"Buti pa sa Hong Kong, mahilig sila mag-mask."
Read more »
1/30/2020
‒
1/24/2020
‒
There were four Chinese men in the elevator when I entered. They weren't together, it seemed: one pair were talking, and the other pair weren't.
The elevator stopped and two more Chinese men entered. They had a conversation of their own.
The elevator stopped again, and a Filipina woman came in, with her daughter, perhaps five years old.
Read more »
The elevator stopped and two more Chinese men entered. They had a conversation of their own.
The elevator stopped again, and a Filipina woman came in, with her daughter, perhaps five years old.
Read more »
1/23/2020
‒
For a while, I really thought we were going to be best friends. Good friends, at the very least, the sort of friend you'd spend a lot of time talking to, not just about the trivial stuff, but also the things that you consider important somehow. Your troubles, your worries, your dreams, that sort of thing.
We met, virtually, through a common friend. Said friend, for some reason, thought I was the best person to help her in this class assignment she had. I don't think I was helpful - or qualified, for that matter - but we talked about that, and then talked some more. We'd talk every night. I'd be in front of the computer late at night, doing homework, and chatting with her in between.
It wasn't a crush. I know you probably think it is, but it wasn't. We both liked other people and talked about our inability to move on from them. We also both, apparently, had the same interests, or perhaps it's me thinking "she's so cool" and "I want to be like her" and being a little too impressionable for a college freshman. Okay, at least were on the same frequency, more or less. We'd talk nonsense, and then about our crushes, and then about other things. We'd exchange phone numbers and we'd be texting about the same things. We'd get busy as the years pass - as we all do - but we'd still talk whenever we catch each other online.
Read more »
We met, virtually, through a common friend. Said friend, for some reason, thought I was the best person to help her in this class assignment she had. I don't think I was helpful - or qualified, for that matter - but we talked about that, and then talked some more. We'd talk every night. I'd be in front of the computer late at night, doing homework, and chatting with her in between.
It wasn't a crush. I know you probably think it is, but it wasn't. We both liked other people and talked about our inability to move on from them. We also both, apparently, had the same interests, or perhaps it's me thinking "she's so cool" and "I want to be like her" and being a little too impressionable for a college freshman. Okay, at least were on the same frequency, more or less. We'd talk nonsense, and then about our crushes, and then about other things. We'd exchange phone numbers and we'd be texting about the same things. We'd get busy as the years pass - as we all do - but we'd still talk whenever we catch each other online.
Read more »
1/21/2020
‒
The radio silence from Rodrigo Duterte in the hours immediately after the (first) eruption of the Taal volcano understandably led to some criticism. Sure, you can argue that many government agencies (and local government units) were on the case, as much as they were also caught by surprise. Sure, you can argue that in these times you don't really need to hear from the president; whatever he'll say is just noise compared to information that one may need to survive.
But, still, as Sunday night turned to Monday morning, we heard nothing from him. I'm sure the first we heard of him was on Monday afternoon, and by then that was through glorified-assistant-with-an-elected-position-for-some-reason Bong Go. The president, he said, was spending the weekend in Davao - something he often did, and insisted on doing the moment he was sworn in as president. The president wanted to fly back earlier, but the airport was closed due to ash fall. But we should take heart: at least, or so Go said, the president's private plane was the first to land at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, just as it began to resume operations.
Even then he didn't involve himself much in the government's response to Taal's eruption. Again, understandable. He really wouldn't add anything. We heard more from Renato Solidum, head of PHIVOLCS, and from other experts. We heard from the folks at DTI as they attempted to clamp down on retailers hiking up the price of N95 masks. We heard from local government officials as they tried to make sense of what's going on - and even here Francis Tolentino, a man whose one ambition then was to become senator, and who seemed to stick out like a sore thumb at one of those televised press briefings, had a stake, as former mayor of Tagaytay City.
Read more »
But, still, as Sunday night turned to Monday morning, we heard nothing from him. I'm sure the first we heard of him was on Monday afternoon, and by then that was through glorified-assistant-with-an-elected-position-for-some-reason Bong Go. The president, he said, was spending the weekend in Davao - something he often did, and insisted on doing the moment he was sworn in as president. The president wanted to fly back earlier, but the airport was closed due to ash fall. But we should take heart: at least, or so Go said, the president's private plane was the first to land at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, just as it began to resume operations.
