Discoveries and more

Every year, Diwa Asia Publishing Group hosts a Tribute to Teachers, meant as a gesture of appreciation for teachers all over the country. The program comprises of several talks from notable names in inspiration and education, and special performances by select guests from the entertainment industry. The highlight of the event is the recognition of exceptional teachers in the country. 

I have had a chance to see many of these annual events because my eldest brother works for Diwa and is very much involved in the planning of these events, even emceeing most of them himself. Plus, my mom's been a school principal forever so she gets invites to these events anyway (regardless of my brother's involvement), and who else would she ask to go with her but her only remaining unmarried child?

It's always fun watching thousands upon thousands of usually stern, ramrod-straight teachers letting their hair down (where else would you see a nun grooving to Earth Wind and Fire's September?), but this year's event was extra special because of two things:

One, I had a chance to see Gian Karlo Dapul live in action: another Filipino to win this year's International Public Speaking Competition of the English Speaking Union who bested 57 (i think) other contestants from all over the globe, some of which are college level (he's 16 and a high school senior). I went to the same high school he's attending (he called it "an exclusive public school", ha, ha!), and was even classmates with his older brother Omar (my best friend actually saw this kid baptized because she's really good friends with Omar  -- dang, we're old!) so I'm extra proud. Anyway, Diwa invited him over to speak at the program. Yay!

Two, I discovered The Angelos, a local classical pop-tenor group inspired by Il Divo. They were guest performers at the program and I was simply blown away. All I have to say right now is that I'm off to get a CD first chance I get, and I hope to get someone to go see their first anniversary concert at the Music Museum with me.  Can't wait!

All in all, it's been a good weekend. I got to lend a friend an ear, comfort the bereaved, spend quality time with family, even catch up on sleep a bit, in addition to seeing Gian and discovering The Angelos! How's that for productive? :)

Serenity

Things happen. No matter how hard you try to look and plan ahead, some things you just don't see coming. Planning will not save you from the folly of other people's choices, even as these choices wreak more havoc on your carefully cultivated life than theirs, nor can foresight be of any real use to you on those times when your heart suddenly decides to run off on its own with absolute disregard for all your best interests.  

When things don't go your way, do you stay and fight your way through all the obstacles or do you look for another way to go? When is it time to be brave and when is it time to be smart? Fight or flight -- who can tell? It is not always clear. And so I turn to my all-time favorite prayer, when things get to be just a little too much:

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." 

Amen.

 

Mt Pinatubo rocks

... literally. Big rocks, little rocks, stones, pebbles... a whole mountain of them, leading right up to the crater. Check out our Mt Pinatubo adventure last September 22, 2oo8, Sunday:


6 am. Bastie, Dianne, Charlie and I meet up at the Mandarin and drive to Shell NLEX.

7 am. We arrive at Shell NLEX where Nonoy and Eric are waiting. Our group is complete. I make a beeline for Starbucks and pick up coffee and a couple of sandwiches for lunch, then grab a bottle of Gatorade at the convenience store.

730 am. We arrive at the Dau rendezvous point where we meet our 4x4 for the day and its driver, Edwin.

9 am. Capas, Tarlac. Base for Mt Pinatubo trekkers. We leave our cars and board the 4x4 for the 1-hour drive to the jump-off point.



10 am. This is it! We won't be seeing these tires for another 7 hours.


Nothing but feet from here on in. Here we go...


Stream crossing: Shoes off, Charlie!


1015 am. This is fun! Whee!!!


1045 am. That's a lot of rocks...


1115 am. Ok, I'm starting to drag...


1200 nn. This is where we were supposed to have started the trek???


1215 pm. You can do this, Pia: Right foot in front of left, in front of right... Good girl.


1230 pm. Can I just wait for you guys here?


1240 pm. Will this ever end???


1245 pm. Somebody kill me now, please.


1250 pm. Okay, I've died and gone to heaven.



Nothing but this can be worth the 7 hours it took to get here. But worthy it is, even of the three grueling hours of trekking on loose pebbles and slippery boulders, of stubbed toes and blister-peppered feet and screaming joints and burning muscles in places you never even knew existed.

Of course, there were the bonuses: able guide, good weather, great company. Bragging rights don't hurt either. But best of all is the knowledge that we can do it, and boy did we prove it. Yeah!


Team Philippines: Charlie, me, Eric, Nonoy, Dianne and Bastie


Charlie (yep, that's him, that tiny dot in the water) - our offering to the fire gods of Mt Pinatubo, heh, heh.


One more look at the crater (the photos just don't do it justice...)


Thanks Charlie, Eric and Dianne for sharing your photos!

Getting to know your friends: 2008 edition

I got this in the mail today, and I thought it would be a good idea to post this and see how my friends are doing. Would be great it they could email me their answers...

