A Special Day

Today is my birthday. I consider it among if not my best but I’m not giving myself the gift of adequate sleep by forcing myself to stay awake to have this posted within 24 hours despite several prior drafts still await publication.

The Ad

A colleague makes monthly Birthday Celebrants posters. Previously were Photoshopped cartoons of the celebrants. Trademark traits of every celebrant are listed next to their names. This month, the concept was a magazine cover. I’m the first on the list and the catchphrase reads, “IT professional and working for the government? Bring out your inner FASHIONISTA. You can be fab too”.

Birthday celebrants posted on our corkboard

Yin Yang Prelude

Yesterday, something good and bad happened. The bad one was losing my SIM card which I’d used for 5 years after I ignored my hesitation that it might get lost by placing it in my mobile phone’s jacket instead of zipping it in my wallet.

The good one was the fun we had before going home. Ok, it wasn’t all good because it’s a little evil but nonetheless fun. My computer had a trouble in the morning and the technician who serviced it was drinking coffee while waiting progress in his troubleshooting. Eventually, he left his tall mug on the shelf behind my partition until office hours ended. I picked it up and showed it to an officemate and remarked, “See? Raymund left his coffee mug in my place. Good enough they (the technical support staffs) don’t bring their mugs when they render field service to other offices or else they’ll be leaving it in other buildings”. Then it entered my clever mind so casually just like how air enters my nostrils. “What if I make this a flower vase, how would he react if he finds out?” Then the ever-supportive Jing grinned which triggered the enthusiasm and further brainstorming. She even remarked, “What if you also put soil?” but no sooner she retracted this joke. Ok, the soil might be a joke but that didn’t mean spoiling the plan that’s just conceived. “Why not?” I thought. “The past 22 birthdays were quite monotonous and typical. My wish for this year is to have some adventure”. The plot was formulated and carried-out in cooperation of my office pal and our immediate supervisor. That is to turn someone’s coffee mug into a vase and make it appear that it was given by somebody who was completely clueless about to whom the mug belongs. The two accomplices descended the building armed with a pair of scissors and gathered nearby wild flowers which made a nice bouquet; a lot more than I expected. Now, to still retain a pinch of surprise for me, I let Jing make the tags and didn’t read it until she had attached it to the vase. Since the mug’s design has the traits of a Libran (Raymund’s sign is Libra), she also searched online for the Cancer counterpart and taped it on top of the dedication tag. BTW, the tag reads “From Nag and Jing” because the climax of the plot is to see how the owner will react to find out that Nag (our supervisor) was one the masterminds. The centerpiece was set on the same spot where I found it to increase the probability that its owner will search in the place where he recalls to have left it.

Unfortunately, Raymund wasn’t visible the whole day which makes us wonder if he didn’t have coffee today or he already found out but decided not to spoil the “surprise” for me. We’re not losing hope in the next days though.

The evidence

Happy Birthday!

Mom woke me up by rubbing her fingertips on my cheeks and whispered her greeting. Her fingers were close in a rosebud-like form; I guess this is her way of kissing me now that I'm a grown man. Since she works somewhere far and her official time is an hour earlier than mine, she usually leaves while I’m still asleep and we only get to talk to each other in the evenings and on Sundays. Dad greeted me when I came down from the bedroom.

In the office, I'm glad to find my pals looking good as if dressed for the occasion. Jing is so thoughtful to get me a pint of ice cream on her way to work.

My supervisor's daughter scribbled her greetings for me

I have 2 boxes of pizza delivered in the office

Messageboard

Earliest - July 1: (Friendster Comment from Ann, Faculty)

Sweetest: My mom's

Most Persistent: Doth's (Our NetAd)

She forwarded through our WinMessenger, multiple copy-pasted 'happy bday' greeting 3 times thoughout the day plus her personal greetings

Most Unexpected: Sol's (a legal secretary who called and up to follow-up on something and greeted me afterward. Until now it puzzles me how she knew)

Unexpected:

Dan, former faculty in our school and director of theater arts (mailed through Friendster)

Dette, Manager in a nearby restaurant where we regularly eat. (Sent thru SMS)

