December 21 - 27, 2009: It's Christmas Time

This week marks the most awaited event for Christiandom, the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

At home, I hurriedly spruced up our home, brought out the Christmas curtains, put up the remaining Christmas decors which we have not yet put up in the weekend when we started decorating the house. I was just supervising and our helpers were the ones who put up the tree. I am not sure why I am not as enthusiastic as before in decorating the house for Christmas. I told MD that I am getting bored with the old decors. I actually bought additional trimmings for the Christmas trees and some wreaths. Somehow, our home looks festive enough for the season this week.

There is still work in the office but it's the start of the Christmas break for school....ya'y. Going to the office becomes a drag as people's minds are on parties and celebrations.

After office on Monday, my friend V....... and I together with another college classmate went to a party with batchmates at a diner in QC. It's good enough to see old and not so familiar faces anymore. It was a party for three batches which somehow made the affair a little uncomfortable for some. We don't know each other. The consolation was that everyone brought home raffle prices.

On Tuesday, I had to squeeze in shopping for the food packs we distribute to carolers and kids who roam the village on Christmas day.

I had plan to meet up with two friends, one has been long lost, on Wednesday, which went awry. I went home disappointed because I was in party clothes looking forward to a night of fun.

Christmas eve was spent preparing for Noche Buena. MIL was at the helm. I have been so lazy preparing meals lately. I am also not feeling well. We went to hear Midnight Mass in the village chapel. We partook of our Noche Buena. Afterwards, everyone went to bed.

On Christmas day itself, we are expecting hubby's brothers and their family. MIL would be at the kitchen supervising the cooking. I spruced up the house and put on some scents for a Christmassy air. In time, my two BILs would arrive with their family. My youngest brother and his family would also visit as they were not able to go home to his wife's province. There would be dining and some drinking; chatting, and laughing.......... until it was time to go.

In the weekend, we had the traditional family reunion on hubby's side again in QC where there would be gift-giving and kids and anybody without a source of income or those with less which would include the senior family members, household helpers, drivers would line up for money. Earning family members would serve as Santas giving money to those who are lined up. When the party is over, kids are observed to be in high spirits smiling sheepishly with their loot, I mean aginaldo. The designated Santas, on the other han, look like they have just been robbed.

As a country known to spend the longest Christmas season, our celebrations with families and friends would attest to this observation. However, let us not lose sight of the reason for the celebration. Tis the season to be jolly because Jesus Christ, our Savior, was born.

Merry Christmas to One and All!

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December 14 - 20, 2009: Celebrations

It is a crucial week for everyone as this is the week that school requirements have to be completed before the long Christmas break. Some of my students are going away while I relish the thought of staying home for the holiday. It was to be a long and difficult week for everyone as midterms have to be given before we can party on Saturday which was set so as not to conflict with school skeds. As always, students openly talked about my nose-bleed causing exams like I wasn't there during the exams. Prior to the exams, I distributed my Christmas gift, an erasable ballpen, to the delight of my students. The objective portion of my exams should be strictly no erasures. The pen practically invalidated that rule.

We had our institutional party in the office in the middle of the week. It was to be a modest celebration due to the recent calamities that have befallen us. A mass was celebrated followed by a simple merienda cena. The main event is the recognition night for outstanding performers in the Department. If last year was marred by cheating, would this year be any different?

For one, the leeches in cahoots with the HR office are still actively involved in the selection process. As to how this happened beats me. We are supposed to be a planning office, why are we doing HR work! As to why the higher ups are letting this happen is beyond my understanding. Maybe, they just don't want to rock the boat.

What is to be expected with them at the helm? They can't win another time I am pretty sure of that...... sobrang garapal naman niyan if they do it again. But I am sure they will ensure that their friends (if they have any) or those they hob-nob with for favors would win.

Actually, I left the party early pretty much like last year. Rather than subject myself to aggravation, I indulged in therapeutic window shopping at nearby World Trade Center, the biggest bazaar you could find. Similar to my experience last year, I breezed through the entire bazaar aisle to aisle in record time. Inside, I would see familiar faces from the party and we would nod in silence acknowledging each other's presence and smile as we seal a compact of silence about each other's absence from our celebration.

