[...] Last night, I was chatting with a friend. He told me, "I wish I were an animé character. Animés always end with a happy ending." "Yeah," I replied. "And it stops right there."
Geocities is closing. I've already gone to retrieve all important files (i.e., journal entries) and left the not-so-important ones (i.e., those I'm too embarrassed to keep, but are probably still sitting around, namely fanfictions of old). I had to keep my eyes half closed to avoid the cheesy layout. I also had to turn off the MIDI file in every damn webpage. It truly was an embarrassing trip down memory lane.
I did love that old webpage, though. I started learning about HTML in third year high school, and since then, I spent one too many hours on the Internet via our dial-up connection. I designed my own website(s), wrote and posted my cheesy and/or angst-ridden stories for all the world to see. For a high school student to realize that you can connect to the world with one touch of the computer keyboard, and to know that those people out there appreciate what you've created -- that's priceless.
I paid for the Internet with my meager savings, and I remember when my bill went up to P5000. I wasn't able to pay for it until we got a letter from Pacific Internet with a veiled threat of taking the matter to court unless action is taken. My mom paid for it. Again, one embarrassing moment. Now I know better; Pacific Internet wouldn't have won that sort of lawsuit. Why trust a high school student to pay her bills and keep her dial-up hours to a minimum, anyway?
This trip down memory lane would've been simply cute if I didn't remember that surge of creativity (and not necessarily talent) which I had in high school. Maybe it's because the Internet was a novelty for me; maybe it's because I was in high school and I didn't care if my writings were bad as long as people read them. I've been missing that. I miss it when I see it in a few of my students. I miss it when I read beautiful poetry in my MA class and remember the times when I thought that I could also write someday. I've been wanting to feel this great espresso shot of creativity and have the time and motivation to just create. And now what I create are mostly Twitter entries (but I thoroughly love Twitter).
Funny how an old website could dredge out this much bitterness. hehe.
- 13:58:51: Don't go to Greenbelt today guys. @inquirerdotnet on GB5 robbery: http://bit.ly/1xO1jr
- 22:13:31: "I'm going to have to ask you to smell your arm pits. That's the smell of failure. And its stinking up my office." -- Sue Sylvester FTW.
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- 21:15:04: RIP @stephenofficial of Boyzone. This is the second time you broke my heart. :( 2009, what the hell is wrong with you?!
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- 11:06:30: Listening to students' sonnets. Sophomore C students are in love. hehehehe.
- 12:09:29: @thegshift Okay lang yun, though they're not necessarily award-winning, it's easier to write when you're young. Akin lang naman...
- 18:24:58: SEE YOU IN ARANETA!!! GO LA SALLE!!!!!!!
- 21:36:51: Downloading stuff from my old website since Geocities is closing. Funny how I used to rave about anime and use this smiley a lot: ^____^
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- 10:26:45: @thegshift Gahd yes, high school reunion. Nakakababa ng self-esteem. hahaha.
- 10:40:44: @thegshift Yes, let's go and relive the days of the Primordial Charlie's Angels hahaha
- 10:57:05: @thegshift 2011 naman ang rinig ko. One decade after, o di ba.
- 21:46:55: Obvious 'to, among other things! RT @inquirerdotnet La Salle’s gameplan: Stop Ravena http://url4.eu/aWzz
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- 11:25:38: DLSZ Sophomores: Life goes on! For those who haven't had their OPs yet, please be ready with your sonnets tomorrow! :D
- 18:22:39: RT @mlq3 Paulo Alcazaren worked on Singapore's flood control system. Points out lessons here: http://ping.fm/672io
- 22:04:08: Parts of Baguio are flooded. Definitely something wrong there. http://bit.ly/20FKya
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- 15:41:02: completely forgot about the DLSZ-AHS game today! >_< This has been a weird week...
- 16:33:53: AHHH ayoko nang manood >_< pero GO LA SALLE pa rin! :))
- 18:05:10: KAYA PA YAN! GO LA SALLE!
- 18:05:50: KINAYA NYO YAN TWO YEARS AGO UNDER A MINUTE! WOOHOO!
