An Account of Grand Theft and High Adventure!

Finally, finally! :) I moved to Wordpress (www.toynbeeconvector.wordpress.com) and promised to blog and blog and blog! :) I still have this to watch all of you out there but please let me know if you want to tag along. I miss lj so much. I spent so much time last week just revisiting old posts. :) Oh, this was where great things happened.

I miss you all.

Finally someone's taking initiative and working hard to move forward. I can only hope that our leaders do the same. But from the looks of our papers, our people suck. :(

Things are looking a bit odd these days. I have yet to post about everything that's happened this summer! It's a crazy summer. Indonesia was great! The stories kept me awake for the most part. I just lost my job too so I'm currently unemployed. :( i hope this is only temporary. Don't worry, I'm keeping busy. I enrolled in a certificate course on Socio-Anthro and I'm set to leave for three-weeks of fieldwork on Monday. My team is doing food research and wow, it's amazing the ideas being thrown out in places we aren't looking. Never thought I'd have much to say about food but apparently the books are voluminous! :) We are what we eat.

I will post. I will post. I will post. But first I have to pack and pack and pack. :(

And I miss you guys. :( ...feeling friend-less. Hay.

1. The Arrival of the First Paycheck



2. The Ease of Displacement



3. The Remembrance of Things Past (made available in the present)



4. The Promise of Tomorrow



5. The Faith in Things That Last



:) For another year to live, another month to celebrate being together, cheap train rides, donuts, amazing relics and everything else that makes waking up such a treat.

In this month's issue of Vanity Fair, James Wolcott had some interesting things to say about the emerging cash-cow that dying has become. It's indeed a sales-pitch that seems to envision a reversal of our sullied senses in the face of a global recession. For awhile now, I've been a vulture in bookstores waiting to devour some newly discounted books and recently, I could not help but notice the increase in titles intending to make people aware of their mortality so they might decide to indulge in a Bacchanalian spree--because life is so short. Imagine seeing rows and rows of books in the travel section determined to convince us all to break away from the drudgery of the commonplace and embark on our own, "preplanned" adventures. What with an entire aisle dedicated to the one hundred places one must see and the one hundred songs one must hear--heck, I wouldn't doubt the existence of the one hundred dishes to consume before one dies!--the list goes on. One hundred is in vogue and in a dark-humored sense, I manage to giggle thinking of how absurd it is to enjoy a hundred destinations when we hardly even live to be a hundred these days.

Whoever made 100 the new 20 must have been lonely or at least selfishly inclined to promote a lifestyle that would undoubtedly add more misery to a person's life that a true sense of accomplishment. The absurdity of lists doesn't always lie in content but rather in the motives behind them. I'd like to think that the profound sense of peace people attain in life (and face in death) is not some trivial pursuit of places or things that have no inherent meaning in our lives than to be crossed out of some silly list. Sure we can have our hopes and dreams tallied on a sheet of paper kept under the pillow each night but there is no sincere end to the mass proliferation of random places and things under the title: Places/Things everyone must see.

I imagine travel writers like Paul Theroux must be outraged. What kind of real adventure is left in the wake of these lists? The way I remember adventure when I first learned about it involved a chosen initiative or the more often-used-sometimes-trite: journey. In these quests the characters embarked on adventures under the auspices of great ideals. From the pursuits of knights to save their princesses to the search for land in uncharted territories, adventure was a inevitable step but never the end goal. Even then, the accomplishment that was coupled with one's exploits ceased to be narrowed down to a vapid collection of random conquests.

The commercialization of travel thanks to low-cost airlines and the internet might have subdued my dreams of discovering the unknown but it hasn't dried out the wonder inherent in places I have always dreamed of visiting. As for the 100 places/books/dishes and songs to see/read/taste and hear--let them cater to those who have to be pushed out of their indolence to see the sublime inherent in their routines. And let those who really travel and explore never forget the pleasure of discovering one's path and taking it one step at a time.

