That's Not How It Is

Earlier: A European tourist was pissed off with the slow service at the Oceanjet ticketing office in Tagbilaran City. He snapped at me and said "There's so many people lined up and they only have 1 window open." I replied with "Well, that's how it is here." He says: "No, that's not how it is! That's no respect!" I told him "Then go talk to them." And he said: "I already talked to them, they don't understand english!" What?!
I got annoyed and finally said to him: "Well, that's your problem!"

Later: It was raining hard when the boat docked in Cebu. I was the last one to get off the boat. I waited for at least one porter to help me carry the six heavy boxes I had with me. And porters were nowhere to be found! I went out of the terminal and asked the security guard to please get me one porter. The guard just stared at me. So I went back to get a pushcart and decided to carry the boxes myself. I finally saw one porter so I called on him if he could please help me. The porter got back at me saying: "Daghan mig gibuhat, Ma'am!" Oh $&@%! And so I had to get back and forth from where I left my six boxes to my pickup service, all soaked up wet!

Well, that's not how it is! That's no respect!

Delayed Goosebumps

Five years ago, I was up for a shooting assignment down south, specifically Tawi-Tawi. As we were to take photos of sunrise in the middle of the sea on our second day, we had to sleep overnight in the island of Panglima Sugala. Electricity there, like in all other islands nearby, was only available between 6 o'clock in the evening until 12 midnight. And so we called off our first day early by sleeping around 9PM to be able to catch up the 4AM call time. Like I always do, I woke up ahead of my alarm clock but stayed on the bed as I could not see a single thing in the dark, not even my colleague Aileen who was sound asleep on the other bed. Hearing the roosters early on, I did not reach out for my cellphone to check on the time. I presumed the alarm should go off anytime soon. Until I felt a tap on my left arm. It must have been Aileen who probably happened to move while still asleep. I even said, "O?" (Yes?) to her but somehow she did not reply. So I just stayed there lying for quite sometime until my phone alarm finally went off. The alarm sounded so loud it totally made me forget about what happened earlier and so we hurried up to get all our stuff and head off to the waiting speed boat. We were just on time for everything and had beautiful shots of sunrise.

Six months after, I went back for another assignment. I was on the same island, the same pension house, the same room, the same companion. When the lights went on at 6 o'clock in the evening, somehow I remembered what happened the last time I was there. So I finally told Aileen about it and asked her if she remembered tapping me. She said "No, you were the one who woke me up, remember? And how can I touch you then when our beds were quite apart, long enough not to reach the one lying on the other bed!"

Oops! My goosebumps rather came late. 

nasaan ang LOVE?

nasaan ang LOVE?

1. ang love, wala sa estado, nasa load (rich-poor love affair)

2. ang love, wala sa edad, nasa calendar (may-december love affair)

3. ang love, wala sa position, nasa office (boss-messenger love affair)

4. ang love, wala sa kasarian, nasa California (same sex marriage)

5. ang love, wala sa lahi, nasa fiancée visa (inter-marriage)

6. ang love, wala sa movies, nasa totoong buhay (artista-nonshowbiz love affair)

7. ang love, wala sa pinas, nasa remittance center (ofw)

8. ang love, wala sa classroom, nasa playground (puppy love)

9. ang love, wala sa bahay, nasa neighborhood (childhood sweethearts)

10. ang love, wala sa itsura, nasa puso (a face only a mother can love)

11. ang love, wala sa grupo, nasa sarili (selfie enthusiast)

12. ang love, wala sa patience, nasa pawnshop (durugista lover)

13. ang love, wala sa tabi, nasa facebook (stalker)

14. ang love, wala sa puso, nasa friends’ list (na-friend zone)

15. ang love, wala sa pagkakaintindihan, nasa pantasya (one way love affair)

16. ang love, wala sa commitment, nasa bar (one night stand)

17. ang love, wala sa flowers, nasa atm (bilmoko)