CWTS (Citizen Welfare & Training Service) is over. But I’m still going to keep relations with CAP (Concerened Artists of the Philippines), since I volunteered to make and maintain their Kontra-Busal campaign website. I guess it’s the least I can do for being relatively inactive in the CWTS course as compared to my other classmates whose job assignnments made them do all sorts of heavy tasks.

MCO had a semender outing at some resort in Valenzuela last Saturday. Buong araw akong nag-swimming, kumain, tapos nung gabi, nag-videoke, uminom ng kaunti, then revealed things I shouldn’t have told some people. Ala-una na ‘ko nakauwi.

Lastly, as expected, with a new batch of incoming freshmen who are prioritized in subject enlistments, the CRS (Computerized Registration System) has failed to enlist me in the coveted general elective subjects I chose. Gone are the days when I got all the subjects I wanted and needed. Good luck to me and my first time to go hunting for slots.

[POST SCRIPT: 20:30 PM] In my search for options, I just found out that there are new MST general elective subjects offered this year. EEE 10 (Everyday EEE: Kuryente, Radyo atbp.), ES 10 (Forces at Work), GE 1 (Earth Trek) and MS 1 (Oceans & Us). May pag-asa pa ‘ko. Sana may slots pa sila. Hindi ako magu-underload.

Saturday afternoon. Matapos mamasyal sa bayan, bumalik kami sa barrio kung saan nandoon yung bahay nina Snap. Kinailangang bumalik ni Snap sa Maynila noong umagang ‘yon kaya naiwan kami sa lugar nila. Kumain kami ng tanghalian sa bahay ng kamag-anak nila.

Ako naman, kinailangan kong umuwi noong araw ding ‘yon dahil marami akong kailangang asikasuhin sa susunod na araw para sa Lunes. Dahil sa Linggo pa nang umaga uuwi sina AD, Prech at Marella, ako lang ang bumiyahe mag-isa.

When I reached town, I was confronted with the choice of just taking an airconditioned van back to Manila. I decided against it. Riding an “ordinary” bus with all the windows open, I’ve just realized, is just a treat incomparable to the ‘comforts’ of being sheltered inside airconditioned vehicles. All the wind, the heat of the sun, the other passengers, the sights, the sounds, the smell, ah… It’s an experience on its own. Just close the windows once you reach Manila. Plus, it’s much cheaper.

The highway from Infanta to Famy is such a scenic road trip with the view of the sea and the Sierra Madre. I was about to say it’s one of the best views on the road I’ve seen but I remembered Palawan and its genuinely lush mountains and all that. Still, the sights were awesome.

After two hours of passing through Real, Quezon and its part of the Sierra Madre mountains, we finally touch flat ground in Famy, Laguna. But it was all zigzags again once we reached the next town of Mabitac on the way to Rizal.

The next day, pumunta kami ng bayan at namasyal.

Pansin na pansin pa rin ang pinsalang natamo ng bayan mula sa landslides at baha. Maraming bahay pa rin ang hindi na inayos. Pero sa kabuuan ay nakakabilib rin na mistulang nakabangon na ang bayan mula sa trahedya.

After unpacking, we went straight to the beach, which was just in front of Snap’s family’s Infanta home. Ang ganda ng dagat! But at first I was a little turned off with all the logs and stones and pebbles scattered at the beach. I was bothered with the thought of the landslides months ago and illegal logging and all that. Nakakagalit, especially when Snap narrated their family and their town’s ordeal during those terrible days. Anyway, eventually, I still found the beach beautiful with that ‘untourist-y’ serene charm.

It was too hot that afternoon. After a few minutes at the beach, I gave up and went straight to where the nearest shade was. I also had a bad headache so after a few minutes I went back to Snap’s house and slept. Before I reached the house though, I got chased by some dogs. The scare I got made my headache really throb and that sucked.

Late that afternoon, we all went back to the beach. I didn’t swim tho’. Masakit pa rin ulo ko noon. Halos walang alon sa dagat, ang ganda.

Most of my blockmates are either busy with CWTS or are in their home provinces spending their vacations with their families. I guess that’s why they weren’t able to go with us to Infanta.

So kumusta naman ang org outing? Lima lang kaming tumuloy! It’s regrettable that the rest weren’t able to go. Kami-kami lang nina AD, Prech, Marella and of course, ang host namin sa Infanta, si Snap, pero masaya pa rin.

We rode an “ordinary” (unairconditioned) bus from a bus station along Legarda in Manila. The bust left at around 7:30 AM.

After almost five hours on the road, we arrived in Infanta, Quezon. That was a little past 12 noon.