Even then he didn't involve himself much in the government's response to Taal's eruption. Again, understandable. He really wouldn't add anything. We heard more from Renato Solidum, head of PHIVOLCS, and from other experts. We heard from the folks at DTI as they attempted to clamp down on retailers hiking up the price of N95 masks. We heard from local government officials as they tried to make sense of what's going on - and even here Francis Tolentino, a man whose one ambition then was to become senator, and who seemed to stick out like a sore thumb at one of those televised press briefings, had a stake, as former mayor of Tagaytay City.
Read more »
1/20/2020
‒
As much as I love newspapers, I will have to admit it has been a while since I bought myself a copy.
Half of it is down to preferences. I grew up with the Inquirer, so I prefer to buy the Inquirer. As a kid, I had the chance to read the big three national newspapers, but I always thought the Bulletin was staid and boring and, well, old, although considering how they've made a bit more effort to freshen things up recently, it's now the Star who looks stuck in the times. And you can't make me buy other newspapers unless I'm really curious about it.
Half of it is down to lifestyle, both mine and everybody else's. There used to be a guy who delivers the newspaper around the subdivision I live in, but he stopped roughly five years ago, or perhaps more. There's at least one place here that sells them, but in my case I'll have to walk from one end of the subdivision to another. Sure, call it my morning walk, but lately I've felt the urge to start working the moment I wake up, so I can get most things done by lunchtime.
Read more »
Half of it is down to preferences. I grew up with the Inquirer, so I prefer to buy the Inquirer. As a kid, I had the chance to read the big three national newspapers, but I always thought the Bulletin was staid and boring and, well, old, although considering how they've made a bit more effort to freshen things up recently, it's now the Star who looks stuck in the times. And you can't make me buy other newspapers unless I'm really curious about it.
Half of it is down to lifestyle, both mine and everybody else's. There used to be a guy who delivers the newspaper around the subdivision I live in, but he stopped roughly five years ago, or perhaps more. There's at least one place here that sells them, but in my case I'll have to walk from one end of the subdivision to another. Sure, call it my morning walk, but lately I've felt the urge to start working the moment I wake up, so I can get most things done by lunchtime.
Read more »
1/12/2020
‒
I'm absolutely convinced that it hasn't been that long since I last met Icka.
I have this memory of us meeting at Megamall. This has to be a work day. I remember I had to sneak out of work to meet up. I remember that I already had lunch by then. I definitely remember that her mother was there. They were having lunch at Dulcinea, which means I was in the awkward position of not being hungry and yet not able to turn them down to eat. Well, maybe I did say no, but Icka's mom insisted that I have some of their churros.
"It's all right," I distinctly remember her saying. "We haven't touched that yet."
Read more »
I have this memory of us meeting at Megamall. This has to be a work day. I remember I had to sneak out of work to meet up. I remember that I already had lunch by then. I definitely remember that her mother was there. They were having lunch at Dulcinea, which means I was in the awkward position of not being hungry and yet not able to turn them down to eat. Well, maybe I did say no, but Icka's mom insisted that I have some of their churros.
"It's all right," I distinctly remember her saying. "We haven't touched that yet."
Read more »
1/01/2020
‒
I'm pretty sure customer service representatives are taught to, at the very least, sound like they understand their customers' predicament.
"Uh, I'm sorry to hear about that, sir."
The problem is, it doesn't really feel reassuring, especially if you're the customer calling for the nth time in a week, demanding answers for a problem that's remained unsolved for months. Like, say, if you're a PLDT customer who's had virtually unusable Internet for weeks, more often off than on.
Read more »
"Uh, I'm sorry to hear about that, sir."
The problem is, it doesn't really feel reassuring, especially if you're the customer calling for the nth time in a week, demanding answers for a problem that's remained unsolved for months. Like, say, if you're a PLDT customer who's had virtually unusable Internet for weeks, more often off than on.
Read more »
Niko Batallones writes The Upper Blog.
Subscribe to this blog,
follow him on Twitter,
or check out Nicksy Once Monthly,
his monthly (for now) music newsletter.
Unless otherwise stated, this blog's content are owned by Niko Batallones. No part of this blog may be reproduced elsewhere without proper permission and attribution.
All opinions stated in this blog are solely those of the writer's, and does not reflect those of his employers, or the organizations he is affiliated with.
Some photographs have been edited using post-production curves from Shalla Yu.
Powered by Blogger. Established in 2005.
View this blog's entries from