- 18:10:02: Okay lang yan, first game pa lang. :)) Ganda ng laban! Siguro maraming HS girls ang may crush kay Ravena ngayon :))
- 18:15:38: DLSZ Relief Ops with pictures of Sta. Rosa (Caingin and Aplaya) and Marikina (Sto. Nino). What a week! http://ow.ly/sviO
- 18:16:34: @lendenpen Siempre maging loyal tayo kina Nico et. al. :))
- 18:26:29: Inquirer: Death tolls rise in disaster-struck Asia http://bit.ly/oA469 :(
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- 09:55:25: RT WomenVote_2010 RT @urbanfaerie: found this on the web. lovely message abt compassion+action amidst diversity http://yfrog.com/7hfkoj
- 17:35:27: @scion_cho Melor will miss us. http://bit.ly/2oGAWd
- 18:34:30: Avoid false info! 1.Meralco will not shut down power http://ow.ly/sjqv 2.Pepeng is cat.4 typhoon, not as strong as Katrina http://ow.ly/sjqo
- 18:35:57: Friend says people in MRT are panicking because of wrong info re: Meralco. Beware, folks, and research! http://ow.ly/sjqv
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- 12:40:26: it's pouring here in alabang! Volunteers and residents, ingat! -Update via SMS for FREE using http://isip.ph
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Anyway, I just want to talk about the short conversation I had with kids in Marikina yesterday. I will never forget this conversation. Sometimes I wonder what percentage of schoolchildren really, wholeheartedly care about going to school, and I think now I know better.
We were standing on the mud, watching the relief operations of Zobel in the community of Brgy. Sto. Nino which was lit only by the headlights of the three Land Rovers that had been lent to us. Someone in our team had pointed with a flashlight the muddy mark that the flood had left on the outside wall of a two-story house. I'd say it was fifteen feet high.
I was chatting with a sixth-grader from Malanday Elementary School. When I got the conversation going, she turned out to be chatty; I somehow sensed that she was smart as well. It pains me now that I never even asked her for her name. She told me that the relief goods that came were never enough, and that since Saturday, there had been no electricity and no clean water. "Di pa nga po ako naliligo eh," she added with an embarrassed smile.
She told me that all her books, school materials and uniforms had been flooded. "Di ko nga po alam kung pa'no ako papasok eh," she said.
"Okey lang yan," I said. I laid a hand on her head. "Lahat naman ng natutunan mo eh andito na, 'di ba?"
"Lahat naman tayo wala nang uniform eh," another girl said.
The queue was really long and our relief goods were starting to dwindle. Still, there were the lucky ones who were able to get a pack. There was a man who yelled in triumph, "Sa wakas, umabot din!"
"Di po ba, meron din para sa mga bata?"
"Para sa bawat pamilya yan," I said. "May mga biskwit dyan para sa inyo."
A boy piped up, "Pero pag may natira, ibbigay na po sa mga bata?"
"Oo naman," I said. But then, maybe he'd noticed the uncertainty in my voice. Someone had flashed a flashlight towards the queue, which didn't seem to end.
"Sana umabot," we all muttered to ourselves.
All too suddenly, I was called back to the van as we were about to leave. I gave them a squeeze each. I never really knew if their parents got hold of a relief pack -- it turned out that the 500 packs we'd brought were still not enough. But ultimately, what really saddened me was when the girl called, "Ate, bumalik kayo ha!"
I might have just given her a wave and a smile. I never really knew if we would come back -- and we never did, actually. There were just too many to help. I can only hope that their families would learn about the used clothes we'd given to a nearby church to give away, that the kids have not yet forgotten what they'd learned in school, and that they'd have a good future ahead of them in spite of this terrible tragedy.
For what we'd given the people we'd helped were enough for only one day at most. I couldn't sleep last night, being so frustrated with the feeling that in spite of everything that has been done, in spite of the generous donations that still keeps on pouring in, in spite of the volunteers spending hours on end sorting through used clothes and repacking relief goods, we can never be assured that the people affected by Ondoy will still be full, dry and happy next week.
We all take comfort in the fact that in our own little way, we volunteers have given them comfort even just for a day. Little things may mean so much in the long run, right?
But we can't stop with the little things.
