The Worst “F” Word

I’m a boy who really doesn’t get mad easily. No matter how bad someone does something to me, I wouldn’t seek revenge or fight back. I would in the form of laughing at that person and backstabbing him a bit, but that’s that. Especially with my friends, my temper meter is in the freezing level when people do or say some bad stuff about me. I’d keep my cool, knowing that everything will be alright if I don’t lose myself. However, there is this one thing I totally loathe, a word that I’d never want to be associated with. This is the word “faggot”. My blood boils every time I hear it. If a guy comes up to me and calls me this, he could just let his face prepare to meet my knuckles.

God-Like

animal |ˈanəməl|

noun

a living organism that feeds on organic matter, typically having specialized sense organs and nervous system and able to respond rapidly to stimuli

• any such living organism other than a human being.

Let’s go back to the Genesis, the beginning of the universe. As scripture has it, God created light, earth, animals, and then he decided to create man. He set man apart from everything else, who He created in the image and likeness of Himself. This, I think, is the coolest part about being a human – we’re all God-like. And this characteristic sets us apart from all other forms of life. I think by now, you’re probably wondering why I decided to mention this brief history lesson, well this is just to provide some background for my word of choice in this blog entry – animal. In Cebuano the pronunciation is entirely different from the English one, I don’t know how to put it in writing though. Animal, in Cebuano, is used much like how hayop is used in Tagalog. Why don’t I want to be associated with this particular word?

All Because of You

In my opinion, the way words are said mean much more than the meanings of the words. This concept explains why we sometimes can understand the emotions and meanings of conversations from films that use languages that we can’t comprehend. In my highschool class, people sometimes curse each other for no reason at all, and it can be funny that way. Since the context and method of saying means more than the word, i decided to chose a factual word rather than an opinion. Other words could be said without meaning them. The word “patalo” to me is something that cannot be used sarcastically, and is also very factual. You wouldn’t be a patalo if nothing bad happened. You can only be a patalo if your team/group/etc lost/failed all because of you. However, it can also be used as an opinion of the one who said it just wants to put the blame on you. Just like other words, patalo can be used for joking too. Hence there is a difference between a patalo used for fun or for namecall and a factual patalo, the cause of all mishap. Thus I don’t want to be a factual patalo, the cause of all crap that happened.

 

Cryptozoology

Almost every time I check the internet now, I see news about new species. Now, this amazes me as much as the next guy, but I’ve always been more interested with creatures we still haven’t discovered, especially those, which, people claim to have seen already. I’m talking about legendary creatures. I’ve heard a lot about these special creatures (humanoids, animal-like beings or even demonic entities), I’ve watched documentaries and heard bizzare stories about them. And there were times when I’d stop to wonder if they were truly real.

of Shakespeare and basketball

Shakespeare once said, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players”. I think he forgot to mention that these men and women happened to be basketball players. There is no greater stage than a basketball court. It displays human emotion, will power, grace and poetry in motion like no theater can. Each game has its own story with intricate plot lines and unexpected twists at the end. Hero and villain are pitted against each other on a nightly basis. This game bleeds drama! …OK, maybe too much drama. Which leaves me to think, NBA might be scripted.

Words Break My Bones

“Keep your hands up, Rein! Always keep your hands up! Or else you’ll get knocked out!”

Training is truly an arduous task. Sometimes I get bruises in my face. This comes from boxing occasionally, just so I can have some form of excercise every now and then. Every punch that lands on the middle area of my face is enough to send me to the stars. No matter how strong I think my bones are, I will definitely be in pain as knuckles come into contact with my face. The only way to not feel this pain is to carefully elude my opponent’s swings and jabs. Only through practice could one attain the limberness that’ll enable swift dodging of an assailant’s strikes. In time, I know the pain would be less since I would be able to avoid most punches. However, even before I started boxing, there has been a kind of pain that cuts through my bones, a pain that not even time could make me avoid. This is the bone crushing agony of being backstabbed. Backstabbing is inevitable. The nicest of people do this, even subconsciously. Perhaps there is a normal person in this world that exists that hasn’t spoken ill of anyone yet. I haven’t seen one, though, making me conclude that backstabbing is something everyone does.

Blame It on the Weather

Imagine a world without balance. A world without laws, limits, or consequences. Could such a world exist? Beats me, but I’m not focusing on worlds in this entry, I’m more interested in this balance. The Chinese already had concepts about balance or duality hence the popular Yin and Yang symbol. And though I haven’t consulted any expert about this, I believe this balance is indeed universal. There always seems to be this universal balance governing us. This balance is described by expressions like “what goes up, must come down” and “what goes around, comes around.” But aside from physics, is there a supernatural balancing force that acts on us? In other words, is there really karma? As for me, I really believe karma is real, and that it works in subtle ways to reward and/or punish.

Mythbusting the Ghostbusters

First of all, I want you to try and imagine a color that doesn’t exist. If you can, well you are either a genius, or a hoax. I think that our imagination draws its creative prowess from the things around us. Things that we see in our dreams come from the things that we see in real life. Have you ever dreamt of something that you have never seen in real life? The events, objects, people, beings, monsters, and creatures in the dreams of normal, non-psychic people are things that are possible for the dreamer to imagine. Yes you dream of monsters that do not exist, but that is because you have seen something similar in the TV, or in comic books. People who are bind since birth can dream, but they cannot see in their dreams. Our fantasy stories have dragons, sea monsters, and fireballs. The existence of these are hard to prove, however it is easy to say that the concept of these creatures and magical phenomenon were inspired by real things like lizards, fish, and flashy scientific and natural happenings like flaming arrows or even the lightning in the skies. But what inspired ghosts? Even if I can’t prove it, I believe that ghosts exist.

Manong G(u)ar(d)

As waves crash against the shorelines of Eastern Samar, it kisses and parts lips with the Pacific Ocean. May 19, 1970 brought not only joy to a young couple in this serene province, it marked the birth of an unsung hero. The brown of his skin boasts of a purely Filipino heritage. His eyes were hidden behind the deep black lenses of a pair of sunglasses, as if to mirror how easily people overlook him. His hands, though rough at first glance, glide smoothly across the strings of a guitar to create heavenly music accompanied by his own voice. It is only fitting that he can produce heavenly music as his inspirations are divine. As an Evangelical Christian, he chooses to go against the flow instead of drifting meaninglessly along with it. In submission to tenets of his beliefs and in defiance to the dictates of society, he neither drinks nor smokes. Ever willing to take risks, in 1989, he decided to pack his bags and leave the comforts of Eastern Samar for the helter-skelter lifestyle of Manila. With a badge, a pen, and a baton, he serves not only the Ateneo de Manila University but his wife of seven years as well. Behind the Kani Bar stall in JSEC, he hides like a tiger ready to pounce on his steady diet of students without IDs. That white polo with a PADPAO patch paired with those blue slacks often mean certain death to those who defy school policies. Calm and collected with his guitar but just and thorough with his pen, he is none other than Manong Edgar Valdinar.

Manong Gard

In his blue and white suit, this man stands proud of his duties. Like an eagle, he scours JSEC for unsuspecting violators. Like a vulture, he stalks them when they are weary. Like a hawk, he silently charges and then swiftly attacks. “Sir, ID niyo?” Boom. Headshot. Dead. Yes, this man is dangerous, but like all of us, he has a good side.