The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

1. What time did you get up this morning?	6:30 am (what time i went to bed last night is another question entirely)
2. Diamonds or pearls?	Diamonds, always
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?	Don't Mess With The Zohan
4. What is your favorite TV show?	Barefoot Contessa
5. What do you usually have for breakfast?	Whatever's on the table
6. What is your middle name?	Tumang
7. What food do you dislike?	Slimy stuff and bitter stuff
8. What is your favorite CD at moment?	In Between Dreams (Jack Johnson)
9. What kind of car do you drive?	I don't drive
10. Favorite sandwich?	Ham, cheese and egg
11. What characteristics do you despise?	Hypocrisy
12. Favorite item of clothing?	Wraps/shrugs of any kind
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?	Venice
14. Favorite brand of clothing?	None in particular
15. Where would you retire to?	Somewhere with clean air
16. What was your most recent memorable birthday?	My 29th
17. Favorite sport to watch?	Next question, please
18. Furthest place you are sending this?	The furthest anyone can get: half a world away
19. Person you expect to send this back to u first?	I'll be waiting to find out
20. When is your birthday?	May 19th
21. Are you a morning person or a night person?	Lately, night
22. What is your shoe size?	6 to 6 1/2
23. Pets?	My affection is more for people than animals
24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us?	I'm back in the workforce!!!
25. What did you want to be when you were little?	No idea. I just know I didn't want to be a doctor. (Huh.)
26. How are you today?	Tired and crampy
27. What is your favorite candy?	Snickers
28. What is your favorite flower?	Stargazer lilies
29. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to?	September 30, 2008
30. What is your full name?	Pia Marie Tumang Policarpio
31. What are you listening to right now?	Forget About Me (Lil Bit), I'm Yours (Jason Mraz), Worlds Collide (Plumb), Love Song (Sara Bareilles)
32. What was the last thing you ate?	Bacon strips and egg sandwich
33. Do you wish on stars?	Yep.
34. If you were a crayon, what color would you be?	Aubergine
35. How is the weather right now?	Drizzling
36. The first person you spoke to on the phone today?	Some call center agent
37. Favorite soft drink?	Diet Sarsi
38. Favorite restaurant?	This is impossible to answer.
39. Real hair color?	Black
40. What was your favorite toy as a child?	Books of any kind
41. Summer or winter?	Summer
42. Hugs or kisses?	Hugs! Hugs!
43. Chocolate or Vanilla?	Chocolate
44. Coffee or tea?	Coffee, but only if I really have to choose
45. Do you want your friends to email you back?	Duh.
46. When was the last time you cried?	Not for a while
47. What is under your bed?	Dust, mostly
48. What did you do last night?	Was on the computer
49. What are you afraid of?	I don't know. Things work themselves out somehow.
50. Salty or sweet?	Salty
51. How many keys on your key ring?	Three
52. How many years at your current job?	One week
53. Favorite day of the week?	Saturday
54. How many towns have you lived in?	Three
55. Do you make friends easily?	Yes, if they manage to approach me first
56. How many people will you send this to?	I dunno yet
57. How many will respond?	I'll be waiting to find out as well

Why, God?

Have you ever had a day gone freakishly wrong, when you just kept getting blindsided by a merciless string of nasty surprises that leave you with the worst headache of your entire existence by far and away, when the utter lack of rhyme or reason to all the misfortune leads you for the first time in your life to seriously consider the possibility that curses are real, when every second nearer to midnight is a little gasp of hope that this most wretched of days will soon end, when the only words that manage to survive the onslaught in your head are "Why, God?"

That, in a word, was Tuesday.

Guess what? Today is Thursday, and I'm alive and kickin'. Guess that means God knows what He's doing.

iTunes 8. Genius!

I discovered iTunes about 3 years ago, when a friend told me to install it so I could listen to the songs on his playlist that I liked. 1 hard-disk crash, 2 PC changes, 3 iPods and countless updates and re-installs later, my iPod and PC iTunes files are so out of sync it's not even funny. How do I even begin to organize 10GB's worth of music into playlists? The mere idea is mind-numbingly painful.

Enter iTunes 8 with the new Genius feature. With just one click of a button, iTunes generates a new playlist of songs in your library that go well with the song you're currently playing, so you get to listen to songs you've probably forgotten you had. If you like it, you can save the playlist. And, for iTunes Store-enabled countries, Genius will even recommend songs from the iTunes Store that you can purchase to go with the song you're playing. How awesome is that? By far the most absolute coolest feature of iTunes ever. Seriously, there's no other word for whoever came up with this: it's simply Genius.

My very own Pensieve

Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, wizarding genius, had the right idea. Again.

Sometimes the mind gets a little too stretched by all those hyperactive thoughts jostling for VIP seats in one's consciousness. Not all of them get the coveted spots, of course, and one can hardly expect the sore losers to go quietly. So some try to unseat the victors, kicking and screaming, while others make nuisances of themselves by hijacking other areas of the brain, areas in charge of migraines, ulcers, palpitations, and every other unpleasant physical manifestation of a troubled mind. What to do with the little miscreants? Take them out and straighten them out, of course. Hence the Pensieve. 

So simple, so brilliant, so Dumbledore. Wish I had one.

Of course, one can argue that neither my thoughts nor my mind are anywhere near as interesting, or as impressive, as the good headmaster's. But then again, they're my inane thoughts, messing around in my simple head, so my need for external storage space is just as valid as his. Maybe more. And because this silly Muggle does not have a prayer of getting her hands on an actual Pensieve, she goes and gets herself a blog spot. Same difference.

Simple, yet effective. Professor Dumbledore would be proud of me.