Soliloquy of Bitterness: I Wish I Could Laugh Out Loud Again

          August 2014, including the last week of July, really had became a “ghost month” for Villamor Air Base Elementary School and the nearby Pasay City South High School.

Construction of temporary/ makeshift classrooms at the VABES grounds

No classes in both Buildings A & B

       It was not one helluva “bakasyon grande” except for school-ignoring rascals and delinquents. The present situation stirs the anxiety. What will be the real score on education in these schools?

        In simple statements... it’s the fault of those people whose connivance took the toll on communities! Blame it all on the conspirators who led the construction without ensuring and guaranteeing the school building’s structural integrity! 

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     “Gallery of the Diarrhea ng Shwangette, Nilasing sa Red Horse na Crêpe Suzette, at si Blob Gunggong”

 

            Ipinasa ko nga pala noong Mayo ang pinaghirapan kong maikling kwento sa Liwayway Magazine... hindi sila nag-reply. Siguro nga na hindi nakapasa, tsktsktsk! Maglalako na sana ako ng aking pocketbooks sa Booksale kaya lang tulad siguro ng National Bookstore, priority din siguro nila sa ngayon dahil trending ang mga published Wattpad novels na ang formula naman ng kwento ay pareho lang sa mga naunang romance pocketbooks, damn it! Pang-akit nga lang kasi ang cover illustration na mala-manga design, ano? Tapos ang usual theme ng kwento- girl meets boy, kilig-kilig plus attraction plus conflicts then climax and then happy ending as usual and predictable as soon as possible.

            This is the story of Matsuri who is head over heels sa crush niyang si Iñigo na actually meron nang long distance affair sa FB friend nito sa Japan na si Harunobu. Nang nalaman ng overseas beki na ang dyowa niyang jokla dito sa Pinas ay sine-seduce at pilit ginagawang lalaki ng karibal niyang hitad, eh di lipad agad ang byuti para turuan ng leksyon ito. And the result, the kalmutan, the sabunutan, all the girly-girly fights with karate, judo, kendo, and sumo wrestling involved hanggang sa nabwisit si Iñigo sa malilibog (in Bisayan dialect for magugulo kasi Cebuano si dong, bay!) at nilayasan na lang ang so-noisy animé-like characters na nag-aagawan sa kanya.

           Papasa ba naman ang plot na ito para sa isang Wattpad novel? Messy, stale story... uupakan ko pa rin ang gagaya nito na magdadagdag ng ilang details pa dito para makapag-Wattpad din sila, nyehehehehe! But I mean it...

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“Gallery of Unrefined Illustrations by a weird blogger called Weirdjtt”

      Sometimes some people pondered on why can’t the virus pester the terrorists and other state enemies in West Africa rather than the people who just want to live in peace.

What just happened to the Holy Land? Mayroon akong isang matagal na matagal nang napanaginipan na hanggang ngayon ay hindi ko malimutan. Sa panaginip, may bitbit daw akong isang mahiwagang kahon na kailangan kong ibaon sa kalagitnaan ng “Palestine City” upang gumana ang isang makapangyarihang “force field” na magtatanggol daw sa naturang lungsod mula sa Israeli airstrikes. Parang science fiction pero sa tunay na buhay, nakakadismaya na ang mga kaguluhan doon dulot ng pagkamainitin ng ilang tao at ang higit na may kaawa-awa ang kalagayan ay ang mga mamamayang naghahangad lamang ng matiwasay na buhay.

Ginaya ko ang nakita ko sa isang encyclopedia article tungkol sa imperialism na meron pang larawan ng isang very satirical editorial cartoon na unang lumabas sa isang late 19th century French journal kung saan ipinakikita ang isang malaking pie na sumisimbolo sa China noong Qing (Manchu) dynasty at ito’y pinaghahatian through spheres of influences by the “powerful and greedy 19th century imperialists” made up of Britain, Germany, Russia, France, and Japan while a grotesque-looking Chinese Mandarin pleading helplessly from behind the group.

