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Letter to my 17-year old self

Dear 17-year old self,

Doing fine? I know what you’re thinking right now. Everything’s a routine. You wake up staring at the ceiling, and end your day staring at the ceiling. It sucks. But trust me, it’s about to get better.

A few weeks from now, dad is gonna see a newspaper ad about this particular school offering this particular scholarship that you’ve already seen in a particular college fair. He’s gonna ask you to take the exam because who knows, it could just be your luck, right? I say take it.

How’s your game going? I know you’re not as good as you wanted to be, but do play as much as possible right now. Where you’re headed to, you won’t have much time for that. I can only play once to twice now--not per week, but per month! I know it’s unimaginable but I guess that’s just how 27-year olds are.

And your thing with the church? Ha, sorry, I didn’t want to sound so casual about it and I know it’s your passion and stuff. I think that’s what 10 years can do to anyone. Keep going, keep singing, keep attending while you have all that free time. Some negative stuff going on, but some of those people will still be your most trusted friends 10 years from now.

I know you swore you’re gonna finish college, and trust me, you most definitely will. I’m not saying it’s gonna be easy, but you’ll make it. Along the way you’d meet awesome people--classmates, professors, orgmates. Trust me when I say those are going to be some of the best years of your life. Did I also mention you’re going to write for the school paper of a university with tens of thousands of students? Sounds awesome, right?

So many things I’d like to tell you, but I guess I have to let you experience it for yourself believe me I wanted to include pictures from the future but I guess it’s against the rules). So many amazing songs to listen and dance to (btw, 27-year old you still can’t dance), movies to watch, tv series to binge on, and sporting events that are about to happen. I want you to experience them when it happens, as it happens.

Also don’t get me wrong about this. I never wanted to give you the impression that I’ve figured out everything out completely (because I haven’t). I guess I also wanted to see how far I’ve come, and quickly check in with my 17-year old self.

You see sometimes you think you’re at a complete standstill, but the truth is when you look back, you don’t know where you are anymore. You can’t even see the shore anymore. See, 27-year old you would like to say everything’s kinda the same, but everything’s kinda different as well. But that’s fine.

But hey, you’re 17. You’re young. You have all that energy and passion built-up. I wish (I hope) I still have some of those.

I’m sorry I have to go, I think I have an appointment with my 37-year old self. Exciting stuff, I know, and I can’t wait to tell you about it.

You’re fine.

-Your 27-year old self

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Magallanes Station

I posted this picture on Facebook and Instagram with the simple caption, "Magallanes station." As I was viewing the picture again, I thought this is even better with context.

I first passed by manongmagtataho in Magallanes back in 2011 when I was still an intern for Omgeo/Thomson Reuters. His taho is the best taho there is. The sago have various shapes, the syrup not too sweet, and the best part is the taho itself--it's the softest and smoothest taho I've ever tasted. I remember I describe it inside my head as "liquid soft."

Whenever I was late, I would ride the San Lorenzo FX and would console my being late with a 5-peso or 10-peso taho cup from manong magtataho near MRT Magallanes. This went on until 2014.

Last quarter of 2014 which was incidentally also my last few months at Thomson Reuters, I passed by Magallanes station and my favorite taho was nowhere to be found. Days and weeks of me going through Magallanes station, and he still wasn't there. I gave up and thought to myself he must have found a better place to sell taho.

Fast forward to late January 2015, just this morning, I was on my way to my old office, Thomson Reuters, to pick up my final papers. I passed by MRT Magallanes station and to my surprise, my favorite taho and my favorite magtataho was there! I saw manong and I swear he must have lost ten to twenty pounds easily. He must have been out due to illness.

As I was sipping through that cup on my way to my old office, I 'cheesily' wondered how this taho signified my whole experience with my previous job.

It was sweet, smooth, and you'll never know what (shapes of sago) you're gonna get.

-JD

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Just got my TOR and Yearbook. Some thoughts...

(Disclaimer: Enter random rant here) Still a bit pissed that our yearbook just shows "Dean's Lister" in my page. Like no time span at all. Some students just have, "Dean's Lister, 1st sem, AY 2009-2010" and nothing else. And that kind of waters it down. Like I'm some sort of a poser or something when I've maintained that status for 8 full semesters.

Also, they've given "Academic Excellence Awards" to students whose GPAs are comparable, if not lower, to JPL-SHL scholars. For what reasons? I can only point to my time in the school paper criticizing some officials (cue: VPAA).

Don't get me wrong. I am grateful for the scholarship granted by the school to me when I haven't even given back yet. But I just hope things like this won't happen to anyone ever again. Let alone, any Sentinel writer or JPL-SHL scholar.

Veritas et Fortitudo.

TRUTH and Courage.

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Try harder, Loras. Lol. :p

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Jojen Reed is (inspired by) John the Baptist

Book 5 of the A Song of Ice and Fire series, A Dance with Dragons, has finally concluded and we've still got 3 to 8 years two wait for the next installment, The Winds of Winter.

For many ASOIAF fans, the long watch begins (in reference to the Black Brothers' words). The usual resorts would be playing GoT-related games, reviewing the books, and flooding the comments sections. But nothing ever beats theorizing.