I've been asking myself why I did volunteer work (and, okay, Tweet about it). "Helping other people feels good" sounds a little selfish, and that's not really the reason. (There was a point when I actually felt bad about it, as you can see.) But I did it because I felt restless -- too comfortable -- in my now-dry home, because it's my way of thanking God that my family is safe, because there are people in need and I know that I have the capacity to help them, and because I want to raise awareness in other people who, in turn, could also help in their own little way. "Even if I'm not the light, I can be the spark," right? And I can tell you this -- there were so many sparks in Zobel since Monday, so many sparks all over the Philippines where volunteers have given so much in spite of having so little. You have here a roaring fire in the midst of darkness.
What happens afterward? Next week, we'll all go back to school; there won't be much time for volunteerism any more. But obviously I'll continue raising awareness -- that's my job, after all. I'll continue praying for those kids in Marikina, all the other children who still want to go back to school, and -- well, everyone. But I wish I could do more, I really do.
* * *
Just a thought. I felt proud of being a Filipino twice this year. The first was when Cory Aquino. The second was after the typhoon. They really have to be during times of tragedy. It just goes to show that we are at our best after a tragedy. It's a very strange thing to say and commend a nation with, but there's no better way to prove that the spirit of bayanihan is still deeply ingrained in us, and that we really are a resilient people, willing and able to stand up after a (literal) storm.
- Location:home
- Mood:
restless
- 09:02:55: Time magazine article: "The Manila Floods: Why Wasn't the City Prepared?" http://tinyurl.com/ydt4e3w
- 15:03:06: Contingent from Calamba says floodwater in Brgy. Linga is still chest high! Snakes also a problem :o -Update via SMS using http://isip.ph
- 18:00:28: Seeing Marikina from up close. Streets are dusty. Grabe pala yung mga nasira dito. Small houses are obliterated! -via SMS w/ http://isip.ph
- 21:32:22: Dropped goods at Our Lady of the Abandoned; donated to residents of Sto. Niño which is next to the river. Companions called it "ground zero"
- 21:34:25: Brgy. Sto. Niño in Marikina is next to the river. Very muddy. Still no water and electricity. 500 bags of goods were still not enough! :(
- 22:27:06: Chatted with kids in Sto. Niño, Mkna. One was worried about going back to school since her books, school matls and uniforms were flooded. :(
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- 17:24:37: On our way to Kaingin Sta Rosa Laguna with Zobel volunteers. Water is still knee deep here -Update via SMS for FREE using http://isip.ph
- 17:27:22: People of Aplaya and Kaingin are angry that all relief efforts so far go to govt project - southville subd -via SMS w/ http://isip.ph
- 17:32:29: And we're in a compost truck! Van couldn't get through water. It's been 3days! No govt units coming -Update via SMS using http://isip.ph
- 21:17:15: Zobel's relief operation has been a success--so many donations! :D But I feel sad knowing that those packages will last only a day...
- 21:43:17: http://twitpic.com/jlley - Brgy. Caingin, Sta. Rosa, Laguna. The flood from Laguna de Bay has not receded; it is waist high in some area ...
- 21:45:08: http://twitpic.com/jlley - ...Residents complain that all govt help so far go to a nearby subdivision which is itself a govt project. Br ...
- 21:48:00: http://twitpic.com/jllu1 - Brgy. Aplaya, Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Residents have been struggling with the flood since Laguna de Bay burst its ...
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- 08:32:04: DAD IS SAFE. Concepcion 1 Tumana area was almost cleared by 5AM. Oh my God thank you. #Ondoy
- 10:30:16: Now checking on friends and former students in Pasig/Marikina/Rizal area. Not much news. Cell sites are down.
