Woohoo, I’m uber-stoked!

After having saved a small portion of my allowance for the past couple of months, I was finally able to purchase my own airpot! I’ve  been bent on having one for myself when it dawned on me that all the money that I spend in coffee houses can actually amount to something significant — because although I relish the ambiance of coffee houses when I study out, and the fact that they lessen your propensity to procrastinate, the accumulated expenses for coffee can actually buy you an extra arm and leg.

So yesterday, armed with my saved moolah, I headed to the nearby department store and took my pick from their assortment of choices. I chose a silver one, because metal always looks polished, modern, and sleek.

Self-brewed coffee and a fatter wallet, I am excited for you both!

Everytime my sister goes home to Dumaguete, and comes back, she never fails to bring with her an assortment of things from home. Almost always, she brings food that my mom cooked, blankets, linens, pillow cases, and once, even an appliance.

Although at first I was always excited about her arrival because of the freebies, I soon realized that the more that she brought stuff with her, the smaller (that) our condominium unit has become. As it is, the floor space is barely 100 square centimeters, so any new addition to the place actually makes the place look smaller.

Earlier today, I was cleaning the condo unit, and much to my dismay, our kitchen cabinets had been (over)stuffed with a lot of plastic containers (accumulated from all those trips that my sister took) and I had to declutter by throwing some of them away.

I am seriously considering purchasing mixer lifts so I can conceal the smaller-sized appliances in the kitchen cabinets. I might just flaunt this idea to my mom the next time she visits us in Cebu.

How have you been people? I miss blogging, and I promise that in the next few days, I shall blog again with feverish passion. Nye.

Once this semester is over, I intend to learn a new hobby.

Why, you may ask?

In law school, as I’ve learned first-hand, the things that one gets preoccupied with are pretty much the same. Although I am not complaining (because there is nothing in this world that I would want to become but a lawyer), the monotony can sometimes burn you out.

Right now, whenever I feel burned out, I just sleep. But I’ve noticed that every time I do this, it’s only my body that gets rest — my brain, however, is a different story. Even when my body has sufficiently rested, my mind still languishes in monotony. How do I seriously deal with this?

I’ve read somewhere that a creative hobby does the trick. Although I write occasionally (and I mean occasionally) these days, I wish to have an alternative hobby that does not require excessive thinking.

My resolve therefore (after considering all possible options): Learn how to play the guitar.

I figured that this would make sense because I’ve been itching to learn how to play a musical instrument for the longest time now, but because of numerous postponements, I’ve not been able to carry out this plan.

For this newfound hobby (fingers crossed here), I might purchase a JBL guitar, or maybe even just a local guitar (Cebu is the guitar haven of the country after all).

Because if law schools turns out differently for me, I wouldn’t mind being an acoustic artist for profit. I kid. But seriously, I need a new hobby.

Today, my heart is crushed.

Last night, I had my finals examination for Labor Standards, the hardest subject that I have for this semester, and suffice it to say, I wasted away in numerous sleepless nights spent studying for that exam: I devoured books, memorized photocopied materials, and familiarized myself with the pertinent Rules of Procedure relating to the subject-matter.

To be honest, I was looking forward to the exam. Hell, I even sacrificed numerous subjects just to be prepared for this one hard subject.

Boy, was I in for a surprise.

My professor, who is well-known to be unpredictable when it comes to giving exams, did not fail to live up to his name last night. Although just to be clear, I am not saying that he cheated us of our opportunity to pass his subject, because if truth be told, his questions were fair and reasonable.

The problem was with me: I conked out. Perhaps, in my excitement to take the exam, I failed to psychologically prepare myself so I can have a grip on my emotions.

As the time paced by so slowly, I could feel the trembling of my hands, and my heart palpitating. You know that feeling of being doomed even before an impending tragedy happens? That was how I felt.

After the exam, I felt broken. My heart felt like it was stabbed numerous times by scalpel blades, and I was defenseless from the onslaught of sadness.

I know I am better than this.