I would have classes in the evening..... I had no plans of buying anything unless it really is a good find. There is an ATM inside WTC which makes shopping so tempting. I intentionally did not bring enough money but just the P800 in my wallet to avoid shopping. However, the pull of merchandising with all the wares displayed is too much to bear for a recovering shopaholic. I was down to my last P30 pesos that a booth owner was trying to still fish from me.... just enough for my bus fare to school. Still, I have not seen the entire center so I hurriedly scoured the last remaining aisles. I found another interesting item, wind chime, which I collect. I haggled with the shopkeeper and she gave me a good price. I told her I have to withdraw money and will be back. When I reached the ATM, there was along line of people queuing for more shopping money.

This time reason prevailed....... I had to forego buying the chime or I will be late for school. I left whimpering because I missed my chance. I rode a bus going to school and paid my fare with my last remaining money. Reaching Makati, I had to withdraw money from the first ATM that I saw. I went to school like nothing happened. I proctored my midterm exams and went home immediately after.

The following day I had to take some time off work to give my midterm exam for the other subject.

MS celebrated his birthday on Friday and I took a leave from the office. They are having their Christmas Party. Like in previous years, I brought some food to add to their Christmas fare. MS is given a portion of the party for his birthday celebration and his classmates would gladly oblige. I would try to be as invisible as possible taking pictures during their party.

We went home afterwards. We have actually hatched a plan with his sisters. We would be going to the Noel Bazaar at WTC in the evening and have dinner somewhere. MD had her cheer-leading practice and we have to wait for her. It was early evening when the kids and I headed for the Noel Bazaar.

I thought it was going to be a pleasant experience but the kids were exhausted from school work, practices, and the parties. They were grumpy once we were in. We did our shopping just the same but not as enjoyable as what we had at Cuenca Ayala Alabang. It was almost 11pm when we finished shopping and headed for the exit.

We still had one more thing to do..... have dinner to celebrate MS's birthday. At that time, there are aren't too many choices. We agreed to stop at any resto that is acceptable to everyone. As we near home, the restos are all close. Except for the 24 hour fastfood restos, there is not much choice. We initially agreed on chowking until i thought about the tapsilog inside the village. When I mentioned it, the girls' eyes glimmer with delight. MS was sleeping and was not a party to the decision.

We came to a stop at the tapsihan inside the village. It's nothing pretentious but the usual tapsihan where you sit, get served, pay, and leave in an al fresco setting. We took our seats and ordered tapsilog, of course. My mouth is watering as I recall the experience. MS ordered hotdog with egg. He hasn't quite acquired Mummy's and the girls' exquisite taste for the ordinary. The service was fast. We ate equally fast. I paid our meal. Soon, we were on our way home. Tired and sleepy, everyone retired to his and her own rooms.

The following day, a Saturday, my dam, Hershey, has been showing signs of whelping since morning. I was nearby to give her a hand. Everyone is watching her. Hours passed and she still has not whelped. I was worried that she will do it in the evening. I would be attending our school party. I briefed my helpers on what to do in case she whelped.

I did my usual chores while waiting for Hershey to whelp. By late afternoon, I got ready to go to my party as I repeated instructions on assisting Hershey. I was about to go when my helper called out to me that Hershey's pup was already coming out. Good timing Hershey, as usual. I expected I would be delayed and made calls to several people as follows:

a dog buyer I am meeting in my office prior to the party
a couple of friends who will hitch a ride with me to the party
the vet to tell her to be on stand by

As I do this, Hershey wouldn't whelp like the other times i assisted her. The puppy would not come out. I decided to tell the vet to come over. While waiting, I was still assisting my dog. In my party clothes, I was slumped on the floor cajoling my dog to push as we rubbed her tummy and I pulled her thingy. The vet was caught in traffic. After more than two hours, the first pup came out..... alive. Thank God!

