It’s raining heavily again. And it sucks so badly because I’ll attend a friend’s recital in an hour.
I know that rummaging through the streets to ride a jeep as a last resort won’t do me any good. Probably by now, most of the streets in Manila are flooded at knee level with unidentified floating objects (UFO’s) (e.g. floating ipis, floating plastic, and the worse I saw, floating diapers) following the rippling of the waves. I remember one instance when I’m about to go home from duty during a heavy rain (I’m wearing white pants and shoes), I removed my shoes and socks and went barefoot along the streets, stepping on UFO’s while I see some students who ride the pedicab for 50 pesos just to “ferry” you across the street. Mga abusado talaga ang mga yan, pero kung sabagay tumataas na ang level of education ng mga Pilipino ngayon ah, at least naaply nila ang law of supply and demand. But I still stick to my point, bwiset parin sila! I felt so miserable that time with my backpack on my right hand and my shoes on the left while my umbrella is sandwiched between my armpits.
Speaking of umbrellas, I think they won’t be a welcome remedy at this time. I’ve had so many experiences of my umbrellas turning inside out during a heavy downpour. That’s why mine don’t usually last long, its either I lose them or they get broken. I’ll most likely be kind to my umbrella this time.
Oh, finally, the rain stopped already. Thank you Lord!
"Allan...", he called me five minutes after just stating my name.
I sheepishly replied, "Sir, it’s Drei..." with a voice full of warmth and a reassuring face just like any nurse would give. I hurriedly changed his soiled linens and proceeded to bath my patient and dress him afterwards to give him the comfort he needs most right now.
The room was empty with only me and my patient. It smelled of alcohol and dried blood like any hospital would. There was stillness in the room, the kind of stillness that you would not aspire for. For room was silent with only the sound of the television and the buzzing of the air condition. And it has always been like that. No calls and messages from relatives, no notifications nor visits whatsoever. A deafening silence hit the room once more that kept me uneasy. “Say something!”, I said to myself.
"It’s time for your morphine… feel any pain?"
“A little…”, he said
“Where?”
“No, it’s okay… I can tolerate it…”
“Okay sir, I’ll just get back to you later…”
“Ok, Archie…”
Archie.. Archie.. Now where did he get that name? Surely, my nameplate doesn’t say Archie or anything close to that. I replied with the same affect the first time he got my name wrong by replying, “It’s Drei…”I proceeded with my work, hiding my uneasiness.
I checked the flow rate and the patency of the IV fluid line, and got fixed on its drops that seemed like particles of sand trickling in an hourglass on a countdown to my patients expiration. He is suffering from leukemia, the kind that spreads to the bones causing pain that can only be alleviated by drug therapy. The doctors said he won’t live long, maximum of three months say without the complications. All the while, he has been in this ward for about two weeks, all I can say is that he has been deteriorating day by day with the his solitude while his life being sucked slowly out of his flesh, coming closer and closer to playing with death.
That night, while giving his pain killer drug, he asked me if he could call me “Archie”. I gave in to his requests if he wants me to be called that way. He wont live long, I thought.
The next day, he went to a state of comatose. He was brain dead with only the machine supporting his heart beat and breathing. It was a moment of useless strife and of efforts wasted. We all know where it ends. It was a moment I still wasn’t prepared to face. Feelings of melancholy and of urge of pursuit to let one man live pervaded the room. But still, the kind of silence that once pervaded the room never seemed to disappear. It was a silence of peace.
A creaking sound came from the door, two figures of guys, dressed in white came in through the door.“Who are they?”, I asked the doctor who was on the sala of the room while I’m busy preparing the lifeless body for the morgue.
The doctor replied, “His children, Archie and Allan are here…”
And it all came to me in an instant…they came back.
After my very wholesome and un-libelous blog post last week, let's now talk about probably the most abused from of transportation there is in Manila, the "Jeepney".
"Jeep", as it is fondly called, characterizes much of what is being Filipino with its colorful displays and the sense of togetherness when you have a ride.
However, here I am still wondering on some ideas or practices that govern the jeepney experience.
1. Bakit kailangan pagkasyahin ang walong tao sa isang row ng upuan? Di ba magkakaiba ang sizes o laki ng pwet ng mga taong sumasakay? Bakit kailangang ipilit ang di na talaga kasya?
2. Bakit minsan sobrang dumi ng mga kuko ng jeepney driver at tila proud na proud parin na makatanggap ng sukli ang pasahero? Di ba kayang mag practice ng hand hygiene ang mga ito? Okaya nama'y bakit di na lang nila putulin ang kanilang mga kuko para di namumutiktik doon ang bacteria.