First of all, I would like to apologize for having posted just now — suffice it to say, this semester has been the most burdensome that I’ve ever had in all my years spent studying. I initially wanted to chronicle the ups and downs that have both buoyed and unsettled my spirits for this semester, but each time I tried to capture the fleeting emotions, I constantly needed to beg off, because of so many demands from school.

Anyway, I’m posting here again because school is almost over, and I can’t wait to just galivant again and not care about readings, jurisprudence, or law books. In two weeks time, my first semester in second year law school will officially end, and I can’t be any happier about this.

But apart from law-related updates, there has been nothing pretty significant that has happened in my life so far — oh except one thing, and this may be pretty odd, but lately, I’ve been having conversations with my dad about buying a horse. I remember that this happened during a random conversation that we had, as he was trying to ask me how my schooling has been so far. Out of the blue, he blurted out that he might be purchasing a horse in the next few weeks, because apparently, an uncle, who owned a dozen horses, just had baby horses, and my dad wants to have one for our family.

Although I made it appear as though I thought his idea was sound, in my mind, I can only ask: Where will we put the animal? Does he even know that we need to buy horse supplements or that we would need a horse blanket if ever?

But anyway, he’s my dad and if that makes him happy, then I guess that would make me happy, too.

Now that the semester is almost over, I look forward to populating this blog with more posts again. The hiatus was only momentary, and it was a short-lived defeat that I got from law school life. But from here on forward, I can only hope that things will pick up from here.

So yesterday was a silly day.

About a week ago, my friend James from high school, invited me to his child’s third birthday party. Three years ago, I was supposed to be Raphael’s godfather, but because of a prior commitment that I can no longer recall today, this did not materialize.

The reason why yesterday felt so silly was because it was a costume party. The Avengers, to be more specific. At first, I rejected the idea of donning a Thor costume, but as the date was coming close, I thought about how fun that could be.

So three days before the event, I scoured the city for any costume that can resemble Thor in The Avengers, and after having gone from one store to another, I finally had my ensemble of the Greek god’s costume.

So huddled alongside other three year-olds in a childrens picnic table, I attended my first costume party after a very long time. Before writing this, I was bent on posting a picture of how awesome (read: LAME) I looked that day, but because I still have self-respect, I decided against it.

Although some of my friends did not don costumes inspite the instructions, it turned out to be one helluva party. It’s been a long, long time since I’ve been in a children’s party, and as I was watching the kids have fun with reckless abandon, I realized I needed to be juvenile and be like a little boy again.

Till next year, baby Raffy.

How time flies.

As I type this, my head swirls from the mayhem of enrollment week, and even when the process literally made my head spin from all the stress, I can now say that I am officially in my second year in law school.

Looking at my subjects this semester, I can’t help but feel ecstatic to be taking interesting courses, such as Property Law, Land Titles and Deeds, Labor Relations, and other advance courses. I personally look forward to studying Labor Law because this is one of the sub-fields of law that I feel more passionate about.

Of course, I’ve since come up with my new school plans for this coming semester. I am most resolute in avoiding all the toxic people in law school, because last semester, I’ve realized that I had a classmate who was particularly weighing me down with all her negativity.

Yesterday also, I decided to transfer the flat screen in my condo unit to the wall, using a peerless mount. This will make the TV more optically-accessible, regardless of where I am in the unit.

I am stoked for my second year in law school, and I hope I make it out alive. Wish me luck!

My younger brother decided he’s had it with the scorching summer heat.

So two days ago, he headed off to Siquijor, an island across Negros, and he said he would be staying there for two days so he can have a bit of relaxation amid the numbing heat.

Siquijor, for those who are unfamiliar with the place, is a popular tourist destination in Visayas. It is a relatively small island, but it is endowed with a lot of natural wonders. I remember spontaneously going there two years ago by my lonesome, with no idea where I was headed to — I only Googled the places that were popular with tourists, but despite the uncertainty, I was able to enjoy everything that Siquijor had to offer for one full weekend.

I remember spelunking in numerous caves in one of the municipalities there, bathing in the freezing waters of an underground waterfall, and just galivanting in white sand beaches as the sun glared mercilessly on the island.