Yet things are different now. Another pie represents the controversial disputed territories: the obese boy did not just seize the best slice but the whole pastry itself and threatens his skinny, lean neighbors with his heavy pot belly if ever they come nearer. Ah, the poor children who got deprived of the pies they deserved must make “sumbong” to Big Momma United Nations so she could “pingot-pingot” the fat kid for being that "swapang".

The above illustrations and long caption that follows do not satirize the beautiful country of China kundi ang pagkagarapal and bullishness ng kanilang gobyerno pagdating sa mga disputed territories. Nakagagalit din ang ginagawang katarantaduhan sa biodiversity ng ating bansa ng mga illegal fishermen and poachers nila kasabwat pa ang ilang walang malasakit na mga Pinoy. Wala sa bokabularyo ng mga tsekwang ito ang “endangered species” and “ecological conservation” because of their consumerist mindset and superstitions that’s why they are poaching for the hapless pangolins and sea turtles whose population is already dwindling and so are the corals and other creatures of the great “coral triangle” which includes the Philippines. How about the exotic sharkfin? Ah, the soup of the emperors... bah, humbug!

What if angry storm surges ravage the Chinese military facilities in areas they had claimed based on their historical lies? Imagine, those machine guns, their anti-aircraft rusted. Barracks are abandoned; no more tsekwas, umuwi na sila. And the sea will take these for new coral reefs to grow. What oil deposits? The natural world and the rich biodiversity, yes! And not the fossil fuels which contribute to pollution, greenhouse effect, and global warming and the reason why nations argue and fight for it.

The guardian spirit at the gates of the ancient kingdom of Assyria is disturbed by the noise from the desert! Madalas ang mga balita na mula sa ibang bansa sa Middle East ay pulos kaguluhan at pagkamiserable ng maraming tao doon. Naroon pa ang hindi matapus-tapos na problema sa ilang grupo na pansariling interes lang ang kanilang isinusulong. I think they’re the ones who blaspheme because they mix in their religious beliefs their bigotry, tyranny, wickedness, and selfish motives. Does the world need a superhero? Certainly, that is not the United States but the people in those troubled nations who should strongly unite and fight for the love of their country and for what is right and it is they who must wake the superhero within them.      

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Gallery of the Impressions

The “supermoon” observed last August 10

The blossoming season of the snake plants (Sansevierra)

The pink hydrangea during weeks of blooming

This is probably the second blooming phase before it withers.

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Gallery of Self-Satire

Can shattered dreams be made whole again?

The pathetic weirdjtt and some of the regular but apathetic anonymous readers

            Paborito ko sa lahat ng pelikula ni Robin Williams (may he rest in peace) ang “Mrs. Doubtfire” kaya nga dito sa bahay ay meron kaming VHS at VCD pa nito na mga original, ha. Ayon naman sa isang past Sunday column ni Fr. Bel San Luis sa Manila Bulletin, the late comedian was “laughing on the outside but crying in the inside”. Senior years are supposed to be the happy, golden age where there will be no worries about your job upon retirement or when the kids had grown up and are already on their own. But not Mr. Williams at itong isang public statement tungkol sa kanya mula sa taong malalapit sa kanya na ang kanyang naging buhay ay nagsilbing aral at paalala na kapag may dinaramdam na problema, huwag mag-aatubiling humingi ng tulong at payo. Patangu-tango na lang ako...

            Mag-open up ng heartaches... yeah, yeah, whatever... Punyemas! Eh, dito nga sa blogsite kong ito, may mga past blog posts ako na may mga nakahayag na mga suliraning pinagdaanan ko at ang aking pahiwatig sana ng paghingi ng tulong at payo pero may isa man lang ba na anonymous reader, lalo na ang mga matagal nang nakikibasa o nag-uusyoso dito ang tumugon? NO ONE! GET IT? NO ONE! Mag-open up, ha? Paano naman kung ang mga prospective sanang mga tao kung saan mo sana iko-confide ang iyong mga dinaramdam ay wala naman palang panahon para sa iyo o pakinggan ka at mararamdaman mo yun kahit wala pa silang sinasabi? “Magsabi ka naman kung may problema ka...” Stop those sarcastic words if the reaching out is just superficial, damn it!

            Soliloquy of bitterness... I wish I could laugh out loud again...