Yesterday  started with an early morning drive to fetch 2 of my best friends from a place near our house. It has been more than a year since the three of us got together that we decided to have a breakfast date at my house and do some catching-up.

Interestingly it seemed nothing has changed with our friendship as there were no awkward moments and as if we hang out regularly. After having a hearty breakfast, we decided to sit near the chapel in front of our house where we talked about our lives–what happened since we last met and what things might happen in the future.

I did realize how our conversations have matured a lot. Before, it was all about isotopes in Chemistry, formulas in Physics, review of short stories in English but now it’s about relationships, identities and future plans. As much as these change is good for us, something in me misses the carefree lives we once lived.

Then that night after mass, I went out with Marlon, Rizza, and Richard where after grabbing dinner, Marlon ended up treating us to Figaro. A lot of catching up happened starting specifically with my being gay and ending in Marlon’s quest for love.  All these years, Marlon and I would always have talks about love and relationships and courting and dating over the yahoo messenger. Part of these conversations included a lot of teasing about his love life and the like.

Then it dawned on me. Marlon is good guy friend whom I have always seen as a gentle and a great man (and who has the looks). Then there is Luzsil, my best friend, whom I have always seen as a sweet, intelligent lady (who is simply gorgeous).  What did I do? I hooked them up on a random date on Saturday. Rules: Chill lang! No expectations. Just go out of their comfort zones and meet someone. Cool  huh?

I think I am more exciterd for them than they really are. Oh well. LOL.  I just can’t wait for my two friends–who are timid to go out but are in search of dates (ironic right?)–to meet and take it from there. As Jordin Sparks puts it, One step at a time.

Annually, i post the names of 10 of the people I met (or have gotten to know more)  for the year that has been, people who have changed my life so much, people whom i draw life points from to keep me sane. Check this January 2009 post in my old blog http://misterpedagog.wordpress.com/2009/01/06/great-people-i-met-last-2008/ to see who entered last year’s list. Not that it’s a prestigious list but it feels good to know  that you have positively affected me,a person for real and concretely.

disclaimer:

1. Sorry, but dates are automatically disqualified (LOL).
2. Randomly listed
3. People here are those that my poor memory allowed me to remember so forgive me

Now here are the misters and misses of my 2009.
1. Mr.  Abs The coolest straight roomate a gay guy could ever have. Not a judgmental person, He became a partner-in-crime in playing in Timezone, jogging, food tripping and conversing. He is also this simple guy who has a lot to offer without him even knowing it. He always reminds me that what i perceive is what i will achieve thus keeping me focused in my studies and even in my exercise routine which we will be continuing and improving this Janaury. Yes, he has an almost-perfect abdomen without much effort which is also a constant reminder of one of my goals–not to get abs but to get fit and healthy.

2. Mr. and Ms. Masters I took my first, formally-enlisted Masters subject this year where I met these two young Masters students. My other classmates where “too serious” in their learning process while I was just having fun. Mr. and Ms. Masters appreciated this fun way of mine (or so I think ). They are the nicest MA classmates one could ever have–they always greet and smile which adds a happy note to my rather busy acad life.

3. Ms.Huggies I just love to hug her. Ms. Huggies is a pretty, confident woman with one of the nicest dispositions in life. Her smile is contagious. Bubbly in every sense of it, Ms. Huggies is one of the most charming people you’ll ever meet which reminds me that happiness is always a choice.

4. Ms. Pretty Serious She has this gameface that she wears all the time. She seems a tad serious but she is by no means boring. She has this image of a headmistress because of her being the president and founder of our organization. With this, she exudes professionalism in the teaching arena and thus earning her respect from the people around her. But after all of this, she is still this pretty lady who is simply enjoying her life.

5. Ms. Punctual. She is obviously very punctual but aside from this, she is this responsible, kind person who might seem a bit too serious but is indeed fun to talk to. She kind of scares me when she is quiet but I am quite sure she is just contemplating on something. LOL. Just like Ms. Pretty Serious, Mr. Punctual is teaching me how to be more respectable, professional and more mature as a teacher if just for their demeanors that are seemingly perfect for pedagogues.