One thing that differentiates Siquijor from other tourist destinations is its relative peace — whereas several islands have large tourist populations, Siquijor is relatively less cluttered with people, making it one of the best places to enjoy nature and some of its finer creations.

So after having been ravaged by Siquijor for two days,my younger brother arrived at our doorstep this morning. No one recognized him right away, because apparently, he soaked up all the summer sun while he was in Siquijor. To say that he seemed to just have gotten airbrush tans is an understatement to the burnt skin color that Siquijor had given him.

I feel sorry for him, because I know that in 2 or 3 days time, he would be molting like a snake, and he would look like a dalmatian soon after — for that was how my Siquijor experience had ended two years ago.

Ah summer heat, when shall you release us from torment?

Yesterday was a busy day for me. Amidst the demands from work, I was able to find time to accompany my brother and sister-in-law as they looked for possible houses where they can transfer to.

You see, ever since they were married, my brother and his wife had been residing in an apartment complex that is owned by my dad, but this time around, they’ve figured that they already want to settle in a residential area where they can grow a garden, raise kids (possibly, fingers crossed here), and stay clear of the mind-numbing noise of city life.

Even when I personally think that their apartment is cozy and comfortable enough, I do get where they’re coming from, and if I were in their situation, I think I would have done the same thing already. It has already been 4 years since they were married, and I think it’s high time for them to kick their living situation up a notch.

Aided by a real estate agent, they were able to see three prospective residential options. Personally though, I took a liking to the residential steel building that was located in the suburbs. The neighborhood seemed pleasant, the house had an expansive lawn, the scenery was lush with plants and trees, and the place seemed quiet.

In my mind, I would’ve picked that place — but then again, it’s their call, because they are the ones who would be starting over.

On a personal level though, I feel genuinely happy for them, because I know how long they have been contemplating on really starting a family of their own. From this day forward, I can only wish them the best, and pray that the odds be ever in their favor.

I don’t normally watch the evening news, because I personally feel that sometimes, all that the reports ever do is to create the impression that this world is one crazy, desolate place.

The prospect for watching newsworthy news pieces is even closer to nil in this side of the world, because sensationalism is deeply ingrained in the mindset of most news practitioners in this country.

Come to think of it really: What would it matter if you did not know that a call center agent was beheaded by her deranged lover in Taguig because of a love triangle, or some has-been starlet had suffered mental anguish over a poorly done tummy tuck operation? I don’t know about you, but my world would still continue revolving even without these nonsense clutter.

But while I was skimming through several news channels last night, I came across a certain news feature which really disturbed me.

It was about a family that was driving along one of Manila’s major thoroughfares. As they were stuck in traffic, two gun-wielding men on board a motorcycle appeared out of nowhere, and just as everyone least expected it to happen (because they were in a major highway, for crying out loud), one of the men opened fire at the driver of the vehicle.

Everything happened so fast that the onlookers were stunned and in utter disbelief at what just ensued. Death had just passed them by — and in the aftermath of the mayhem, the image of the wife wailing uncontrollably was as chilling as the earlier image of the husband being shot to death.

I later on learned that the husband died shortly after the incident, because he did not receive any first aid treatment, and the paralyzing traffic situation only exacerbated the helplessness that ensnared his wife. The attending physician commented that the victim could have been saved, because the wounds that were inflicted were not that fatal, but what caused his death was loss of blood.

Perhaps, if they only had a car emergency kit with them, the outcome would have been different. If this had been the case, then they would have been better prepared to deal with the situation, rather than feel helpless as the victim’s life was slowly spirited away from his body.

That news feature reminded me that right now, we live in a world that is savage as it is beautiful — and in the midst of unpredictable tragedy, we ought to be prepared so we can act accordingly.

In the end, it’s all about striking a balance between watching news pieces that give us awareness, and steering away from those that seem to trivialize journalism. In the end, we need to be aware of the goings-on of this world, not ensnared by the superficial satisfaction of satiating the sensationalist cravings of the larger society.