Category Archives: Uncategorized

First Meals, New Thrills.

Posted on April 30, 2013 by

Just very briefly because things took off twice as fast as expected–one minute I was working three different timezones and now I’m in Delhi surrounded by incredible young minds involved in development. Here’s my first real taste of authentic Indian … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Work and Why You Must Travel–Every Day.

Posted on April 24, 2013 by

[But] The 8-hour workday is too profitable for big business, not because of the amount of work people get done in eight hours (the average office worker gets less than three hours of actual work done in 8 hours) but … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Updates in defense of silence.

Posted on April 23, 2013 by

I didn’t want to jinx it. When I got the news about India, I worried that it would be too good to be true–so I decided to keep silent and go about my life. There was a strong sense that … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Wariness and Anticipation: Travelling in the Digital Age.

Posted on April 16, 2013 by

We travel for pleasure, for a door-slamming sense of “I’m outta here,” for a change of air, for edification, for the big vulgar boast of being distant, for the possibility of being transformed, for the voyeuristic romance of gawping at … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Sisyphus, Happiness and Calling it Quits.

Posted on April 14, 2013 by

There’s this beautiful new project by The Atlantic called Books by Heart  which I came to know about this week through Tumblr. I’m posting my favorite graphic because at this point in my life, it makes the most sense. I turned … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Doors.

Posted on April 8, 2013 by

The best years – or, at least, the most important years – of our lives, I’ll wager, are not those which contain all the best stuff, but the most momentous. Doors close, others open, windows are left slightly ajar, allowing … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Blooming in April: When Writing Feels Great.

Posted on April 2, 2013 by

The flowers have started to bloom outside our front gate signaling the arrival of summer. It’s an event I look forward to the same way the Japanese anticipate the coming of the cherry blossoms–if you notice, the flowers are similarly … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Development: Continuing an Ongoing Conversation.

Posted on March 30, 2013 by

I have been wary at times to call my line of work “development” related because I don’t meet communities regularly and most of my days are spent sitting on a desk, in the company of my laptop and books that … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Lonely in the City: How Manila Mends the Heart.

Posted on March 29, 2013 by

Only a beautiful city can repair a broken heart. After having been turned away from my alma mater and missing the opportunity to bid my students adieu and congratulate them on successfully completing high school, I took my loneliness out … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 109 Comments

March Sunsets.

Posted on March 28, 2013 by

March, you have been immensely life-giving. You’ve shattered many of my illusions and taught me to be brave in the face of adversity. You’ve rallied me on and said ‘why not’ when most people were likely to not even understand … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Procrastinating by way of Said.

Posted on March 5, 2013 by

Theory is taught so as to make the student believe that he or she can become a Marxist, a feminist, an Afrocentrist, or a deconstructionist with about the same effort and commitment required in choosing items from a menu. – … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Commuter’s idealism and finding one’s self.

Posted on March 1, 2013 by

I am a commuter, not between the city and the village, although I do this frequently; not between the inane idealism of the classroom and the stifling reality beyond it, which I must do for survival and self-respect. I am … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Losing faith.

Posted on February 28, 2013 by

This just about sums up how I currently feel about my Church. We’re huddled outside, freezing in the cold of our doubts while somewhere, far away, locked in the comfort of their palaces, the priests have been talking to an … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Real Deal and Why I am my own Valentine.

Posted on February 15, 2013 by

A year ago today, there was some serious bloodletting going on–and it wasn’t because I was heartbroken. If anything, I was getting my soul mended and learning that in life, as in love, one must bleed a bit every now … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Traveling with Others: An Abundance of Patricias (Part 1)

Posted on February 12, 2013 by

I have travelled with a fair share of Patricias whom I’ve found to be a rare mix of headstrong and vulnerable all at once. They’re an unpredictable bunch and they’re definitely set apart from the Anna’s and the Kate’s. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Snippets and Digressions: on dating and the self.

Posted on February 10, 2013 by

This weekend went by pretty fast. Yesterday I made breakfast for the Hobbitses who own this place I’m renting. They’re newlyweds about to have a child of their own and I can’t contain my excitement over this. We had toast … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Sunsets and scarves.

Posted on February 4, 2013 by

Yesterday’s sunset along Santolan road captured all of my current feelings. The city appeared to be burning–an apt way to imagine the Battle of Manila that took place in 1945. But research aside, and no matter how heavy reading about … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Companions.

Posted on February 1, 2013 by

Sometimes it isn’t about where you go but who you travel with, much like it is in life, right? As February rolls by, I’m tempted to introduce those people who have made the journeys worthwhile. Having been somewhat successful at … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Longing for Hanoi.

Posted on January 29, 2013 by

Reading Greene as a means to get over my longing for Vietnam. He wrote The Quiet American  in the Metropole in Hanoi. I wonder, did the scenery affect him at all? Pico Iyer, whom I’m still reading, slowly and purposefully, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Closer to an altar.

Posted on January 28, 2013 by

I am inching closer to building an altar and discovering that most, if not all, faiths have room in them for others. Since taking refuge in Buddhism, I have come to find more ways to try and practice the Noble … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment