 | Silence | Feb 9, '08 12:52 PM
for everyone |
 My silence bridges the gulf between my life's success and my life's failure. My silence does not magnify my defects. Nor does it connive at them. My silence transforms my defects into strength indomitable. My silence is a climbing flame that warms my world of despair.My silence is my inner light. No problem of mine can defy solution. My silence is a selfless distributor of joy to ever-widening horizons. In my silence I become a man of sterling character, a prolific writer, a voracious reader, a divine lover, a profound inspirer and a triumphant liberator. In my deep silence I never become a victim to ignorance,the greatest calamity that can befall any human being. In my growing silence I am convinced that even as a man on this earth I shall be able to reach heights, transcendental, divine. My glowing silence alone can accelerate my Godward march. My spreading silence makes me see, feel and possess satisfaction,  unalloyed satisfaction. No more have I to let loose a tirade of tenebrous dissatisfaction. In activity and vitality I proudly and wrongly feel thatI shall have to take care of the whole world. In the heart of silence I humbly and unmistakably realiseThat it is the Divinity within the world that took care, takes care and shall for ever take care of the entire world. Silence is my unceasing petition. Silence is my unreserved preparation. Silence is my unlimited realisation. Silence is the unfathomable fount of my life here on earth, there in Heaven.
--- Sri Chinmoy
 So you think every geek gathering is boring and nerdy? Not so with Mos Eisley Night. Each incarnation brings the wretched hive of scum and villainy to a new level of awesomeness!
MOS EISLEY NIGHT: The Special Edition is Remastered and Enhanced with truly treacherous trivia, fantastically fiendish fan films, mysteriously menacing music, amazingly addictive alcohol, and of course, holy mother of baby mon calamari, blue milk! Imagine a lightsaber duel with the background music from The Late Isabel, Marty McFly, The Pin-Up Girls, Space Flower Show, and Area 5! See what Star Wars craziness other fans can cook up with Star Wars fan film screenings at the bar, while enjoying refreshing blue milk served by a certain zany pirate. Expect all that and lots of sizzling Star Wars surprises from Mos Eisley Night: The Special Edition, Remastered and Enhanced, presented by Star Wars Philippines, Club Dredd Eastwood, Maxim, and Killer Set, Baby! with the Philippine 501st Legion and the Pag-Asa Wing of the Rebel Legion. Entrance is P150 with one drink; P100 if you're dressed in your best costume -- Star Wars or otherwise! The fun starts at 9:00 PM on Saturday, September 1, 2007, at Club Dredd! To find the new and improved Club Dredd, look for the fountain area in Eastwood City. In front of the fountain area is Gweilos. Go inside, and upstairs is Club Dredd. See you there, and don't get lost in an asteroid field on your way.
Yep. You read that right. I watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix a few hours ago in Mall of Asia. Thanks to a very generous benefactor.  I saw it with Meann and Gary. Let me just state some spoilers and little thoughts: - Grawp CGI is great. - Evanna Lynch portrayed a very good Luna Lovegood character. - The thestrals are really creepy. - Evanna Lynch is soooo lovely. - The kiss is really "wet". - Sirius Black didn't die by stumbling through the veil. He was AK'd by Bellatrix then his dead body just fell through the veil. - Evanna is really cute. - There were no brains in the Department of Mysteries. - The great big showdown of Voldy and Dumbly is breathtaking. Don't you dare blink an eye. - It didn't say in the movie that it was Sibyll Trelawney who made the prophecy. - Kudos to Imelda Staunton for a great protrayal of Dolores Umbeej este Umbridge. - Dudley has grown really big. - The whole story was too fast. Those who haven't read the book will really get confused looks. - Evanna outclassed Emma, Katie, and Bonnie with her charm and beauty. =P That's it, pusit. Sleepy now. Work tomorrow. +_+
From my desk, today at 6:30 PM---------------- I'm on to my tenth straight sleepless night, excluding Sunday. Muggle work has finally taken over me.
I started at RCG-IT just this Monday, though I only go there a few times to procure some documents regarding my employment. I report for work everyday at one of their many clients, Smart Communications, also along Ayala Avenue. I started out familiarizing myself with the system my team is developing. Come yesterday lunch, I was assigned with a big task. Its deadline was on that night too. I am not yet fully familiar with the system, but there I went. With the help of one of my team members, I was able to finish my task and beat the deadline. I immediately sent it to my supervisor because he needed it this morning. What time was I able to finish it? 10:30 pm. I was at the office from 7:45 am to 10:30 pm. +_+ OT work in Smart's IT department is very normal. And now, as I type this, I'm headed to another OT work. By the way, I'm able to type this up because our server is currently down for about an hour now. Still, I don't regret transferring to another company. I wanted this, so this is what I'm getting. I know that the rewards will be great compared to that of my previous company. ~*~*~*~*~ Okay now, let's go backwards: Last Monday, a videoshoot was done in Fandom Cafe. QTV requested for an interview with three local Harry Potter fans. And so they got me, Head Girl Ana, and Prefect Haidokun. We were at Fandom Cafe doing the shoot as we are interviewed about our passion for the fandom, and mostly about collecting Harry Potter items. Ana came with the most number of very rare collectibles. I brought my HP SS Deluxe Creature Collection composed of Fluffy, Hagrid, and the troll, all of which I won in National Bookstore's HP CoS Trivia Challenge five years ago. I also brought some games like HP UNO, Gnome Toss, Diagon Alley, and 3-D Adventure Through Hogwarts. My almost-namesake Bjie loaned his NECA Series 1 action figures to be disguised as part of my collection. Hehehe. Thanks, Bjie! The shoot ran from 7:30 to 11 PM. The shoot is a part of their Harry Potter special in Kids on Q. It will be aired on the 14th, 10 - 11am. They'll also feature Potter Day in New Worlds: Transformed. This is my second interview with QTV. Last year, I was one of four NWA people they interviewed and featured for the show Groupee TV. I rested last Sunday. Saturday was Paul's 30 birthday. See my previous post. Belated happy birthday to Paul!
Friday? Friday was my last day in my previous company, and also my last day in the client's office. I sought clearance from Safeway Philtech before going to ITS (pronounced as i-tiis) for yet another clearance. My officemates Arnold and Ivy were able to have their clearance forms almost complete, save one from our Division Head. They were already there since the morning, while I got there at 4:30 pm. All the big bosses had a meeting from 4 to 8 pm, so I wasn't able to get even one signed. I need to schedule another leave to be able to obtain my clearance. *sigh* Thursday was Transformers day. Finally! The long wait has ended! I actually watched it twice. One in early afternoon with a friend, and one in the evening at the special screening by 105.1 Crossover. Thanks to Mark for the ticket. ~*~*~*~*~ That's it, pancit. Server isn't up yet.
----------------
I left the office at 8:30 PM. Server was up at 8 PM. I was hungry and tired. +_+
I'm here sitting by the window sill in Rej's room. A cool breeze with light drizzle makes one think and write about something. Sentimental mostly. But I'm not being emo ha. LOL. Most of the party people are in the living room, singing songs. Most are tipsy. And I feel sleepy. Okay, maybe I'm also a bit tipsy. But it's okay. I'm enjoying every minute of this party. It's half an hour past 12 midnight. For six straight days, I've been out of the house after 11:30pm. Meetings here and there. Everybody is busy planning for the New Worlds: Transformed. Do I feel beat up? Yes. Am I tired? Yes. Am I breaking out due to lack of sleep? Yes. Am I enjoying everything despite it all? YES.
I don't know how it's like that, but I feel great being busy about something I really enjoy. The July event is coming, and I'm really looking forward to it. In fact, it's only in the New Worlds Alliance where I get to do the things I enjoy the most. So no matter how many sleepless nights come, no matter I tired I become, at least I'm happy.
In other news, it seems that I found another source of happiness. Ah basta. Really looking forward to it. *whistles*
Calling all Harry Potter fans!
Now is your chance to exhibit your magical artistic talents in Magic (Art)Works - a Harry Potter Art Contest.
Contest Mechanics:
1. The contest is open to everyone, as long as they are currently based in the Philippines and will be in Manila during the announcement of winners.
2. The contest is divided into three categories that follow the age ranges in the wizarding community:
- Kids Category (10 years old and below)
- Young Adult Category (11-16 years old)
- Adult Category (17 years old and above)
3. The artwork should depict something related to the topic assigned to each age category:
- Kids Category - Draw yourself with your favorite Harry Potter character
- Young Adult Category - Draw your favorite Albus Dumbledore moment/scene
- Adult Category - Draw what you think the Final Battle between Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort will be like.
4. Each contestant may submit only one (1) entry.
5. Artwork Specifications:
- Size: A3 size (11" x 17") on paper, board, or canvas
- Medium: Pencil, ink, oil, charcoal, crayon, or any other art material. Artworks that are drawn or colored digitally will be accepted, but the printing of digital artworks will be shouldered by the artist. Digital files on CDs or diskettes will not be accepted.
- All digital artworks must be 100% original, and must not contain any edited images from the Harry Potter movies or books, or other sources.
6. Deadline for submission of entries is on July 17, 2007.
7. Entries must be submitted in a sealed envelope labeled "HARRY POTTER ART CONTEST ENTRY, at any Fully Booked branch, addressed to:
Marketing Department, Fully Booked
8. On a separate piece of paper, the contestant must submit his/her name, age, category, title of the artwork, home address, contact number, e-mail address and a brief bio-data (school, profession, achievements, etc). There should be no signature on the front of the artwork itself, otherwise, the entry will be disqualified.
9. For Kids Category Entries: The artwork must also be accompanied by a very short description of the artwork and the artist's favorite character. Parents and guardians may do this for the younger contestants. This must be printed on a separate sheet of short ( 8.5 x 11 inches) bond paper.
10. For Young Adult Category Entries: The artwork must also be accompanied by a brief description of the artist's favorite Albus Dumbledore moment, which book it was taken from, and why he/she chose that particular scene. This must be printed on a separate sheet of short ( 8.5 x 11 inches) bond paper. The explanation must not exceed one bond paper in length.
11. For Adult Category Entries: The artwork must also be accompanied by a brief explanation of the scene depicted, and a description of what the artist thinks will happen in the Final Battle, including its eventual outcome. This must be printed on a separate sheet of short ( 8.5 x 11 inches) bond paper. The explanation must not exceed one bond paper in length.
12. Announcement and awarding of winners will be held at the "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" Book Launch on 21 July 2007 at Fully Booked Bonifacio High Street.
13. The winner of each category will get a box set of Harry Potter books.
14. Criteria for Judging:
Creativity (30%)
Originality (30%)
Skill (25%)
Impact (15%)
15. The Judges' decision is final and unappealable.
16. Contestants may claim their artworks after the Exhibit period. Artworks that are not claimed on or before August 31, 2007 will be subject to disposition in any manner decided on by Fully Booked Management.
17. For questions and clarifications, please email fb_rockwell@fullybookedonline.com.
This week also marks my end of stay with my present employer. I won't divulge any trade secrets here by my present employer and its client. So I'll just cut the story short. Last Thursday and Friday, I tried to take a whole week vacation leave, but my Project Manager in the client I'm working for didn't allow me. Oh well. I got an extension. At least there are only three days left, then I'm free. Last Saturday, I attended the orientation of RCG-IT. I went with two of my officemates, Ivy and Arnold, who will also be starting at RCG-IT with me. They already started yesterday, while I start next Monday. After the meeting, Ivy and I went to the Transformers CyberCon hosted by Cybertron Philippines in Shangri-la Plaza. We had lunch there with fellow NWA buddies. Then after a while, it's NWA council meeting at Fandom Cafe, and another Accio, PHP. We talked about PHP's participation in the upcoming New Worlds: Transformed. We had fun playing Werewolf and Labyrinth. Sunday was Maxim Photoshoot Day. Yes, that's right. I'm going to appear in the August issue of Maxim Magazine. I strutted my stuff... my lightsaber.. LOL. Maxim will feature Star Wars' 30th anniversary. And for that, they requested costumed people from the Pinoy 501st and Pinoy Rebel Legion. The images looked really great. I'll post pics, as soon as Rej is able to upload the ones from her camera. That's it for now. Right now, I'm in Fandom Cafe cataloguing books for the NWA library while waiting for the rest of the Alliance for a meeting.
FridayI took a half day leave from the office to furnish my application for a passport at the Department of Foreign Affairs. I got there at 7:30 am, and there was already a very long line. There were about seven queues: Inside the basketball court: (1) the baggage check at the entrance to the DFA compund, (2) the line to the photocopy machine, (3) the stand-up-and-advance-to-the -next-seat queue to the Window A of Requirements Checker, (4) Window B of Have-You-Owned-A-Passport-Before Checker. In the next building: (5) the looong line to the entrance of the Document Checkers' booths, (6) one the many lines to the Document Checkers' booths, then finally, (7) the queue to the cashier. Also, I opted to have my passport delivered at home by paying a fee at the Aboitiz booth. I don't want to go back in there and have to fall in line again. There are tons of fixers outside the compund, by the way. Be wary. Most of them wear semi-barong and IDs, just like what government employees wear everyday. But if you look closer at their IDs, they bear the name of their photocopying and photo studio businesses situated just outside the DFA compound. My cousin shared a story that a fixer offered to check if she has the complete requirements already. Then the fixer, being the "good" Samaritan that he is, told her that she doesn't have the correct passport size pictures. He said that the white background in her pictures isn't white enough, and led her to the instant photo booth. She declined the suggestion and immediately entered the DFA compound. So.. don't trust anyone outside the gates. If they offer help in assisting you in any way, just ignore them. But at some point, ignoring won't drive them away. There was this guy who pestered me into buying a green passport plastic jacket. Shaking my head while walking away didn't work. He still walked beside me, and when he held his wares at my face, that's when I shouted "Sinabi nang hindi ako bibili eh!" And he let go.
I went to the Toy Con in Megamall for another SWP Rebel Legion and Pinoy 501st Trooping. Drummer Chris and I were the only troopers at 1:30pm. After about an hour, Ron, Oneal, and JP came. At 3pm, I left the con and met with PHP people Prof. Frances, Joan, and Liz. Then we headed over to Fandom Cafe for the weekly Accio, PHP. I went at home at past 1:30 am, tired from the busy day and after cataloguing dozens of books in the NWA Library. Toycon again. This time, a lot of us came for trooping. Jedi's Beej, Aids, and JP; Darth Manny, Stormtroopers Oneal and Chris, Sandtrooper Jerome, TIE fighter pilot Ron, and Biker Scout Rej.  There was an awarding of Honorary Membership to the Pinoy 501st for the legendary artist Alfredo Alcala. Read more here. At 4:30pm, I left Megamall with Meann, Pao, and Ranulf. We went to meet up with Nina and Paqui at Rockwell Power Plant Mall to do an ocular inspection of the place for the upcoming New Worlds: Transformed. Tune in to the NWA website for more details! I watched Mr. Bean's Holiday at Gateway after work. I used the ticket I won from GetzMo which was about to expire the day after. It was okay-okay. Rowan Atkinson has never lost his touch yet. Yesterday and today is particularly hectic. I'll write about it this weekend.