6. Mr. Blunt. He taught me to stop being overly critical and analytical and to sometimes try the unplanned and spontaneous. He is brutally honest and intelligently funny. What I love about him is that we could talk about almost everything without censoring anything and thus have more meaningful conversations. He made me realize that life is too short to be scared of the unknown and thus it would be logical (I am not calculating! ) to dive and take the plunge.

7. Mr. Lawyer. I hated him at first for being this I’m-not-a-homophobic-but-actually-i-am-homophobic guy. I guess I did show him there are decent gay guys around. My roomie for roughly two months, I enjoyed those few but interesting and loaded conversations we had. One of the things I will always remember that he said is that when we have sex with so many different people, we become jaded and a step away from finding love. This might not be entirely true but there is wisdom to it and I appreciate and even subscribe to that wisdom.

8. Ms. Mature. She is my concept of what a mature lady is. despite challenging situations in her past, Ms. Mature handles herself with just about the right amount of composure. She is also my concept of an ate–someone who listens and gives advice without sounding condescending and self-righteous. She really is a great listener, fun and happy as a person. She is currently in love with a wonderful nice guy who is really lucky to have her.

9. Mr. Hornynice. I introduced myself to this quiet, shy, brillinat guy on the third meeting of one of my educ classes and since then we became groupmates and friends. What I love about him is he proudly believes in monogamy and is giving it all his best to take care of the relationships he is in with a med stud. He is very friendly, fashionably blunt and interestingly green and horny–which is i guess is his way of avoiding the acts and instead thinks and talks about them (LOL). Seriously though, he is a very nice bloke and I’m quite sure this is something his partner loves about him.

10. Mr. Sewing Machine. He is a fabulous and great (or soon-to-be-great) couturier who’s language shows evidence that he might actually be from the late Romanticist period with his beautiful choice of words in his letters, blog posts, text messages and even in ordinary conversations, that inspires awe, enlightenment, mushiness, realizations among people who read and hear them. The greatest lesson i learned from him is that being faithful is something you owe yourself and perhaps to a Greater Being who is omnipresent. With this, he is proving that even long distance relationships, no matter how hard the setup, can work and will work if only you know what it is you are looking for and what it is you value.

11. Mr. Sex-Me-Not. This Psychology Major is one of the greatest examples of people with a high emotional intelligence as can be seen through his effective compartmentalizing of his issues and problems in life. He inspired me to take my writing more seriously. He also has this persona of happiness optimism and modesty which make up for a good friend.

12. Mr. Eyebags. The thing I hated about this guy is how he doesn’t have eyebags (ok, envy here) and to think he is a student just like me. LOL. You’ll love his postivism on relationships reminding that not every one is in it just for the sex. The main keypoint I got from him was to learn to be satisfied and contented with whatever I have. He also introduced me to the A-E-I-O-U DONT’s in a relationship.

Don’t Anticipate, Exaggerate, Interpret, Overanalyze, Underestimate

13. Mr.Touchy. I find this good guidance counsellor quite touchy and overly sensitive that it actually irritates me. But beyond these is a guy who is always ready to listen and who believes that communication can prevent unnecessary arguments and misunderstandings. He taught me how conversations can be used to heal a restless mind, a broken heart, a scared soul, an anxious

14. Mr. First Love. This guy just doesn’t and won’t give up on love. Despite looking for a loving relationship outside the bounds of the norms, he does not loose his faith that there is romantic love for guys like us. Aside from this, his love for his family inspire me to give even more care and respect for my family. Being both in the field of education and both families owning schools, our conversations range from the most obscure things to the more serious and business-related matters.

15. Mr. Big Eyes. You’ll love this guy’s eyes. Aside from their being handsomely nice, something in them tells you about his fears and sensitivities that you might miss if you only consider his confident and strong demeanor. I realized that though age brings about wisdom and experience, it doesn’t necessarily remove our fears and insecurities which, to me, makes a person more human, more wise and perhaps even more interesting if not attractive. With this, I can’t wait to grow up even more and learn more, and just go with life without thinking too much while making the most out of it.