People were calling me. I kept telling them i would be out as soon as one pup is out.... but I couldn't leave. I told the dog buyer that maybe she should just proceed to my home. Luckily, she agreed. Soon, the second puppy was coming out. It was breech.......... oh no. Hershey had a hard time. I was so into it myself. I asked MD to call the vet to update her on the status. After much effort, the second puppy came out........ but he's gone. It felt bad because I saw that puppy moving just minutes ago.

Soon, the dog buyer came. I had to meet them somewhere in the village. I brought them home, settled our transaction, and they left with the puppy.

The vet was already at my house at this time. and I could breathed a sigh of relief. One more puppy came out.... alive. I told the vet I had to for to the party and excused myself. I am confident that Hershey is now in good hands so I can leave.

I thought about the best way to get to the venue and decided not to go through SLEX expecting bad traffic there. I took airport road instead and went out to Roxas Boulevard and entered EDSA. Luckily, I was right on track. The whole trip including weaving and maneuvering took just about an hour. Along the way, I would text our administrative head to include me in the grand raffle where a TV set is the top prize telling her I was on the way. I actually felt I had no chance of winning based on previous experience but still I had to make sure I am in the raffle for the heck of it.

The party was almost over when I arrived. People were assembling their loot, I mean gifts. One would get a huge box to put all his gift. I was given one gift as a consolation for my effort in getting there. I joined some games and group photos and had a quick bite. Soon, guests started leaving. I was among the last to leave.... just so I could spend some more time or my party clothes would have not been optimally used.

Going home, I drove leisurely thinking about my day. When I got home, I saw Hershey nursing her new-born pups though our glass door. I thought I saw two pups and when once I got inside I saw four puppies happily sucking away.......... It was a sight to behold.....as once again, a circle of life begins......

On Sunday, I was too tired for anything else............. But I had to fetch our pom, Poochie, from the vet's clinic. She gave birth to two pups who died eventually early this week. It's her first time to whelp. We were saddened but thankful that Poochie is alive and well.

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December 7 - 13, 2009: Tyangges and Bazaars

All of us have to do shopping for gifts for friends and others this week. Shopping for family members happen just a few hours before Christmas. Next week will be the last week for school and there will be parties all over town.

I am actually cramming too....... preparing my lessons and midterm exams. There has not been enough time to cover more lessons and it is harder as some requirements were missed. Our midterm exam is scheduled next week. In this mode, I should work efficiently and very, very quietly to get things done. As Christmas approaches, work in the office would take a lull. I was actually surprised to receive an email from the boss and later from my colleague asking for a report.

In the weekend, I would go to the bazaar in Cuenca Ayala Alabang with the girls on Saturday night and my son on a Sunday evening. We had to do it separtely due to conflict of sked. MD wanted to study on Sunday. During my date with the girls, we had to rush with our shopping because it was 30 minutes to closing time. The girls and I went separate ways to cover more areas. Some booths were already closed and some were closing but would still accommodate customers. Even with the little time and just a handful of booths opened, the girls were able to complete their shopping. I bought some DVDs and MS's exchange gift.

The following day it was MS's turn. He said he needs to shop for some more gifts for his friends and favorite teachers. Initially, ED was coming with MS and but decided not to. So it was just MS and I. We had enough time so we shopped leisurely. At some point while waiting for a gift that has to be personalized, MS and I had dinner. Surprisingly, MS liked the adobo flakes that I ordered for him. At home, he wouldn't touch anything adobo.

After shopping, we went home contented with our finds. MS was so pleased with the tyangge experience that for the first time he asked if we could do it again. I promised him we'll visit another time.......

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November 30 - December 6, 2009: Joy Ride

The week started well as it is actually part of the extended holiday.... hip, hip, hooray! I was hopeful that this is going to be a good week. After all, I came from a trip, a joy ride actually, to Subic with my friend V..... and MD and MS in the weekend. The kids and I have not seen the much vaunted highway which is compared to Colorado freeway and we wanted to see for ourselves.

Much of the week is quiet as the leeches are again happily doing other people's jobs in another office. It is actually a source of additional income for them as they claim overtime pay which has somehow become regular income for them as it comes regularly like clockwork. Because work in the office would have its lull, they willingly take on other people's work. Provided not much brainpower is used, they can fight off sleep. Sleeping during office hours is tolerated for them especially now that the boss literally has abandoned this office and left it for the dogs.... They have this beautiful relationship with our HR that seems to take wings in terms of extending the function of this office to include HR work. It works fine for them as a source of extra income and other perks. Can you imagine being close to HR personnel?

As weekend approaches, one of my dogs gave birth to three puppies. However, one puppy was born dead while the other one died after less than a day. The lone male puppy is coping up well.

In the weekend, I finally was able to contract out the electrical job that has long been pending. Little by little, we are unearthing the many defects and problems our home have..... Before it gets any more complicated, I better remedy the situation. It seems that I am the only one who is concerned about these things in the house. I should have studied to be an electrician so that I can be more learned about the tricks of the trade.....

One of the electrical work in the contract is the installation of a safer outlet for my jacuzzi and heater. I have not enjoyed this amenity for so long because I was not able to buy a heater for it immediately. When I finally bought the heater, the water pressure was not enough so the heater would not work. I had to buy a pressurized tank to increase water supply in the second floor. When finally everything was complete, my shower enclosure jacuzzi's water mixer would turn out to be wrongly installed such that the hot water opening would not close once turned on. It took sometime before the water mixer would be repaired because the company sent incompetent technicians who cannot properly diagnose the problem. I had to threaten them on bringing the matter up to the attention of the proper authority before action was taken. True enough, it was a simple problem that has been misdiagnosed. When the safety switch was installed, I tried my jacuzzi after a long time. Before I would use it with cold water and I would chill after sometime. This time, the water was lukewarm and it felt soft and warm like being enveloped by a soft snuggly comforter. It felt good that I was dousing off. I was enjoying the rhythm of the water ......... until the heater tripped. It's not working again. My bliss was abruptly and unceremoniously cut......... argggggggghhhhh!!!!

Just as the week started on a high note, it ended on a rather sour note.............

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I Dream a Dream in FB

It must be maddening not to be facebooking in a day.... The various applications or apps take people by a storm.... that working and facebooking or studying while facebooking or twitting is now our current way of multitasking.... as we try to get connected with people all over the globe.

My fascination with facebook came quite late. All my friends kept telling me to use it. I signed in early enough but unfortunately couldn't log in all the time. Our office network has a firewall which blocks the application. Thank God for one lucky break.... Our network bogged down and we had to be connected to the server of the building which houses our office..... actually ilegally connected as intimated by our all-around colleague who also performs network job for us. I would accidentally discover that facebook can be accessed. Since then, I am always logged on to facebook and would discover its various apps. I recently joined twitter. I have been a long-time multiply user for many reasons. Of course, I will not abandon my yahoo for sentimental reasons.....

Unless you're septuagenarian who is tech-phobic, you know what I'm talking about and in all likelihood is hooked too. So what are the apps I go for in facebook?

I play scrabble on a regular basis. I have these running games with a couple of formidable opponents, one, a fellow Pinoy and another an Englishman who's not from New York..... I developed an addiction to this game probably a year ago. I was playing at games.com until the scrabble board was closed because another party bought the rights to the game. I was devastated to say the least, because I was a purple player already.... two notches lower than the two highest notches, a red player and an orange player. Naturally, when I rediscovered scrabble in facebook, I was ecstatic.... so much so that there were times I was trading sleep for playing. Over time, I tempered my addiction and content myself playing with these two guys. On occasion, I would play with new opponents. At the height of my addiction, the network would be sooooooo slow or would just quit on me and I'd lose a game because my opponent would force forfeit when you can't play within the time limit. I play two-minuter because I get bored when an opponent takes too long. I lost many games where I was ahead because the game was forced forfeited. Some sneaky players would do so just 1 sec after your time lapsed. As I tempered my addiction, I got to know good players whom I play with on a regular basis. Soon, we would just play open games without time limit. Occasionally, I would indulge in a game or two with new opponents.

