It's been a busy week, I was finally able to catch up to all the plates I wasn't able to submit on time coz of the beautiful room conditions I have and the viruses it invites. I hate going to the infirmary, but I had to this time around...I need that medical certificate! But I was surprised coz for the first time, people there were a tad bit friendlier than before. I'm usually used to the doctor giving me a pep talk in a rather irritated parental manner, but it wasn't the case this time around. Hopefully, it'll always be like that. However, I hoped the campus architect would have chosen a much livelier color for the "new look" of the infirmary.

....

The other weekend, a friend I haven't seen in a while called me up and said she needed someone to talk to. Though I did have other things to do and deadlines to meet, they would all have to wait, coz when a friend needs you...a friend needs you. And she is one of those few who have earned at least that much from me. The funny thing about meeting old friends is that we can sometimes see how much the other has changed, be it good or bad, though when in each other's company we will always be the same persons we were to each other. And as most conversations between good old friends would go, we started off talking about the "good" times. It was in those times in my continuing college life that I was happiest. It's weird how things work out and you find some very special things in so very unexpected places. Well, this unexpected place of mine has a name, it's called Krus na Ligas (the infamous Tita Vicky's boarding house to be exact). I boarded there after my first year in the Kalayaan dormitory, but I'll talk about those good ol' days some other time.

She's been doing a lot of thinking on her own, something she professes was an onset of having nothing else to do but study and sit in her room (something that sounds just all too familiar to me). She wanted someting to do, something new to do, coz the thinking wouldn't stop. Afterall, if your feet don't wander, your mind most definitely will. And where it was taking her, she didn't like it. She's been thinking about getting work, thinking about old friends, old times, new problems, and I wasn't surprised that the conversation veered towards past loves. The "guy" was basically a two timing jerk, but he was still, for a time...our friend. And somewhere in our insides, we still consider him as our friend, as weird as it may sound. But she told me she went to talk to him, to see how he was, how he's been, and if he's changed. She went to see him, despite knowing the fact that he still had a girlfriend. In the duration of our conversation, she would curse and tell me how pathetic a guy he was and that he was slime in the heel of her boots. But she still went out to see him. It's not new that people contradict themselves in these matters. I just hope that she doesn't get any crazy ideas, coz the guy really is just slime...and she deserves better. So there we were, talking, coming up with a littany of stuff to remind her of just how wrong the guy was and wish nya lang that he gets a chance with her. I hope, in some way it reinforced her resolve to just stay away from him.

We say our goodbyes as I send her to her ride. Sometimes, I feel so powerless that all I could do is to try and talk some sense into her. Sometimes, words just seem so futile, but I hope I helped a little as I walk to my ride with my hands in my pockets. If there was anything more I could do, I hope it'd hit me like a brick wall...; But I guess, at times, the best things we can do for our friends, is let them make their own mistakes. And maybe it's enough, that I'll always be here for her when that happens.

....

JUNE:

Thinks far with vision. Easily influenced by kindness. Polite and
soft-spoken. Having lots of ideas. Sensitive. Active mind. Hesitating, tends to delay. Choosy and always wants the best. Temperamental. Funny and
humorous. Loves to joke. Good debating skills. Talkative. Daydreamer.
Friendly. Knows how to make friends. Abiding. Able to show character. Easily
hurt. Prone to getting colds. Loves to dress up. Easily bored. Fussy. Seldom
shows emotions. Takes time to recover when hurt. Brand conscious. Executive. Stubborn.

Hmm...it's pretty much accurate except for the "brand conscious, humorous and knows how to make friends part", hehe.

....

"I realized that the purpose of writing is to inflate weak ideas, obscure poor reasoning and inhibit clarity. With a little practice, writing can be an intimidating and impenetrable fog" -- Calvin (Calvin & Hobbes)

It's a new year, and here I am thinking about the past...

chronology of certain stuff for the past half decade based on journal entry dates:)

October 2, 1999 - seriously considers being a priest (quit laughing!), oddly enough, it was in my honest search for an answer to this possibility that lead me to question my own religion.

October 8, 1999 - my first taste of failure

November 12, 1999 - my last most unforgettable, unregrettable perfect day

January 4, 2000 - my parents celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. My brothers, an uncle and I try to ruin it by singing onstage, hehe.

February 2000 - played volleyball and table tennis in the dorm intrams. 1st UP Fair ever attended. 1st and last Valentine date (with a close friend ;p)

August 2000 - I started boarding at Kruz na Ligas. Weirdest collection of individuals to ever settle under one roof, hehe.

January 18, 2001 - I go to the EDSA 2 rally with my boardmates.

February 2001 - I got my first Henna tattoo.

May 12, 2001(2:15am) - My first actual conversation with "her" (kahit sa text lang, it still counts, hehe)

August 14, 2001 - Life will never be the same again...

November 16, 2001 - after a series of events gone awry and friendships gone sour, I prepare to leave the KNL boarding house, transferring elsewhere where I have remained in a solo room up until now.

April 18, 2002 - Summer is ending. Two of my best friends have a rough time. I pass Math 17 after taking it for the umpteenth time.

June 2, 2002 - It's my birthday. I turn 20, I'm in Manila and it's my first time to spend it alone.

2nd week of July 2002- Got sick with Typhoid... the rains just keep pouring.

July 30, 2002 - was drawn to the chapel by the sound of a solo violin playing. There was a wedding, attended by a small crowd (probably just the direct family), but the couple seemed happy. Made me think a lot about God and relationships.

October 4, 2002 - won an on the spot scketching contest (with KC Concepcion as the model)

November 6, 2002 - passed Math 53

May 10, 2003 - reintegrated into society (1st UNESCO GA at the Rockwell Club)

June 2, 2003(midnight) - Went to Eastwood with 4 friends. I turn 21, I drink 2 bottles of beer (SanMig Light lang), the first and only time for me to do so. Of course, not before the prodding and pleading of my companions.

December 2003 - I've had much better Christmas vacations.

Summer 2004- I finish my Math and Physics series, then shift out of my college.

blah blah blah...

....

Quotes from the movie, He Died with a Felafal in his Hand

"hell is other people..."

"If prostitution is the
rental of one's body.
Then marriage is its sale..."

"You criticize yourself to put yourself above criticism..."