- 12:01:33: No classes in all levels tomorrow. Please be sensitive in your comments and wall posts, guys---this is not something to cheer about. #ondoy
- 17:53:20: DLSZ is accepting donations for Ondoy victims. Drop off point is at Gym5. Volunteers also needed. More info at http://bit.ly/MaFwb #ondoy
- 21:02:39: Awesome. An Ondoy Donation Drop-Off Points Google Map. http://bit.ly/1A5jgR
- 22:35:01: Is there any way to know which places are still submerged and inaccessible? #Ondoy
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Ondoy was one great leveler. Rich and poor alike were left stranded on their rooftops for hours. I've heard the most harrowing stories in the past twenty-four hours: people, including month-old babies and children, getting stranded on rooftops in the rain with no food and water; subdivisions getting lost in five meters of water; people, even someone in a wheelchair, wading in waist-deep water; patients and medical workers stuck in the upper floors of two hospitals. My dad was stranded with his co-workers on the roof of their factory in Tumana, Marikina City. They stayed there for over 12 hours -- they were finally able to walk in muddy water at 5 AM.
I myself was on the road for about seven hours; I'd gone to my MA class on Saturday morning in the comfort of the 16th floor of Bro. Andrew building, only to wade in about half a foot of floodwater in the campus. The next few hours were spent trying to find a way home (which was also flooded in the kitchen) -- LRT to EDSA, MRT to Ayala, lunch in Ayala, walk to Magallanes, more than three hours in an air-con bus (with a pirated DVD of Angelina and Yaya playing) as the flood was waist-deep nearing Skyway, an hour of waiting in Alabang for a jeep, till my aunt persuaded me to walk instead to Bayanan -- where I was finally able to take a jeep to our village which was thankfully flood-free by then.
I'm sure I was one of the luckier ones. My suffering was merely wet rubber shoes (till I bought rubber slippers) and walking in the rain. Those soaking wet in the bus going to Alabang were even telling stories of how they fell in manholes. I only wish I were making these up. I can't even imagine what I'd do if our house were submerged in waters like those in Rizal and Marikina. Truth indeed is stranger than fiction.
I'm just reposting the following from different sites. For those of us relatively unaffected by the storm, let's do our bit.
You can help those affected by Ondoy by just texting. To donate to the Red Cross Rescue and Relief Operations, text RED
Relief Aid and Donations from http://miriamq.multiply.com/journal
- Victory Fort is opening its doors to those affected by the typhoon. Call 813-FORT.
- NoyMar relief Operations: Clare Amador (+639285205508) or Jana Vicente at +639285205499). Drop off for relief donations is at Balay Expo Center across Farmers Market Cubao.
- Miriam Quiambao drop off points: One Orchard Road Building in Eastwood, or message http://www.twitter.com/miriamq for more details.
- Philippine Army Gym inside Fort Bonifacio or GHQ Gym in Camp Aguinaldo are now distributing donations for Ondoy Victims.
- Team Manila stores in Trinoma, Mall of Asia, Jupiter Bel-Air and Rockwell shall be accepting relief goods (Canned Goods, Ready-to-drink Milk,Bottled Water and Clothes) for distribution by Veritas.
- Caritas Manila Office at Jesus St., Pandacan Manila near Nagtahan Bridge (+632-5639298, +632-5639308)
- Radio Veritas at Veritas Tower West Ave. Cor EDSA (+632-9257931-40)
- Aranaz Stores in Rockwell & Greenbelt is accepting donations of any kind for Payatas communities affected by Ondoy
- Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan Task Force Noah, a disaster response arm of the Jesuits, is accepting donations. Please drop it off sa Ateneo Cervini Dorm.
- Philippine National Red Cross‘ different ways to Donate.
- Red Cross Load Donations: Right now the easiest way to make donations from the seat of your chair is via mobile phone load. The Red Cross Rescue and Relief Operations. Text: RED<space>AMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) or 4483 (Smart)
- Ateneo de Manila University is now accepting donations for the victims of Ondoy. Donations can be dropped at MVP Lobby. For those stranded/those who need help: To all students who need help or know of people who need help. Please text the name, location, and contact number to (+6329088877166). ATENEO, which is now an open shelter, accepts refugees. Call (+632917-8952792)
- Papemelroti stores in 91 Roces Ave. / Ali Mall Cubao / SM City North EDSA / SM Fairview / SM Megamall / Glorietta 3 in Makati / SM Centerpoint / SM Southmall are accepting relief goods (canned goods / milk / bottled water / clothes – NO CASH pls.)
- TXTPower now accepts donations via SmartMoney 5577514418667103, GCash 09179751092 and Paypal http://is.gd/3GvuN
- Our Lady of Pentecost Parish (+632-4342397, +632-9290665) per Gabe Mercado, donations are very much welcome. The Parish is located at 12 F. Dela Rosa corner C. Salvador Sts., Loyola Heights, Quezon City.
- Hillsborough Village Chapel – Water, blankets, shoes, and clothes may be sent to Hillsborough Village Chapel in Muntinlupa City. These will go to families whose houses were washed out in the nearby sitios.
- Greenhills/Mandaluyong/San Juan Area, if you want to help out with the rescue and relief operations, you can drop off your donations (clothes, food, etc..) at La Salle Greenhills Gate 2 tomorrow or volunteer from 9am to receive, sort, repack the donations.
- Petron: You may bring your relief goods to all Petron branches.
- LUCA stores (Rockwell, Shang-rila, Eastwood, or GA towers): Send your old clothes & donations (no cash pls).
- “LUZON RELIEF: Volunteer / Donate / Pray”: Donations can be brought to RENAISSANCE FITNESS CENTER, 2nd Floor, Bramante Building, Renaissance Towers Ortigas, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City starting MONDAY (Sept.28) / 9am – 7pm Contact Person: Warren Habaluyas (+632929-8713488) or email at luzonrelief@gmail.com
- MOONSHINE boutique in Rockwell also accepting relief good to help Ondoy victims in Marikina and Cainta.
- Katipunan Avenue. Contact Erica Paredes at (+632917-4741930) — they need bread, packed juice, sandwich filling (tuna, chicken, anything) You can help her make them, deliver the sandwiches to her house, or help her distribute! Call for more details.
- Manor Superclub, Eastwood City will accept goods and other emergency items starting Sunday at 10 am.
- Citizens Disaster Response Center (CDRC): Relief goods for typhoon victims being accepted at 72-A Times St., West Triangle, QC. Tel (+632-9299820/22)
- MINISTOP IBARRA (Espana cor. Blumentritt, Sampaloc Manila) is also accepting relief goods, Food (non-perishable goods only) Clothing, Medicines, Beds, Pillows, Blankets, Emergency Supplies to help Typhoon Ondoy victims.
Relief Aid and Donations (by area): http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0
People Tracker (using your phones, get your friends and family to turn on their finderservice for you)
- FINDERSERVICE. For Smart, text “wis <your name> <your mobile>” to 386.
- FINDERSERVICE. For Globe, text “find <your name> <your mobile> to 7000.
Some News and Pictures
Ondoy on Tumblr. Shows you that the impossible has just happened.
Yahoo! Pictures
Philstar.com, August 15, 2009: "GMA used P800-million emergency fund for foreign trips" GANON?!
Inquirer.net, September 27, 2009: Too much rain too soon
Inquirer.net, September 27, 2009: Death toll reaches 50
- 17:29:15: @thegshift My dad is stranded with his officemates on the roof of their office in Marikina. Flood is waist-deep in front of APC near Skyway.
- 17:31:17: @thegshift It's waist-deep in Pasay Rtd too. Taft Ave was flooded when I left SIX HOURS AGO. Di pa ako nakakauwi :( #ondoy
- 17:39:57: @thegshift Metropolis, haha. Keeping dry. Walang jeep talaga :( Maybe I'll walk to Soldiers' Hills. Memories of Milenyo ito. #ondoy
- 18:39:04: HOME AT LAST AFTER MORE THAN SEVEN HOURS. Ang haba rin ng nilakad ko ah. Now waiting for news on Papa. #ondoy
- 19:08:53: @rexelle Hope you're safe and dry now #ondoy
- 19:10:20: YOU RICH SPOILED BRATS IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR DRY HOMES. Grabe kayo. Grabe. Mag-swimming nga kayo sa Pasay Rotonda. GRABE KAYO. #ondoy
- 19:46:11: is frustrated. Very much so. :-(
- 19:58:58: We unfortunately need something like #Ondoy to remind us of how we continue polluting Metro Manila.
- 21:15:44: @Enzo_Musikero Our kitchen got flooded just a bit. That's at least something to thank God for.
- 21:35:18: My God. This pedestrian underpass. http://bit.ly/u83ZC
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