16. Ms. Dumb-blonde. We would always joke about how this lady is usually perceived as just a bitch without anything to offer. Anyone who thinks this about Ms. Dumb-blonde is the one who’s dumb. This lady is beauty and brains rolled into one. She proves how stereotypes are lame for one look of this lady won’t give you the slightest idea how great she is as a person. She might seem to be bitchy and an elitist but she is none of this. Her values are greatly intact, her mind fabulously sharpned, and her looks superior to others. She is one of the nicest, sweetest, most gorgoeu ladies in town and you will love her.

Again, this amounts to more than 10. Who cares?! It seems I am meeting more and more great and inspiring people every year.

Happy New Year!

couturier

Two nights ago, I went with my Mama to the supermarket to buy things for new year’s eve. Aside from pushing the cart (which I admittedly still enjoy), one of the perks of accompanying my mom in her grocery shopping is that I can slip grocery items into the cart without her noticing–not that I am being dishonest it’s just that I am practicing independent thinking in buying stuff.

Nah, I am being sly.Guilty.

So after slipping some strawberry oatmeal packs (my mom doensn’t like it flavored), I slipped in a bottle of green apple flavored The Bar.

Wrong Move.

My mom is well aware my brother and I drink and I didn’t think it was an issue for her. It never was. I have crossed only a few of her bounderies that I still have her trust–thus I don’t have curfews and the like. But considering my younger brother ( i have no idea if its a Benilde thing) is slowly evolving to a party homo sapien–partying to the wee hours of the morning, coming home wasted and with pictures of him lying on the ground and all–I guess my mom is becoming more concerned.

How did she show concern?

She made a big fuss about the The Bar bottle at the counter. The clerk already punched everything but upon seeing the bottle of alcohol with only 50.6 proof, she asked for the manager to make the transaction void. I was: WTH? I explained that it would be cheaper if i bought it from the mart and that anyway it was new year and that I am a responsible drinker ( cause I really am, how I wish I do find out my limit). But in the end every thing was explained in vain. I asked my dad for support, he attempted, but my mom’s mind was made up, and when that mind is made up there is no turning back or else there will be a hearing or a parliementary procedure or something.

End of story: We didn’t buy the The Bar.

I had to let it go. But that reminded me of something I really admire in my mom–her standing up for her principles. She didn’t want to buy alcohol for her sons and so she didn’t. My mom has always been this strong person who can’t be intimidated by any thing as long as she know what she is fighting for is the right thing.

And this is one of the valuable things I learned from my mom. As much as I like discoursing and ideas clashing, I am such a peace-loving person that ‘d rather not argue if I think it is going to end in futility. I have come to know that some people are just not meant to agree with me and that no one can please every one. As long as I know what I believe in then I’m good. To a certain extent, it’s also saying as long a I know who I am then I won’t have any problems.

With this, I ended that night with my mom by enjoying a cup of chilled taho fresh from SEX (Sinangag Express) and sitting on my piano as I play one of my favorite songs which starts with this all time favorite stanza:

Remember those walls I built. Well Baby they are tumbling down. They didn’t even put up a fight. They didn’t even make a sound”

Last night, a good friend invited me to a get-together somewhere in Sampaloc with one of the streets named Sisa. But because I wanted to continue watching The Big Bang Theory  and was lazy to get up from bed, I almost missed this great night.

And since I am still lazy to write in prose, I decided to just make a bllueted list of what made last night a wonderful Christmas night:

• I was reunited with Paolo, a good friend.  After his phone’s unfortunate demise, our connection was cut short and his being alien to facebook didn’t help. I missed his random queries about the gay life which I answer with whatever schematas I have in my head’s grooves.
• I personally met these cool bloggers (i didn’t use the word great ’cause apparently I seemed like a fanatic, which I am not). Cool, because they make a lot more sense than television and almost as much sense as books. Enough said.
• I met this couple who are, I think, really in love with each other and that love made me want take another chance at it–this time with less calculations and preemptions.
• The place was just fool of real people with great minds.
• Conversations were intellectually Climactic.
• Learned a lot from Sir Bobot
• The place, Happynings, is really great, astounding.
• And then there is this cute guy

I would have had died if I had i not gone to this gathering.

