Isang araw ng pamumulitika

I went into this website launching event this morning and I find it very amusing. Being in the business field since I started work, I haven't been in any event that screams 'Politics!' and I haven't been in a room full of politicians before. (except during that phase in my life when I find attending meeting de avance during barangay elections rather quite entertaining) Sitting there in a room full of media, scurrying like mice, eager to get their homeworks done and these politicians (and their representatives) , their hands probably numb from too much hand-shaking, their jaws hurting from too much smiling, I had this preconceive notion that I'd erupt into a one big mass of allergy. But as the event progressed and I get to talk to some... well, quite a few people, I began to enjoy myself.

What was the fuss all about?

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) partnered with web experts 88DB and JobsDB to design a website called politicalarena.com - a kind of a socio-political networking tool where all candidates for the 2010 elections could be more transparent and 'reachable' to the public. Like your typical facebook, multiply or friendster, the candidates have their own account and they can update it and let the people know in real time what their plans are. To date, all the candidates that are in the site are 'perceived presidentiables' by the public and are not confirmed yet (final line up will probably take shape the latter part of the year). And the public can support their candidates by not really becoming a fan but including themselves in the 'I support' field once registered. I have browsed through the site but I haven't really explored it yet in detail. It has features like Issues, Forum, News, Videos, Photos, Calendar, Announcements, Election 101 - a rundown of how to be a 'bibong botante' and facts about the election (courtesy of Comelec), and of course, the information page for each of the candidates.

The site isn't bad actually. Although it's a bit rip off of Obama's ingenious idea on how to be in constant contact with the Americans through the 'Organizing for America' site , it's a big step and a very apparent display of progress in appreciating what dear 'ol technology is giving us. And since it's a common fact how Filipinos are just a click short away from being internet whores, this might actually be a good idea.

The only contention is that in the millions of Filipinos who actually troop to the precints to cast in their votes, how many has the capability to be 'connected'? Let us not forget that majority of the voters come from the masses. How many are internet freaks like you and me? And of those numbers, how many actually gives a cow dung about social networking (or in this case socio-political networking) sites such as this? I know I do. But, think.

Anyway...

You know when I'm like this.

I wish I could read people's minds. That way, I wouldn't have to guess and second guess and make my life as miserable as it already is. Where does patience and apathy meet? Can two people see eye to eye if one is extremely onion-skinned and the other one, just don't give a sh*t? (sorry)

How sorry can someone be when it doesn't actually show? How do you know if there's even a drop of guilt that is going through this person's head? You wake up, you feel bad, you feel sad, you sulk. And then you realize, today should be not like any other day... today shouldn't be another yesterday. Yet, the closer to reality you get, the more hesitant you become - you scurry back to your old pathetic self even before you can say 'Stop!'

Then comes the cold gaze, the unfathomable hatred that boils down from the most senseless of things. You are blindfolded, you become deaf and everything becomes stupid. Everything becomes a waste. There goes another day. Another hell of a day.

I don't know which is difficult - the impossibility of controlling things that tells us it takes more than three words to put things back in their place or this wall that keeps me on the other side. I want to destroy it, believe me. But can you give me a helping hand?

FANMODE: Music videos that I like

I don't get normally envious of girls with sexy body, pero grabe itong si Nicole, bigla kong ni-wish na ganyan ang katawan ko... haha... Here's a very blurry 'I Hate This Part' video 'coz all I see in youtube are the chipmunk versions of this one.



Then, there's this Miley Cyrus song, which got my attention. I don't really like Miley but I like the song very much (and the video too!)... makes me feel like I'm 16... =)



I love this song... so apt for me (haha!) and I just find myself watching this video over and over again (as if I'll find my answer here). Anyway, I don't know any of her other songs but this.

Love-talk (Bored to my wits, I am)

One of my friends says she is somehow convinced that people we fell-in love with for the first time in our lives remains locked, kept in that little box inside our hearts. But it doesn't mean that we are hung up on them, she adds. Our first love stays there even without us exactly knowing.

It made me think if that is true. Is it, really?

