KUWENTONG KAMOTE

people 3

2008-09-05T23:53:00.005+08:00

I've been so blessed to have existed in a time when Ellery was president of the Ateneo Debate Union. That was ages ago. Those were the days when the group seriously pretended to be the army of the Pope. Now we are reduced to a bunch of heretics. Ellery was a cool boss who ruled with the might of his humor. He's the funniest (and most fun) debate partner I ever had.

Oh well, Ador is my secret enemy. He always annoys me. Sometimes I wish God would relocate him to Mars.

Christian (left) and Emman (right) enjoy posing for the camera. Christian allegedly kissed another ADU member just this morning. Gahd. Emman is single and, uhmm... double.
Spare me. No comment. No, I will comment. Kizha is no Sarah Palin. Not yet. But the day she will run for VP, I swear the sky will fall. She was last seen arguing with Paulo.

people 2

2008-09-03T20:49:00.012+08:00

I took this pic of Janini while we were in that Malaysian turo-turo in Golden Bell Food Court. Food was really masarap we both had vertigo after. Don't forget to try their strangely decent-tasting iced coffee.

Here we see my friend, Ruthy Bear (who loves to eat grass, remember?), attempting to stop me from taking a neat picture.

Baby Carl's solo pic. This is Glenn's son. For a moment, everyone is becoming a young father. :)

Meet my brother Harvey who is rarely nice to me. Well, figures the apple does not fall far from the tree. Haha.

people

2008-08-29T08:45:00.017+08:00

After weeks of ignoring the plight of his cellphone-less son, my dad finally saw the Light. God, in his own ways, extended an arm and dragged him around downtown Zambo to buy me a neat orange cellphone - an act of charity that surpassed my expectations.

This is Glenn. He drives really really well. And he wants me to emphasize that he parks neatly. Marion, my other friend from Hades' underground, goes gaga whenever he sees him around school.

His name is Makmak. And with him is his baby boy Carl. He'll be a great father I think.
Say Hi to MR whose stories of misery entertain me. She's my favorite co-teacher, aside from Ma'am Claire who is always fun to talk with and Ruthy Bear who loves to eat grass. MR has been my enemy for two years and friend for four years now. God bless her.

Voodoo English

2008-08-24T16:33:00.004+08:00

I asked our ever-reliable helper to check my test papers instead. I dunno how teachers beat their deadlines, but I sure still have a lot to learn from them. My wallet's getting skinnier lately; I've been spending a lot on food and lasang, and today, I had to dole out P300 for the helper's paid helping hands. I'm starting to suspect I'm not getting any richer. And the long list of things to worry is only getting longer! I noticed several students failed the departmentalized midterm test in English. I knew this would happen! I couldn't even answer the sequencing test right myself. But no one's listening to me. What does Henry know about English? Hahaii...

Sometimes I think teachers must do more to help students get rid of their fossilized grammar defects. This takes a more personal, intimate, hands-on approach. I believe writing classes should be about writing. And it's our business to teach them not just the theories and principles but also the actual execution of writing skills. There are a lot of things I never learned in college. They never taught it to us. And this cycle has to end. Students must be compelled to make a verb follow its subject the way a car must yield to a pedestrian. Run-ons and fragments should be fixed, wrong spelling rectified, missing punctuations installed. I am tired of reading long and lifeless essays about life. It is death that looms over the many papers I've been scouring lately. And if we can't change this trend among our students, if we are unable to exorcise their voodoo writing style, we have no business in the Languages Department.

halina't magtanim ng kamote

2008-08-23T14:09:00.000+08:00

03 January 2007

Sarado pa ang Beacon NewsMag Office. Andito ako sa labas, nag-aantay. Nanghihinayang sa mga segundong dumadaan na di nabibigyang saysay ng aking mga daliri ang mga ideyang nagpupumilit, nangungulit... at paminsan minsa'y nangungurot pa.

May mga kuwentong dapat ikuwento. Nung ako ay bata pa, mahilig magbasa ng istorya si Tatay sa 'ming magkakapatid bago kami matulog sa tanghali. Pagkatapos, bibilang s'ya hanggang sampu at ang batang nananatiling dilat pa ang mata ay kukuritin. Madalas kelangan ko ng unan para takpan ang aking mukha nang di n'ya mahalata na ako ay gising pa. Napabilib ko naman s'ya. (Bata pa, artista na.)

Sa palagay ko natuto akong magkuwento dahil kay Tatay. Mahilig rin namang magkuwento si Nanay pero madalas tungkol parati sa drama ng buhay n'ya kaya di ako interesadong makinig nun. Di nga lang ako nangungurot. Namamalo, oo. Pag nahuli kong di ka nakikinig.

Kaya siguro naisipan kong magturo. Pag titser na ako, puede na akong magkuwento buong araw at kelangang makinig ng mga estudyante ko dahil grado nila nakasalalay. Pag titser na ako, babalikan ko ang mga kuwentong humubog sa 'king kakornihan - ang kuwento ni Mamang Unggoy at Mamang Pagong, yung Alamat ni Pinya at mga istoryang Mumo sa mga sagingang nasa bakuran ng luma naming bahay.

Sa ganitong paraan, dadami ang mga totoong bata. Eh kasi ngayon, ang babata pa ng mga bata pero malalaswa na. Naku, pawang kuwentong Eba at Adan at ang malisyosong interpretasyon dito ang pinagtsitsismisan.

Dati sa tuwing napag-uusapan sina Malakas at Maganda, yung uWak na tumuka ang mas interesante para sa akin. Ano kaya problema nun? Masakit kaya ngipin n'ya? E may ngipin ba sya? Yun ang mga tanong ko. Pero ngayon pag nabanggit ang nasabing kuwento, ang tandang pananong sa imahinasyon ng mga batang maligno, este malisyoso, ay kung ano nga bang kababalaghan ang nangyari sa loob ng kawayan nang di pa 'to nabibiyak.

Nag iba na nga talaga ang panahon. At para na akong matanda kung mag isip. Di na tulad ng dati na susuungin ang bawat unos... Ngayon, may mga laban nang inaatrasan.

Di lahat ng kuwento ikinukuwento ko. May mga ibang ikinukubli, kinakalimutan, o di lang talaga dapat pagsayangan ng oras. May mga kuwentong masaya, at iilang kunwari masaya.... Meron rin namang pormal o yung tinatawag kong propaganda material ko lang. Minsan nga may unbelievable love stories pa. Kung sa'n ko hinugot ang istorya, sasabihin ko sa 'yong karanasan ko 'yun. Ang iilang bahagi. At minolde ng mga salitang magaling upang magmukhang ako ang bida, kahit di naman talaga.

May mga kuwentong hindi isinasa titik, kundi isinasabuhay. Tulad ng pagkakaibigan, dapat sing dalas ng pag aaway ang pagsungaw sa nakaraan. Ang nakalipas ay isang daan sa patutunguhan. Anumang landas ang nais tahakin pagkatapos, magkakatuluyan ba o maghihiwalay, ay kuwentong kamote na dapat ay di na sinusulat pa.

Pero iba ako. At iba ka. At sa 'ting pagkakaiba, naku, si God kasi.

Pero ang kuwento ay di pa tapos. Maghihintay ito hanggang, sa wakas, maisip ng mga tauhan na nakasalalay sa kanilang desisyon ang kanilang happy ending.

Sa Blog ko, kaya kong magsulat. Kaya kitang sirain, mahalin, amuyin, sipain, buuin, kagatin at, pag tinamad, di pansinin.

Pero sa totoong buhay, ang mga kuwento ko'y kamote.