 Cybertron Philippines, together with Toy Kingdom - the Amazing Toy Store, SM Megamall, and Solar - United International Pictures, is proud to announce that the Transformers Movie Toys will have a launching event on June 9 at the SM Megamall! There will be a lot of fun activities, music, and games for kids and kids at heart. Feast your eyes on some of the rarest Transformers toys from Generation 1 up to The Movie!Make sure to purchase your toy there and avail lots and lots of surprises from our sponsors! See you there!
So it's been seven months. Seven months of inactivity. In contrast to my online journals, my whole life has been very busy. Work, work, work. Of course, there's also fun, fun, fun. :D For those who haven't caught up with my whereabouts and whatabouts (who cares anyway?), here are some quick updates: - "promoted". - using Smart Bro now at home. Hooray! (Can't use this excuse why I haven't been blogging) - currently deployed at client's site; to resign from current company very soon. - regular Fandom Cafe tambay. - losing some "good" friends, gaining some true ones. Also, one of the main reasons I haven't been blogging is that some long-time unwanted people have already known of this journal, including recently unwanted ones. I'm just preventing made-up rumors to spread like wildfire in the office, hacking into my private life. That's it for now. Bitin ba?
Saturday
I woke up early to attend Auror Frances' HP class in DLSU. HM C, Prof. Skywalker, Prof. Malkin, and Prof. Malffy each had a lecture to discuss on Once Upon A Time-Turner: Exploring the Nature of Filipino Fandom Culture (Hogwarts Philippines: A History). Fantastic lecture! :D Since I don't have a topic of my own, I just displayed myself in full Gryffindor student attire. Hehehe. We then had lunch at Yellow Cab just across DLSU, c/o Auror Frances. :D I left in the middle of lunch to attendthe cosplay thingy at Mapua Makati. Apologies to KK and Ava for not able to gain entry because their names weren't on the NWA list. :( Darn security. Hmph! I cosplayed as Luke Skywalker this time. Hehehe. We just strutted in our costumes by the lobby. There weren't many people, perhaps because it's a weekend. We're invited again for separate events on November 10 (Mapua Intramuros campus), and 15 (Mapua Makati). I'll try to attend both. :)
Image courtesy of DADAProfAE
Image courtesy of Oneal
That night, I looked for the new Artemis Fowl book - The Lost Colony. I saw one in NBS Megamall some days before, but I didn't buy it yet. When I got to NBS that night, there are no more copies left. I stormed in Powerbooks Mega, and they're out of stock, too. I went to NBS Shang and got disappointed when I got there. I crossed Shaw Blvd to NBS Edsa Central, out of stock din. Arrgghh. So I went back to Shang, pulled out my list of NBS branches, and called up NBS Robinson's Place Pioneer. After minutes of waiting for confirmation, they have a copy left. Hooray! I quickly went there and bought the book. And luckily, their entire (or so I think) Young Adult section is on sale at 20% off the regular price. It certainly was worth all that trouble. ^_^x Same thing happened when I went looking for The Amulet of Samarkand and The Golem's Eye from The Bartimaeus Trilogy. As the cut-price sale of NBS was about to end more than a month ago, I searched everywhere for those books. Not even Powerbooks has it. There was only The Golem's Eye in NBS Megamall. I called up various NBS branches and inquired for The Amulet of Samarkand. The only branch which has the only copy of that book is NBS Robinson's Place Pioneer. And it was on sale at 40% off. ^_^x I got the last book, Ptolemy's Gate, for 30% off at the Powerbooks warehouse two weeks later. It was their only title available from that trilogy.
Sunday
Stayed all day at home fixing my room. The floor was re-tiled (is there a word?). I never got to attend the Orientation of Applicants of IIEE-MIT. Darn.
Monday to Present
Not much is happening at the office. My team is still waiting and waiting and waiting for the details of our apparent week-long night shift. Been reading The Lost Colony for hours, and illegally playing Flash games. Oh, Tuesday night was the usual "secret" NWA meeting - this time at Pao's.
~*~*~*~*~
And I went like: WHOA!
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