Save Mount Apo

Mount Apo is home to various endemic species such as the Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) and the Waling-waling (Vanda sanderiana), and to six indigenous tribes. It is also the highest peak of the country, towering at almost 10,000 ft above sea level.

 The fire started last Saturday near its peak from an unknown source. Due to El Niño, the fire had rapidly spread downhill causing damages along its path. Volunteers and Davao's Rescue 911 have already responded to this crisis yet their efforts are becoming futile as days go by.

What is the national government doing to address this environmental crisis? Nada. Nothing. They are busy saving the ass of their losing candidate by producing comics on how he became a hero during and after a Category 5 storm hit the central part of the country. So much for rewriting history.

There's No Place Like Homeland

So after months of #TeamCarQuinn hiatus, I am officially back on track. I told myself not to watch the entire fourth season (although I've watched the first two episodes of it) because I've already read the summary of the fourth season. But no, my gut tells me to do the otherwise. Still never fails to surprise me every episode. I don't know but I think Carrie and Quinn looked good together, and they perfectly worked as a team, aside from having a romantic thing going on them between them. I never liked the Carrie-Brody tandem. For the lack of better adjective, they looked awful. Bleugh. HAHAHA.

Well, I guess I need to binge watch this up to the fifth season!

Fuck Society

Still in the state of mindfuck after watching the first season of Mr. Robot. Damn, it was so good that I am still not over with it! I guess I'd be suffering from existential crisis. It felt like I was Elliot. He was me. And all those talking-to-my-imaginary-audiences scenes. Just kidding. Don't get me wrong though, I am not suffering from clinical depression, I am not seeing a psychiatrist, and most of all, I am not sniffing substances. Haha!

But yeah, is it just me or Elliot = Mr. Robot aka his dad aka his daemon = Tyrell Wellick? I know the third one sounds crazy but... have you ever thought about it too? The final episode was really intense and I loved the character development of the show. Piece by piece, we've finally unravelled the mysterious world of Elliot, or so we thought. I was really thinking that Mr. Robot was real, until after watching the 9th episode.

The confrontation scene of Elliot and Joanna was one of my favorites throughout the first season. It was so intense. Joanna's smile may mean something. Well, it was clear that she's really hiding something, AND SHE FUCKING KNOWS WHERE TYRELL IS. But I don't know, honestly. It's just me. Or isn't? She was clearly fishing for information about her husband's whereabouts, but she seemed nonchalant.

Can't fucking wait for the second season. Yes, I've never typed so many curse words in one fucking blog post, unless if I'm fuming mad (which I'm not, quite obviously). But I'll can't just help it but to let it out. Damn. I repeat, this series is so good!

CEB387: 18th Year

Today marks the 18th year anniversary of the doomed Cebu Pacific Air flight 5J-387. On the second day of February 1998, the DC-9-32 aircraft crashed on the slopes of Mount Sumagaya in Claveria, Misamis Oriental, killing 104 people on board.

SYNOPSIS:

It was a regular scheduled domestic flight from Manila to Cagayan de Oro City, the regional center of Misamis Oriental. The plane departed Manila at exactly 9AM (0100 UTC) but made an unscheduled stop at Tacloban City to deliver a spare tire needed by their grounded DC-9-32 aircraft. After that brief unscheduled stop, it flew all the way to its final destination. The plane was scheduled to land Cagayan de Oro’s Lumbia Airport at around 11AM (0300 UTC).

Jan 30th

I can't think of a creative title, so pardon with the uncreative one.

So much of keeping a promise of updating this blog more often, even just for one post per week. I had so many things in my mind right now, but I'd rather keep it inside and just let it pass. Nope, nothing serious, that's all.

Anyway to keep myself busy, I've been reading books, watching new tv shows, and catching up with sleep. Yep, I sometimes lack sleep whenever I'm in day shift. It really is difficult for me to sleep before 10PM and the next thing I need to accomplish is to wake up at 4:10AM the following day. I was never a morning person, well until now. The only thing that compromises this shit is the beautiful sunrise that I always see every morning. Unless if the weather's fucked up.

I have to admit that my interest in politics (American politics to be exact) had grown exponentially (yes, big word), all thanks to House of Cards. Damn, Kevin Spacey's so good! He's one of the few American actors that I admire the most. Can't wait to finish the first three seasons! The fourth season will air this March. Can't also wait for #HTGAWM too.

Speaking of work, my boss gave me an additional work, he assigned me as one of the training officers of our facility. I honestly do not want it because I never had the patience to teach people, regardless of the circumstances. But I just realized that the boss gave me that assignment because he completely trusted my skills as a rated air traffic controller. I don't know, maybe because he observed how I handle heavy air traffic - my control techniques, quick action, and the way separate and sequence air traffic in the MOST expeditious way without compromising the separation procedures mandated by ICAO. Well, I'll just consider it as a challenge, and also a way to distract myself from those things that don't even deserve my attention at all.

I haven't had bought my return flight from Taipei. But I'll buy one right after payday. Haha! I can no longer contain my excitement. Fast forward to March 19 please! Taiwan, please be good to us! :D

Diaspora

I have been a public servant for three years... and counting. The moment I entered the Air Traffic Controller training four years ago, I told myself that this is my way to give back to my country, after studying for four years in a premier, state-run university of my country. I owe my countrymen a favor since their taxes partially subsidized my tuition.

There's no question about my love in the field of aviation. I mean, I got my dream job, which is air traffic controller, and I couldn't ask for more. I wouldn't mind working long hours just to ensure the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic. I wouldn't mind working on public holidays. Everyone's at home celebrating Christmas and New Year but me since I brought them to their families. That fact alone makes me happy and accomplished.

But then again, the problem lies with our government. How can I serve my country well when in the first place, the government doesn't know how to treat their constituents well? I can't help it but to be mad about the recent news of our national government. I can no longer stand the fact that we have a President who knows nothing about compassion and public servant. The "Daang Matuwid" only applies to the rich and elite societies; the poor. and even the middle-class are suffering. What an incompetent prick.

I can't blame those people who chose to work abroad instead here. The Philippines doesn't benefit from the skills and intelligence of the Filipino workers at all. Appalling. A sad truth. 

1/52

Five days after welcoming 2016, I still can't imagine how fast 2015 went. It felt like a cool breeze - temporary yet comforting. 2015 has been the most awesome year to date. I had traveled to places that I never imagined in my entire life that I'd set foot in. I never thought I'd visit Yogyakarta and be marveled by Borobodur and Prambanan Temples, endured the chaos and language barrier of Jakarta, got lost in the urban maze of Hong Kong, Macau, and Singapore, appreciate the azure waters of Kota Kinabalu, and be amazed by the Petronas Towers as it stood high and proud in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

I do hope that the year 2016 will be like a wave that never breaks. As the song goes, nothing can stop us now.

Project Bibliophile: 52+ Books in 2015

I am a certified bookworm. I grew up reading a lot of books and I spent most of my lunch breaks at our school library. My childhood was basically an adventure to the other side of the realm. Reading is fun as it takes you to other worlds for free. This is probably one of the reasons why I wear a -225 grade glasses now - the effect of too much reading. But then again, no one can stop me from reading!

In 2014, I didn't had the chance to read a lot books. During that year, I was still a new kid in town (lol, I didn't care if everybody loves me, lol at the reference though), adjusting to my new work environment. New Year 2015 came and one of my new year resolutions was to read more books.