3. Bakit kailangang magging garapal minsang ng mga driver sa pasahero? Ung tila bang hinihintuan ang kada street na madaanan kahit na late na late ka na?
4. Bakit minsan di ka pa nakakababa sa jeep, umaandar na ito? Can't they wait?
Minsan talaga sobrang nakakabadtrip sumakay ng jeep, maliban sa sobrang init at hassle na, nakakabadtrip pa yung driver sa pagmamaneho nya.
Everyone's talking about it. You've probabbly heard from your showbiz updated friends, from the pointless talk shows that feature relentless gossip, or simply from the chismosong tambays in the kanto (drug addicts and inefficient barangay tanods included) the scandal of Shaina Magdayao and John Lloyd Cruz who were allegedly rushed to the hospital with the penis of John Lloyd sandwiched between Shaina's labia.
But the truth to that is not my utmost concern, I'd rather focus on my recommendations if it already happened:
1. If my penis suffered the same fate, I would NOT rush to a hospital, rather I would just call a doctor to come by my house and fix it in a jiffy.
2. I would probabbly use all means (retractors, lubricants) to remove it by the do-it-yourself method - cost effective and spares you from shame
3. I would first search the net on the possible management or first aid. - again, it is cost effective and spares you from shame.
4. John Lloyd should have considered warming up first her vagina during foreplay to check and see if it is patent. Prevention is better than cure.
Grabe! Nagising nanaman ako sa ingay ng dramahan ng mga kapitbahay namin. Ung para bang nakamega phone na umaabot ang sigaw hanggang sa kwarto ko. Minsan para bang Pinoy Big Brother sila pero puro boses lang naririnig mo, minsan iniisip ko nga na baka naka 24/7 live streaming ako sa kanila at minsan mas updated pa ako tungkol sa kanila kesa sa kanilang facebook account.
Minsan alam ko na kumakain sila dahil rinig na rinig mo talaga ang kanilang mga kwentuhan at mga kubiertos. Dati naman, ito yung time na nagaaway sila dahil sa isang pokpok na pinatos nung lalakeng asawa nya. By the way, ung kapit bahay naming parang compound sya na ung buong ankan ay nandun. Bata’y sa aking naririnig, gusto ko man o hindi, may magasawa na nakatira sa bahay ng tatay ng babae.
Naalala ko nung isang midnight eto ang nangyari…
Babae: Oh, san ka nanaman galing?
Lalake; Ahh uminom lang kami nila pare…
B: Ha? Hirap na hirap na akong kumayod tapos gumugoodtime ka lang?!
L: Nageenjoy lang naman minsan..
B: Ahh wala! Siguro nag table ka no?
L: (Walang sagot..)
B: Ahhh putanggiiinnaaaa! Pintatulan mo ang pokpok!
L: (tahimik)
B: Tanginnaaa… Tayyyyy!
Tatay: oh ano nangyari?
Tapos ayun, puro kalabog na narinig ko. Parang radio drama tuloy ako dito sa aking kwarto.haha BV talaga sila minsan, sarap sarap ng tulog ko eh. :/
Nagsimula ang lahat noong ako'y unang tumapak sa Maynila upara magpasa ng aking mga form na pangapply sa kolehiyo. Sa totoo lang, shushunga shuna pa ako noon, ung tipong ikakahiya mo dahil di marunong sumakay sa taxi dahil wala sa probinsya nila nun, ung tipong amaze na amaze sa LRT and MRT ticketing service dahil sa tinggin sya sobrang hi-tech nito, at ung tipong di alam ang ibig sabihin ng Ped Xing.
Kahit kung sa tinggin ninyo'y ako na ang umako ng lahat ng kabobohan sa mundo nung naghagis si Lord nito, nagawa ko namang pumasa sa eskwelang natripan ko. Pero kung siguro'y nababasa ng mga naginterview sakin noong kolehiyo itong basurang blog ko, malamang iconsider pa akong threat to their national security.
Sa kasalukuyan ako'y isang studyante sa peyborit course ng bayan, ang Nursing. Pagkatapos kong magtapos, siguro isa rin ako sa mga walang trabaho. Either way, kahit papano'y marunong naman akong dumiskarte kayang kaya ko naman siguro magging crew sa fastfood, call center (cenn-ur)agent, o kung ano mang trabaho ibigay sa akin. Hirap ng magging choosy ngayon no.
Pero eto ako ngayon, isang promdi na linalakbay pa ang buhay ng isang Manilenyo.