I didn’t want to spend the whole day at home. Dahil na rin siguro ayokong masyadong maisip ang sinabi sa ‘kin ni Eka kagabi sa Y!M. Kung ano ‘yon, mga piling tao lang ang may alam. Anyway, para na rin makatulong ako sa pag-generate ng FOPC points para sa orgs ko, I went to school and spent almost the entire day earning tambay points for CAST and MCO. Nakakabagot rin ah. Ten (10) FOPC points per person per hour. Para kaming sinasangla at may ‘interes’ na lumalaki the longer we stay there. Ewan.

Nung tumatambay ako for CAST, wala talaga kaming magawa dahil walang nagdala ng board games or what. Kaya nagpicture-picturan na lang kami. Hehe.

Noong nagtanghali naman, ang init!!! Pero bearable kasi kasama ko orgmates ko. Kahit nakalog-on ako as CAST member, doon ako sa MCO tumambay kasi umalis na ‘yung ibang orgmates ko sa CAST. May scrabble at uno (card game) pero nagpicture-picturan pa rin kasi minsan talaga aliw kunan ang mga sarili namin ng litrato lalu na ‘pag bored talaga.

5 PM na ako naglog-out. Mga 60-70 tambay points din nabigay ko.

KONTRA-BUSAL
Sa CAP (Concerned Artists of the Philippines) kung saan ako naka-assign para sa CWTS (Civic Welfare Training Service), nasa grupo akong tumutulong sa pagbubuo ng Kontra-Busal (Anti-Gag) campaign na kasalukuyang naglalayong bantayan at tutulan ang mga panukalang batas sa Kongreso na may mga probinsyong i-censor ang mga artista at journalists para protektahan ang mamamayan laban sa “terorismo” at “pornograpiya”. Hindi pa masyadong buo ang campaign at kulang pa sa mga kasaling miyembro. Hindi ko talaga alam kung paano ako, bilang isang hamak na college student, makakatulong. Wala pa naman talaga akong contacts sa film industry. Ewan. Tingnan na lang natin.

“SORRY, PERO…”
Last Monday and yesterday, sumama ako sa mga kaklase ko sa CWTS na naka-assign sa CWS (Center for Women’s Studies). Gumagawa sila ng video tungkol sa teenage reproductive health, parang ganun, sa pamamagitan ng isang drama tungkol sa tatlong dalaga na may problema sa sex. May acting role ako doon kaya ako umepal. Haha.

ROLES I’VE PORTRAYED
Napansin ko lang sa mga roles na nagampanan ko. First, in Kuya David’s Sugat, I was Wacks, a high school boy who toyed with a girl’s feelings and eventually made her commit suicide. Then in Pia’s Film 112 project, I was a seminarian who ‘bullied’ my room mate, found out and told everyone that he was gay and eventually made him commit suicide too. Now, in Center for Women’s Studies’ Bagong Himig, I’m Ray, another high school boy who this time got her girlfriend pregnant but won’t take responsibility for the child.

Honestly, I didn’t feel completely comfortable portraying those roles. They’re so… un-me. I always cringe every time I picture myself saying the lines I said. Sobra akong nasasagwaan tuwing napapanood ko sarili ko. Why am I always the asshole jerk? Haha. Pero sino ba naman ako para pumili ng mga karakter na gagampanan ko. Hindi talaga ako artista. Hm, ayos lang talaga lahat. Productions are fun and everything. “Kinaya” ko naman. There’s really no problem. I’m just saying na hindi hiyang sa ‘kin ‘yung mga roles na ‘yon.

The possibility of Chinese vegetables entering the country’s markets has already drawn strong opposition from local vegetables producers, who said that opening up the country to cheap Chinese goods would kill the uncompetitive and underdeveloped local vegetable industry. [highlight mine]

[ABS-CBNnews.com, May 2, 2005]

There are different ways of looking at this. We can close our market from cheap Chinese vegetables to protect the producers in our inefficient and “uncompetitive” vegetable industry, and have consumers bear the high price of local vegetables. Or, we can open up the market to cheap Chinese vegetables, “lose” our local vegetable industry, but have consumers benefit from cheap vegetables. Given, before trade barriers are brought down, we should first be prepared for the competition. This can be done through government subsidies or through advanced research on how we can produce more nutritious vegetables more efficiently. Sana hindi naman ganoon katanga ang gobyernong isalang kaagad ang ’sisiw’ laban sa ‘tandang’. If by then after these have been accomplished and Chinese vegetables still come out as cheaper and more efficiently produced, then I guess it would actually be better if we shift the labor and other resources we spend producing local vegetables into industries where we are more competitively at an advantage. Then export whatever the products are, to recover whatever trade deficit we might incur. Again, there are various ways of looking at and tackling this issue. I just don’t think closing our market to cheaper Chinese vegetables “to protect local vegetable producers” is a good idea. That’s not the end-all solution, and it might even bring about more disadvatages to our economy. The producers’ gain is still the consumers’ loss.

Ngeh, s’yempre kala mo kung sino akong ekonomistang nagsasalita. He he. Don’t take my word for it.