Unknown Greetings: Those who might have texted me in the SIM card I'd lost yesterday thus whose numbers I also lost. This includes a greeting from the Insurance System in behalf of the President of the Philippines; last year I received one. This is computer-generated though

Office Outing in Pines City

The plan was to go south. No. There wasn’t a plan to go anywhere actually. I don’t know what hit our boss on the head or what had he ingested for him to retract his unofficial proclamation that there will be no summer outing for us unless all projects has been completed. It just surprised me one day some colleagues were busy researching options, corporate package proposals of resorts and hotels were coming in while documents for official travel were being sent out. (We want to believe that all projects had been completed indeed) All plans were bound south but cost analysis revealed that a southward itinerary would be expensive. However, since we were in the verge of the (summer) season, it was a now-or-never matter. And so to the North we went once more!

Last year, we felt deprived of time and fun since we’re in Baguio City for only less than 24 hours. Hence this time we dedicated our 3-day itinerary in Baguio alone and made sure to visit more of its famous parks and marketplaces and of course purchase Pines City’s specialty goods: veggies, sweets, cookies, fruit jams, silver jewelry, ornamental plants and others. Unfortunately, nobody could afford the fresh strawberries because it were priced at PHP200 more per kg than when in season; very high considering that it’s the price at the harvest fields so we wouldn’t want to know how much more is its market price in the city proper. The vendors attributed this to the damages of a recent storm.

My mates who have been with the company for at least 10 years now say this is the 3^rd time they held the teambuilding in Baguio but is the best outing by far despite that many failed to come along; last year’s trip is no match. But looking at their pictures several years ago and ours this year, I couldn’t agree less that this had been a lot more fun!

Ascending Kennon Road

Lion’s Head Welcome Marker

Stop for breakfast

First lunch in our destination (I look like a famished typhoon victim here)

Camp John Hay Historic Trail

Meeting Den and Lhaine, resident friends in Baguio

Set for Day 2

Wright Park

Mine’s View Park

Doglas (Mine's Park's famous St. Bernard)

Good Shepherd's Viewing Deck

Last Day @ Pines City

On the way home

Dennis: Reaping Success Successively

Congratulations to Dennis for completing his Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education Major in English and graduating cum laude.

I’ve mentioned him in 3 posts prior this and it’s likely that more will come so it’s time I introduce to you the man.

While in college, Dennis had been earning for himself impressive credentials. Having been a competent member (oftentimes a leader too) of their debate team and having been offered to teach in the school where he had his practicum even though he opted not to stay for long are his humblest achievements I’ve known.

“I do not want to treat students as mere clients who pay me so that they can do to me whatever they want”, he repines about his rude foreign students who are non-English-speaking hence the trouble of insisting the value of English Literature in their curriculum. His decision to leave the school is not all about giving up but rather it's to reserve his time and effort for those who are more willing to learn.

We first met in a regional competition in extemporaneous speech early 2007. This guy’s not a blabbermouth of his proficiency except of course when it was his turn to deliver and that’s when I was dumbstruck by the influx of his ideas and I could only mutter to myself, “How on Earth does he do that?” He emerged champion and went on to compete in the Nationals roughly a year after and eventually won the gold too.

Few weeks before their graduation ceremonies, he was a nominee for The Outstanding Students of the Cordillera Administrative Region (interestingly, OSCAR) and made it to the roster of finalists despite his apprehension that he’ll fall short of the criterion for community service. This distinction qualifies him for the upcoming search for Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines.

Currently, he’s taking his MA in English Major in Literature while reviewing for the licensure exam.

More important than these, he’s no menace (pun intended) but rather a good person who values faith, family, and friendship. Only once did we meet again after the first in 2007 but distance is offset by his keeping in touch for he makes sure to communicate as often as possible. He calls himself a “trying hard” but I guess that means he tries hard to give the best in his craft and become a better person each time.

Just like his favorite beverage – coffee that is – his company livens up the mood and could sometimes make your heart palpitate with his stories of brave adventures which he still considers fun.

I can say no better thing of him than his favorite expression and I quote, “Loves it!”

Dennis having a great time at the OSCAR camp

The author with Dennis and his best friend, Lalaine