But I can't believe there are creeps in what I consider a mentally-stimulating game.... I encountered bigots a number of times....... I would also get some indecent proposals from virtual lotharios. They would usually be friendly and ask if you could be friends. Once you agree, they will begin checking you out... your profile, photos, maybe your mind through your posts...... Then, offer you the opportunity of a lifetime..... There was this guy from Australia who ask if I was married. I told him that is my son I am smoldering on my profile picture. He repeated his question. I told him I am. Undeterred, , he ask if I would like to have an affair. I asked him why the hell is he looking for a tryst on a boring game like scrabble. He quited on me and I won the game...... I was way ahead anyway. Inspite of this and even if I am past my addiction, I still love this game.

As I begin getting acquainted with more apps, I would notice that these apps would eat so much of your time if you play them on a regular basis. I do...... along with my work in the office, in school, and at home. I manage but would hardly stand up from my seat the entire day that I would not notice the passage of time.

After scrabble, I discovered farmtown when I accepted a friend's invitation. Later on, I noticed there was farmville too. Before I knew it, I also set up a farm in farmville. Initially I thought, it was simply planting, harvesting, and selling and buying stuff for the farm. I would discover many things you can do in your farm. These games are constantly evolving too as the site developers add more features to the games to make it more interesting.

At some point, I was becoming bored with farmtown partly because the animals are useless. They do not help increase your money. Farmville became more interesting. That was until I accidentally discovered working for other farms can make you earn more and having other farmers work in your farm increase your crop value and save on plowing costs. These twists switch my interest back to farmtown that I now find earning more money is faster in farmtown than in farmville.

Recently, a cousin whom I have just "friended" (heard that unfriend is the latest "in" word) told me that one can adopt various animals, get stuffs, and earn bonus points by watching out friend's activities. Upon learning this, I immediately applied the new-found knowledge. Now, my interest has been shifted once again.

My farms for both farmtown and farmville have an uncanny similarity........ like where cottages are located or where the animals are placed; how the trees and crops are arranged. I want simlar trees bunched together like most farmers I know and visited. Both farms would give a glimpse of my character. Being Pinoy, it is important to have security, I had my entire farm fenced at the very start. It was still small so it was manageable. As it grew, I had to rearrange and buy more fence materials. After some time, I decided to stop fencing my farm and would just consider it when my farm is arranged to my liking.....

I am thinking about getting my mansion for the farm which my mind resist. I want the farm to maintain the charm of the countryside and that would mean doing away with the trappings of city life. A mansion or a villa would make my farms too cosmopolitan. Recently, I set up a river that flows around my farm. In real life. it will take enormous resources before one could set-up his own river or lake in a farm. In farmtown and farmville, just work for the money and one can have anything. Purchases add up to one's XP........ which means I might not be able to avoid buying the mansion after all.

As my fascination with the different apps grew, I was struck by a question raised by ED's friend as narratyed by ED during one of our family casual talks. ED's friend was asking why oldies play farmville or farmtown. Hmmmmmm, I don't know how accurate the question is ...... because it sounds as if the oldies, them and aww shucks alright, me, have a monopoly of the game.

I did a quick check of my neighbors and fellow farmers and indeed the rather amusing but astute observation of ED's friend looks like a valid contention. MD would somehow seem to confirm this observation as she blurted out that one of her BFF's mom also has a farm.... This would bolster the validity of ED's friend hypothesis. Now, I am raising the same question.... Why are the oldies farming?

Let's put the question in the proper perspective. Is the observation true across genders, geographical boundaries, classes, status, and other demographic delineation? How do we define oldies? baby boomers, seniors, gen x, y? Let's see.

Let me base the facts of this case on my own expeience as a 'farmer'. My neighbors for both farmville and farmtown are mostly females save for a couple of boys and one or two guys. I can hire people to plow for farmtown which means I have more than 11 neighbors, 16 actually. I have more neighbors in farmville because of my cousin, a farmville addict, who asked her brood of 6 to befriend me on facebook. Not all of them are into farmville, only the girls. Not all the girls are my neighbors, only the younger girls. Her teenage daughter plays farmville but is not my neighbor. Even my own girls are not into farmville and farmtown but they play another farm apps which they claim to have better graphics. MS used to have a farm until his FB was accidentally invalidated.