I don't know if that conversation was the after-effect of a two-hour major pampering that we've just had (full-body Shiatsu massage, Aromatheraphy facial, and Peppermint footscrub) after a crazy, manic Monday at work. My mind was practically emancipated of stress and pressure and it was pure bliss. And the next thing we know, we are already talking about flowers, rainbows, and love lives. Haha.

Probably what she's claiming is true. I still feel that pinch whenever my first love crosses my mind. Not a pinch of sorrow or sadness or regret but more like a pinch that seems to be a reminder of how happy those times were that if I'd be given the chance to go back, I would. Because I honestly think that at that exact moment, what I was feeling was true (regardless if the other person didn't feel the same way I did).

And I am somehow convinced that the one true love of your life (past or present) is the person whose face pops instantly in your mind when you close your eyes at night. (except your boss' when you're in a very tight deadline!)

***

In Memoriam (AQ)

Here's the blog that we were supposed to publish in our new magazine website. But since the big B doesn't want anything that mentions Asian Quality, I had to tweak the whole article and somehow make it appear like there was no previous magazine before this whole MS Asia thing came. I hate it actually. So, for my own peace of mind, I am still publishing the original version... here in my own blog.

FROM THE GROUND AND BACK AGAIN

It was never a 'goodbye' Asian Quality for me from the moment I have learned that we will have to shut its pages to give way to a new publication aimed at advancing the quality of learning and information sharing that we have been providing the reading public.

As a matter of fact, like a mother to her child who's just about to graduate, I have never felt prouder. Asian Quality is moving a gallop higher.

On the pages of Asian Quality aren't only blotted inks that represent words and images. There lies an ingenuous effort to pull together all sorts of information that wold shed a much brighter light on the subject of Quality, Productivity and Business Process Improvement - an area, if not ignored, less noticed in the business arena (or at least in Asia as manifested by the scarcity of publications / print media that caters to the subject with a regional touch).

Armed with only guts, very limited resources and just about enough knowledge on publishing, we found ourselves in the magazine business. I remember writing the following during that particularly difficult stage when it felt like bringing a magazine to life is next to impossibility:

"With this kind of job, I have to do away with my indecisive attitude and forget about myself. I have to be thick when necessary. I have to be resourceful and quick-witted. otherwise, I'd be stagnant. And so I wrote thousands (okay, exaggeration) or hundreds of emails to various people whom I felt are potential subject matter expert writers for the magazine. Most of them ignored my mail while a few wrote back and promised to contribute. But hey, promises are made to be broken... so really, I didn't hope. I needed a plan B so I relied on referrals. I emailed and made a bunch of phone calls to strangers until I got answers... or more aptly, until I got the articles. I contacted prominent names in the industry and asked / begged for appointments for interview hoping I'd be lucky enough to have these people featured in the magazine. In my mind, we are all people, and given the right kind of attitude, we can reach what we are aiming for."

And now, with the "re-birth" of AQ, it's like going through the whole same process again. But this time around, we know exactly what to do.

Establishing a magazine from the ground is far from a walk in the 'Avenue of Stars' at Tsim Sha Tsui on a sunny afternoon while sipping a Mocha Frap. It is, by far, the most challenging responsibility I have ever handled since I came out [after college] into the real world. I was somehow convinced that what you learn in college, while they can be helpful, doesn't necessarily apply.

With AQ, I've learnedhow to follow my gut feel and deliver within the allocated resources - and I'm talking about manpower, hardware, software, budget, and even skills. Add the fact that while you are compelled to learn by yourself, you can only pray for guidance.

AQ is not a failure. I am not taking offense but some people have the tendency to assume that the so-called 'folding-up' of its pages is synonymous to raising the white flag. Of course it isn't. On the contrary, the very idea that brought forth AQ is the same foundation that we're using to build this new publication. The same objective applies, this time backed up by a stronger team and higher aspirations. #

The new MS Asia's website (www.ms-asia.org) will be up in two weeks time! I'm so excited! =)

FanMode: New Moon (the Movie)

Sorry naman... I hate the book but I can't help but squirm in my seat when I saw this video:

Amid all the stress

... it doesn't hurt to laugh REALLY REALLY REALLY hard because of simple joys like this.
WATCH IT.



Take note how the rabbit (or cat) on the left fell out of balance... I think the hip grinding was a little bit too much... HAHAHAHA!!!