Which leads to me pronouncing that Jojen Reed is inspired by John the Baptist. Well, technically, this is not a theory. But introducing this idea to GoT fans makes GRRM's works more fascinating. I'm quite aware that there have always been references of ASOIAF characters and locations to Lord of the Rings. There's the two Sams, Samwell Tarly (ASOIAF) and Samwise Gamgee (LOTR), Winterfell (A) and Fell Winter (LOTR),  and White Walkers (A) and Black Riders (L). But we'll have more of that.

There are tons of theories in the world of Game of  Thrones, but I'm surprised to have observed this pattern and not be able to search anything related to it.

Just a disclaimer: this is not a perfect parallelism, but there are similarities and coincidences that make me believe that Jojen Reed was inspired by John the Baptist.

The biblical character John the Baptist was the cousin of the prophesied Messiah or Savior. Also prophesied in the Old Testament, his main role was to prepare the way (Luke 1:77). His mother, Elizabeth, was visited by an angel to tell her that she will conceive soon.

How John the Baptist was portrayed in the bible:

John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. (Matthew 3:4)

He also lived around the Jordan River.

Jojen Reed meanwhile is the son of Howland from the House of Reed whose house are banners to the Starks of Winterfell. Unlike normal houses, the Reeds are known as 'crannogmen' who dwells on swamps instead of the usual steadfasts and castles. The Reeds were mocked 'frogeaters' by Little Walder and Big Walder who are both Freys. 

Jojen had a near-death experience due to greywater fever, but he was visited by a Three-Eyed Crow and gave him the gift of greensight (prophetic dreams).

A quick search about John the Baptist and the word 'reed' explains a lot.

The bible tells us of John the Baptist's Greatness:

As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: ‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. He who has ears, let him hear." (Matthew 11:7-15, NIV)

Christ depicted that John is not as feeble as a reed. Jojen Reed on the contrary, is sickly, physically weak, and frail. As his last name would suggest, he is as frail as a reed.

Works of art has also portrayed John the Baptist donning a reed cross.

John Boeckhorst's, "The Holy Family with St. John" shows a young John the Baptist holding a 'reed cross.'

Cavaggio's John the Baptist (John in the Wilderness) again showing John the Baptist holding a reed cross.

These are merely some of my random musings and thoughts which are incidentally supported by 'some' evidence.

So if Jojen Reed is the one who was bound to prepare the way, does this mean that Brandon Stark is the savior of Winterfell? This just attests to George R.R. Martin's genius.

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only once."

(Totally unrelated but that was my favorite quote of Jojen Reed. Let's all aim to live a thousand lives and more! Have a great week ahead!)

*graphics of Jojen Reed from: http://15991471.wwww.fanpop.com/clubs/game-of-thrones/images/33425962/title/jojen-reed-fanart

-JD

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T_T

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On Giving Up and Why It Shouldn't be an Option

With the onset of recent events following Kristel Tejada's suicide, I tried my best to stay away from the issue for fear of saying offending anyone since it was a sensitive case. But it never dawned on me that the suicide would equate to heroism, or that student’s suicide is martyrdom. That's what the leftists or other student activists would say or imply.

As someone who also went LOA, actually make it PMA or “Pahinga Muna Anak”, right after high school due to financial constraints, this issue has touched a spot on me. Being a part of our local youth group in our church, believe me, there are still more students whose families can’t afford to send them to school than those who can. Or if they do, they aren't even sure if they’d be able to sustain sending their children each and every semester. Yet when I speak to these young people, I never see anyone who has lost hope let alone let go of their dreams.

Yes, the society and its social structures play part on the student’s suffering and eventual suicide. But aren't we all a part of it? Aren't we all affected? Yet why do certain people give up while having the notion that they are all alone with their struggles and the whole world does not know a single thing about what they’re going through?

What I know of smart and hardworking people is that they don’t let their circumstances affect them. They don’t just give up. They don’t just let society affect their lives or how they live it. They fight, they push, they reason out, they look for a way out, and they exhaust all means. And what if they lose? They’d say, “At least I lose trying.”

The thought that some people are blaming the state and its policies on education for her death makes me shake my head. For one the most outspoken ones I see, at least in my news feed from my social media accounts, are also the ones who had never experienced trouble paying for their tuition. They don’t know how it feels like to skip lunch only to be able to rent from that crappy internet shop near their campus to do their projects because they bring their own laptops. They are the ones that George R.R. Martin would call “summer children” since they never experienced winter.

Do I feel sad for her death? Of course I do. Do I think that the state could have better helped her? I also do. But does it set a precedent for other people who are struggling through life? No. Is the state to be blamed? No.

There are some people who have it a lot worse than that student and even than the most of us. Yet we are alive, we get up every day, and we are given all the time in the world to turn our situations around. Don’t just give up.

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Game of Thrones Valentines - For that very special someone in your life (i.e. a nerd who loves wordplay), here’s a series of Game of Thrones Valentines. Brighten the day of that courtesan, dirt farmer, or Night’s Watch runaway whom holds your love captive by sending them one of these cards just in time for the holiday of love.