In the real word, most of my 'neighbors' are working or are in business that require them to use a computer. Hence, they can sneak into their 'farms" in the virtual world many times in a day...... like I do. I am also assuming that my 'neighbors' are PC or laptop owners and not merely relying on hardware in the office or school. Why? Because there are responsibilities to owning and tending a 'farm'. Crops can rot if left unattended after they become harvestable. One should be attuned to the timing of their crops. There were times I had to wake up in the middle of the night or early morning to check on my crops. I used to do this at the height of my addition to scrabble..... and here I am again.

A few of these neighbors have grown tired of the application and are now hardly touching their farm. A number of guys whom I invited to become my neighbors set up a farm just for the heck of it and never touched their farms or have abandoned their farms totally.

Most of my neighbors are fellow Filipinos but I have a couple of neighbors and some buddies from foreign lands. In the market place, I notice that there are generally more women than men at any given time. Most of my neighbors and even myself are also into other apps.

The above information will give me a profile of a typical farmer in farmville or farmtown. Farmers who stay for the long haul are mostly women; gainfully engaged in work or business; have family; are not too young nor too old; are multitaskers (based on the number of apps they are using plus the fact that we are able to juggle real and virtual work); and are bound to be compulsive users of the apps until satiation sets in. Having compiled this profile, I think I am inclined to agree with the hypothesis of ED's friend that farming is for oldies.

Now, lets try to explore that question a bit further and ask why we are playing farm..... This time I am basing the answer on my own personal opinion. I can only half-guess what's on the minds of the rest of the farmers.

Among the apps, I chose to play farming because it is like living a dream. The prospect of owning a farm in real life seems far-fetched right now even if I would like that so much. Imagine spending a weekend in a farm with its fresh air, trees and crops, animal sounds......... a commune with nature after a long and stressful week. Doesn't that sound cool? Just thinking about it make my mind drift from my reality.

However, it's not going to happen anytime soon. Aside from the lack of resource to buy a land to convert into my dream farm, time is also wanting. I don't even know how to stretch the weekend to do my chores at home. How can I even think that I would have the luxury of time to spend the weekend in a farm......

With that dream buried somewhere in the deep recesses of my mind, farmville and farmtown would be the next best thing as these apps provide the platform to make my own dream farm. These apps provide instant gratification as one can see immediate results from the fruits of one's labor. If one 'works' hard, she can easily transform a simple farm into a dream farm in no time. Excitement builds up as one aspires for attaining his goals in transforming her farm every step of the way. There are also learning experience as one is taught planning; saving; investing (in equipment or building wih usage) vs consumption (of decorations and buildings for recreational purposes); comparing alternatives (hiring vs. own labor); and learning from mistakes or experience( I accidentally deleted a plant monster purchased by MS as a gift for me). Here, the impossible becomes possible. In real life, I could not buy a river even if I have the means but the platform allow me to do that...... and I love the waters...... The whole farm can be rearranged to one's specification as trees and buidings become movable properties which can be moved, sold, or used which is infeasible in real life. The thrill comes from seeing one's farm improve as one keeps on playing the apps.

I have also been receiving invitations from friends to try cafeworld, mafia wars, yoville but I have kept these invitations at bay. The apps are really time-eaters because they tend to become compulsion after sometime. For now, I am contented with my make-believe farms. Lest, I am willing to risk developing carpal tunnel syndrome..... even now, I can feel some sensation and tension on my wrist whenever I spend too much time on the pc or laptop......... it's worst when I am using laptop actually......

However, there are still dreams that are waiting to be lived out even in the virtual world. Like most people, I would love to have my own business, a restaurant perhaps, and be my own boss........... Hmmmmmmmmm.......Pretty soon I think that I am gonna have my own cafe-resto at cafeworld..... That will be the culmination of my virtual dream for now.......

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