Full, full day

woke up at the crack of dawn (well ok, 8 a.m.) to get my nbi clearance from the mandaluyong city hall. was thoroughly impressed with a government office for the first time in my life -- the whole process took all of ten minutes. *applause*

they used a digicam to take my picture, and took fingerprints of each finger (in duplicate, no less) within seconds. the fingerprinting was especially interesting. you have to keep your hand as limp as a jellyfish as someone grasps it in his own hand, presses each finger into a sticky black rubber mat, and rolls them into their corresponding boxes on the nbi form. the resulting prints look like smeary rectangles of thinly spread tar, rather than those familar neat ovals with purple swirls.


this sh*t is bananas! B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

then sped to ateneo to get my academic records for work. was met by a vile betrayal at the hands of my beloved alma mater -- the registrar's office LOST MY FARKING CLEARANCE FORM.

yes, the one you have to carry around to a billion departments to secure various stamps and signatures to be able to graduate. the one i distinctly remember accomplishing, due to the unmistakable giddy feeling of impending graduation that swelled in me upon the addition of a new signature.

let's see, what else tells me that i actually completed the form... uh, that i farking GRADUATED? and that i've been able to get a transcript on two separate occasions since then?

apparently there's no arguing with the bureaucracy, so i have to relive the whole kalbaryo of trudging all over campus all over again to be able to claim my transcript and diploma. and i have to do it soon because it's sem break and all the departments will soon be on vacation.

FABULOUSNESS.


ang kampon ng kalaban

tried to pacify myself with kfc, but evil fate sent the world's loudest teenage girl to queue up next to me. i was thisclose to telling her to please shut up. for the life of me i can't remember anything that came out of her mouth, but there was a steady stream of it for fifteen long minutes, punctuated by hysterical, gasping laughter. at one point, though, i heard her say, "grabe no sobrang ganda ng big brother kagabi! ang funny funny ni chx! love ko siya!"

aha! kaya pala! said a tiny evil voice in my head. kapamilya pala to e!

that should give you a clue as to my new workplace. oh and by the way chx (yes, it's really spelled that way -- pretentiously) is that pbb housemate whom inquirer columnist gino dela paz describes as "the ditzy simpleton who says things like 'dito na me'."

when i finally had my order in hand, i stopped in front of her for a moment, seriously contemplating her "miss, saan ka uupo?" so that i could sit as far away from her as humanly possible and eat my lunch in peace.


oh yeah almost forgot

today was my first unofficial day at work.

i say unofficial because i haven't even seen an offer sheet yet, but i was asked to come in on a 15-day contract prior to my official starting date (which is november 7). my soon-to-be boss was at an all-day planning session, so i went through an informal orientation by my new workmates and the girl i'll be replacing.

it was one of the warmest welcomes i've ever received. no offense to my factory friends, but everyone had their noses tucked into their monitors and the whole floor was as quiet as a graveyard when i first came in. i was quickly nicknamed yasmien (kurdi, of starstruck fame); they have yet to introduce me to the guy they call rainier (yasmien's ka-loveteam). oh and there's one writer they call la oro after elizabeth oropesa. haha benta.


pressure pressure

i was fast aswirl in jargon (bumpers, trailers, riders, title cards, supers, dvcs) and trying to wrap my head around a whole different universe of thinking (that is, in sound and moving images). i found myself watching tons of plugs (commercials for tv shows), including those for one of the shows that it looks like i'm going to write for. those, i kept watching over and over again because they were so damn good.

i marveled at the plugs done by the girl who came before me and wondered how i would ever produce anything like them. and the artwork done by my soon-to-be partner were simply astounding to me, especially coming from the factory where all artwork is bound, gagged and chained to a template by official decree. my new partner is a very straight male, so to communicate my awe, i simply murmured, "ang lupet." see? i can speak the language. i heard he's extremely oc and efficient -- my favorite kind of coworker.

my new officemates shooed me away at 7 p.m. "yasmien, umuwi ka ng maaga hanggang pwede pa," one urged. hmmm. i see lots of coffee and pimples in my immediate future.


and finally, home

currently taking a breather with a bar of chocolate, a plate of steaming rice and spanish-style fried sardines, and some therapeutic blogging (i.e., this rant).

then it'll be time to start on my raket articles, of which there are two for tonight.

ain't life grand?