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if your valentine doesn’t return your affections, have them beheaded.

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This sounds like something The Hound would say.

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If somebody likes me, I want them to like the real me, not what they think I am. 

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Can anything be lovelier than this?

come on eileen

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Still sends shivers down my spine!

Best part of the movie tbh. I cried bucket’s full T_T

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Oh Sam.

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"Grateful" (The Much-Delayed Graduation Message)

Wow, I can finally say it's all over now. Looking back at the 4 hellish years I spent in college, chasing unos and waiting in line each sem for the grade cards, all I can say is "wow."

I still can't understand why it took me 5 months to write this graduation message. I guess it took me that much to realize all the things that I am, and will forever be, 'grateful' for. It was 5 years ago that I also wrote a graduation message to all my high school batch mates, which fortunately, made it to the school paper then.

So let's begin.

This story won't be complete without the prequel to my college life that was the year I spent as an 'out-of-school' youth. Well, yeah, I went through those tough times. After spending all my efforts in the state university I planned enrolling in, the fact is I did not quite make it. I could have pursued my applications and all, yet the fact that we could not afford their new tuition schemes was quite enough to make me accept the fact that that was not where God wanted me to be. In layman's term, I'd call it, "not meant to be."

Still, I'll forever be grateful to my alma mater, Lyceum of the Philippines University Manila (see, I did not include "the" before I mentioned my school. :p). If not for the full academic scholarship, monthly stipend, and book and clothing allowance, I definitely would not have made it. They saw in me what I myself could not see in my self. Goodness, me as an academic scholar? "Never in my wildest dreams," as ate Mitch would say it.

I did not even finish high school as an Honorable Mention, but let's save that story for another blog post.

Thank you to the professor who made me do all seemingly possible, and sometimes even humiliating, things to get a higher mark, only to end up with a 2.25. IN my very first sem, in my very first year. (That includes a fashion walk, painting contest, field trip, college org membership). Yep, that grade prevented me from becoming a Cum Laude, or even a Magna Cum Laude. It also took away from me my allowance for one sem.

But as the break up song goes, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." Well, I did break up with my Latin Honors hope. But did it make me stronger? O, boy it did. Hey, I promise I'm not bitter about it. :)

Missed meals, 3-hour sleeps, and catch-up reviews in the bus for major exams due in a couple of hours have all been my staple in the last 4 years. It was never easy, but before and after each quiz or exam, I need to keep reminding myself I can do all these things because of God's favor, and not because of my own efforts or own understanding (literal understanding, if you'd ask me).

The turning point would always be when I started working part time to sustain my expenses. I thought I would not make it. In hindsight, I thought one would have to give. I needed to maintain grades, yet I also need to toil for hours to sustain my expenses. Yet, it has always been God who sustains me.

Easier said than done, they say. Yet I went through it all and can now talk about it as if they were that easy. But I tell you, it was not. Many times, I mulled about giving it all up. I was tired, drained, burned out. My health was being compromised and my relationships were suffering. I would not want any of you there to go through the same things I went through. I still thank the Lord for giving me a fresh outlook each day, and a wider perspective every time I hear 'people' babbling.

Yeah, I did take unpopular decisions. But at the end of the day, it's me who get to live with the decisions I make. Tough as they were, I wouldn't have been to where I am right now if not for those decisions. It's not that I am better, what I'm trying to say is that we make different choices, and we get to live with it.

Thank you to all the professors for believing in me. I admit, I was not the most likable student since when, I could not remember. Yet sometimes, I feel I was being given high-grades-that-I-felt-I-did-not-deserve-but-was-given-anyway-only-because-I-am-Jeff-Dimaano-the-JPL-scholar. But I guess our motto has always been grades don't determine a person's character. Thank you for believing in the kind of character I have. I could go on naming all of my professors, but I guess it would deserve another blog post.

Thanks to my block mates as well. Karlin, MJ, Krystal, and Venus. Well, they are my  girls, as I'd call them. :p Thanks for sticking around through all those tough times, and though it didn't really show, I was grateful for having you around. I would not have made it without the bunch of you guys. It doesn't end in college, you know?

Sentinel org mates. Thanks for believing in me. We learned together. I'm proud of what I'm seeing to those we leave behind cause I know the Sentinel is in good hands. I'm also proud of those who went ahead us and are now pursuing their passion. I give all the credit to you guys for all the achievements we had, yet I'd shoulder all the blame for all our shortcomings, especially when I was ME 2.

I forgot where I read or heard this, but let me quote it, "Success doesn't change a person, it just makes them more of who they already are." I'm glad that amid all the things I went through, I remain to be the same person. If any, it has brought out the  best in me, although of course, it is a constant struggle to keep improving each day.

All Glory belongs to God.

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Wow! Lord Tywin, Ygritte, Samwell, and Brienne of Tarth!

Charles Dance, Rose Leslie, John Bradley and Gwendoline Christie at LFCC.

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deisegal:

siren-g-mcfien:

fucking……..what

  http://bit.ly/KPEDsk