One of the things I learned for Christmas is the art of ribboning and bow-making. After watching a couple of clerks at National Bookstore wrapping presents for the season, I finally learned how to do it. Except for the mismatch of yellow bows on red ribbons in a couple of my gifts, I must say I am quite happy with what I did.

They say whenever you learn a new skill, more space become available in one’s brain for memory storage. I guess, I got some free space with my newly acquired skill. I was supposed to blog a step by step process, but I’ll save that for later. Sorry, bum time MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I told myself last year that I would give more meaning to Christmas this year for last year’s just came by and left me without a hug or a kiss. Then I realized, how exactly do I give my Christmas more meaning?

Since Christmas break started, all I did was play video games, eat junk food, sleep a lot, check some of my student’s papers, play the piano, play the guitar, surf the net, listen to music, watch the Big Bang Theory Series and nothing else.  Not that none of these are meaningful–to me at least–but I guess I am looking for that something that seems to be present in all of my Christmases but last year’s and seemingly this year’s.

I still have four hours to figure it out (or perhaps admit that I already know what I am looking for).

For now, I’ll finish doing covers in my piano, finish the notes on my gifts for my family, enjoy, and be thankful for the time I get to spend with my family this Christmas.

Happy Birthday Jesus

P.S. It seems I don’t have any other wish for Christmas but to find that thing I am searching for. Dear Jesus, hope i receive it next year. I love You.

Every Christmas,  I am amazed by how much gifts teachers get. My mom, being the teacher that she is, brings home lots of gifts after her class’ christmas party. And even though not all of these gifts are really well-thought of, the quantity never fails to astound me.

And now that I am months away from my teaching degree, I guess its my turn to be blessed with his gifts and it still amazes me how my students gave me simple yet very thoughtful gifts.

I also attended the Lantern Parade this year and I guess last year’s was way better (although it should be noted it was the University’s Centennial Lantern Parade last year). I went with some of the nicest classmates I have ever met, and who are also  my co-practicumers (except for Lucci): Yna, Cheska, Lucci , and EJ.

I would just like to share with you the picture that brought me much happiness thanks to Yna–a great friend .

Guess who is mimicking who?

I am procrastinating by writing this blog from the main library of the university as I start my paper on the Japanese Educational System in the Philippines. Right now, I reading and befriending Domingo Santiago’s Thesis entitled Philippine Education during the Japanese Occupation (circa 1951). After bouts of allergic reactions to the book, I am now smoothly learning the peculiarities of the Japanese Educational System in the country such as how they removed the Board of Regents and the University Council and gave all of its specific duties to the President of the University of the Philippines and placed the said university under the executive supervision and administrative control of the Commissioner of Education, Health and Public Welfare when it has once existed and functioned as an independent institution.

I have four days left before Christmas break starts and I would want all unfinished business to be done by then.

I will have to wake up in a while to finish the last school week of the year. It is quite late but i would like to update my blog before before it’s too late. (I haven’t settled in with my schedule for this semester and so I still can’t find the time to regularly blog).

Last Saturday, I had my graduation shots taken. With all the teachings, lesson plans, readings and papers i have been doing, I wasn’t able to really prepare for the shoot. But interestingly, I think i did come up with a nice creative shot–very Filipino but modern and angsty as well. I don’t have the contact prints yet but here is the idea:

I used a sarong from my uncle , a vest I got from the studio’s wardrobe and I wore inside out,  a pentel pen to write the words GURO AKO, a white necklace, and a teacher’s pointer (not in the picture). I would say I loved the concept. A modest picture with a strong statment. Also it is quite Filipino.

Now the only thing left for me to do is give my best and graduate for real.

Earlier, i had an enrichment lesson of Matter which I started to discuss with my first graders last week. I have been using a lot of experiential activities to give them a first-hand take on things they will have to learn and master. It needed quite a lo of preparation and effort in execution but i believe it paid off. I have been enjoying teaching Agham since my practicum started and hope to keep enjoying it.

Mister Pedagog’s life is starting ti take a more concrete form.

Happiness.