It has been a part of my life for the longest time, but ever since I started working in a call center, that part of my life became non-existent. Sure, our theatre company had a play last year but I just had one scene and three lines in that play because I did not have the time for rehearsals. For someone working in graveyard shifts, it is so difficult to do other things outside of work.

I miss theatre. It's just something I so love to do, that if only there's money in theatre, I would do it full time. Unfortunately, theatre is still underrated, and it's not something you can do full time to feed your family. I heard that most thespians in Broadway even have regular day jobs aside from performing, except if they are already established performers and performing is also their "day job."

This year, I really hope to quit the call center industry, go back to the academe (and a day job!), and hopefully go back to theatre. My daughter loves performing at her early age, and it would be great to share the stage with her before I'll retire from performing.

Missing May-May

When we went to the Crocodile Farm recently, my daughter had the time of her life with the Mynah bird there. While my daughter was laughing, I actually cried a bit because I remembered something in the past... our very own Mynah bird named May-May (pronounced My-My).

I don't recall the exact date, but I still remember the day when my dad brought home a Mynah bird. I was in high school then and had no idea what a Mynah was. I also wasn't that excited seeing the bird for the first time. To me, it looked like a crow with a yellow "collar" at its back, nothing special about it. I didn't even believe my dad when he first told us that it was a talking bird. Back then, the only talking bird for me was a parrot.

It took quite a while for May-May to learn a few words and a few sentences. What amazed me over the years was that May-May did not only learn the words or sentences that she often hears, she was also able to mimic the tone of the voices. From our househelp's high pitched voice, to my dad's low tone, May-May was able to nail it. Every single person in the household became a victim of May-May at one point or another. My moment was when I was home alone sick, and I heard a man say ayo, which means "anybody home?" I immediately jumped off from the bed, opened the door and said, "Yes, how may I help you?" only that there was no one there. And right at the exact moment when I realized I've just been had by a talking bird, I heard May-May give out a big laugh. Now, I'm not saying that she has mind of her own, but she definitely is on time and on target with her comments and punchlines.

Whenever we had trips and we brought May-May along, she would become an instant hit. We got so used to having May-May greet us every morning when we open our door and windows, and to talk to herself during afternoons when the house is silent. May-May became a member of our family.

When my daughter arrived and joined our family, May-May was able to mimic her cries and laughs. I was already looking forward to seeing them learning new words together, but alas, when my daughter was eight months old, May-May passed away. She just fell dead one day inside her cage. After making so many people happy, May-May's time was finally up. My only regret is that she didn't live long enough for my daughter.

I miss May-May more now that I've seen how the Mynah bird at the Crocodile Farm made my daughter very, very happy. Wherever she is now, I'm sure she's still making everyone around her happy 'coz that's who she is.

Huh?

Customer : Why the h*** did you charge me a late fee?!

Representative : Your payment due date was on the 30th of March, we received youra payment on the 4th of April, that is why a late fee was charged to your account.

Customer : WTF! I was only late for 5 days!

Representative : Precisely! The payment was late that's why there is a late fee on your account.

Customer : You guys suck! I want you to take that late fee off right now!

Representative : I'm sorry sir, but we will not be able to do that.

Customer : If you can't do that, then you can close my account!

Representative : As requested, your account is not closed...

Customer : WHAT?! Why did you close my account?!


Hay... *faints*

Back to Reality

We are at the airport now waiting for our flight back to Cebu. Our Cebu Pacific flight is supposed to depart at 3:25 PM but we just found out that our flight will be delayed for at least an hour, so that means we will arrive in Cebu at around 6 PM, and the trip from the airport to our house is usually around an hour, but since today is Saturday, it'll probably take a little more than an hour to reach our place, and then we have to carry all six boxes and five bags from the main road to our house, so more or less, we'll be settled at home at around 7:30 to 8 PM, then I have to report to work by 9 PM.

Wow! After a few days of vacation, reality is welcoming me with open arms.

Crocodile Farm

After spending an hour at the NCCC Mall yesterday, we went to the Davao Crocodile Park. The Park is the product of the crocodile fascination of a man named Philip Dizon. As a child, he was greatly fascinated to freshwater and saltwater crocodiles. Davao Crocodile Park showcases a world-class crocodile farming system, which is the first one in the Philippines. It is a place I greatly recommend to those of you who will be visiting Davao in the near future.

The moment we entered the park, we were greeted by colorful and even talkative birds. Some were placed in cages, the parrots and mynah birds were merely tied to their bird houses, and the ostriches were free to run around with only a fence dividing them from the guests. My daughter had so much fun with one mynah bird who was so talkative. Seeing my daughter enjoying herself with the bird brought tears to my eyes as I remembered something in the past.

Aside from the birds, we also saw a couple of big snakes (an albino and a python), a couple of small snakes, a hyperactive orangutan, a few monkeys, a hornbill that looked like Zazu (from the Lion King), really quick squirrels, really slow turtles, a warthog that looked like Pumba (still from the Lion King), a couple of eerie-looking bearcats, a really big and angry billy goat, a big tiger looking majestic, a really cute tiger cub that looked like a stuff toy, many more animals, and of course, since it is a Crocodile Farm, the place was surrounded by crocodiles - LOTS of crocodiles.

Most of the animals there, I've seen for the first time but it was the crocs that really fascinated me. They look so fierce and strong, and BIG! Their skin look like an armor that's so tough and thick, making them nearly invincible. They look so slow and lazy when they are at rest, at times even looking like a statue, but when something (or someone) catches their attention, they gracefully move so fast, it's scary!

Pictures posted at http://journey2forever.multiply.com/

Eagles and Catfish

Today was a tiring but fun day for us. We started the day by visiting the Philippine Eagle Center (PEC) in Davao City. The Center is home to 36 Philippine Eagles, 18 of which are captive-bred. It also houses 10 other species of birds, 4 species of mammals and 2 species of reptiles. Simulating a tropical rain forest environment, the Center offers the visitor a glimpse into the country’s forest ecosystem. Although the exhibits are used primarily to help educate the Filipino people on conservation, the facility is also considered a major tourist attraction in Davao City.

The PEC reminded me of the MCWD Family Park back in Cebu where there are also a few rare animals housed-in, but it really shows that the PEC is more well-funded so it is far more organized than the family park. It would really be nice to see the Family Park become a tourist attraction in the near future, rather than just a simple park with a playground, a mini zoo and a pool.

I was able to take a lot of close-up shots of most animals, except Pag-asa and some of the bigger eagles because their cages were so big, and kinda elevated that even with my camera's optical and digital zoom, the eagles were still so far away. I will be posting those pics as soon as I get back to Cebu since I left my cable at home.

We spent around two hours at the PEC, then we had our lunch at a native restaurant along the highway. My mother-in-law ordered for us, and it was my first time to see and taste a catfish or what is known locally as hito. I am very choosy especially when eating fish, but I was able to consume two large grilled hitos.

When I was about to board the van after lunch, a man with a lot of multicolored cowboy hats approached me and offered me a hat for PHP 300 (6.75 USD). I was thinking of buying one for my dad back home, but PHP 300 is quite expensive for a hat, nevermind if it looks like a really expensive cowboy hat. When I was already inside the van, the man tried to haggle and dropped the price to PHP 250 (5.62 USD), and when I said I'm not interested, he lowered the price to PHP 50 (1.12 USD). I was already decided not to buy so I politely declined and we went on our way.

After lunch, we went to the NCCC Mall to kill time, and I saw the very same cowboy hats sold by the man earlier, sold inside the mall at PHP 95 (2.14 USD). I wanted to buy a white one for my dad, but then I realized that my dad likes to wear a hat, but not a cowboy hat so instead, I just went to the basement and bought a pearl shake for myself instead. *burp*