1. I'm graduating in a week, apparently. I have no shoes to speak of just yet and i don't think it matters as much as it's supposed to at this point.
2. We got our minor certificates and it was very sweet of the people from Dela Costa to show some love.
3. Things don't strike me like they used to.
4. I seem to have a problem dealing with change --you know, i'm a runner and master escapist. When the change becomes inevitable, I run away. Just yesterday I had visions about never setting foot in the Baguio market again because I didn't think I could bear the sight of those God-awful tents.
5. oh, and did I tell you about work? I missed the entire week and spent the day at home being with my niece and watching both seasons of Brothers & Sisters --because I can't seem to come to terms with the way things are done at the office. I know, i'm a coward. So shoot me.
6. My friend thinks the world is finally happening to me. The real one, he says...like there was something wrong and fake about the one I previously belonged to. Why does working/graduating feel like one big inside joke that you're never really a part of?
7. It's another friend's birthday tomorrow and I don't know how else to tell her that I'm sorry. The worst part is, I don't even know if she cares at this point. i don't know if she feels this same emptiness I do. It sucks to fight with those we love and something tells me, yet again: THINGS WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. (Beck has a song for this called Lost Cause and just a minute ago it went on loop leaving me quite frazzled. I'm tired of fighting...fighting for a lost cause.)
8. ...This is my mother's favorite number. I'm sure compassion only means something to me because she embodies the compassionate person more than Christ does in my life but lately, I've discovered that we have too many people working for us at home. The house is stifling and it's not the heat either. Still, i wish i were more like my mom.
9. I leave for Indonesia the week after next and I'm so excited! This is perhaps the second best thing I have to be grateful for. I just worry a bit because I want my sister to have fun and take time off from everything too. Two weeks into this "world" and already I feel like I've got a hurricane in me threatening to take away every good thing I've ever known and what? She's been out here for years and when I look at her, the idealism is still there despite the storms she's been through. Boy, they weren't kidding when they said I had big shoes to fill. But anyway, wow, 10 days..I hope we end up finding what it is that'll keep us safely afloat.
10. The best is still Anton. Sorry, I know is cheesy and passe but while we've acquired this habit of fighting on Thursday's we've also learned to let each other in and deal with things. That has to count for something.

This entry is from Feliz Perez
I tagged you because I thought you'd want to sign and I know you can help spread the word around. And even if I didn't tag you please do it too! Read on and sign on! http://www.petitiononline.com/market09/

"The Baguio City Public Market is the womb of Baguio City. While we celebrate the city’s centennial year, the market quietly passes its 101st year. That is, one hundred and one years of the growth of a public space that has a unique aesthetic and a vibrant atmosphere. 101 years of extensive, thick, living networks of farmers, fisher-folk, entrepreneurs, their families, and the families of Baguio residents and visitors. 101 years of trade in the products of our region, and products from around the country and the world.

Baguio City was born out of the Baguio market. It was said in the early 1900’s that all one had to do to see how cosmopolitan and international Baguio City was, was to go to the Stone Market on market day. The market is one of the last places where Baguio’s original sense of community and belonging continues to thrive. Today the colorful market is an essential part of the Baguio experience for tourists. It continues to be a source of fresh, affordable food for Baguio youth, including the large student population that comes from out of town. The market connects us to the Cordillera mountains, to the coasts and the islands of the Philippines, and to the rest of the world. But 101 years of history, trade, and human relationships were badly damaged by fire on March 2, 2009.

We want our beloved Baguio market back. We do not want it to be replaced by yet another generic, cement, box-like structure, which every large Philippine city already has. Not all cities have what we possess in the Baguio market. We want the market to remain unique. We want it to continue to support local communities and thrive with diversity. We want it restored and rebuilt on a human-scale. Bring back the old charm. Let the vendors continue to create their beautiful displays of fruits, vegetables, and other produce. Keep the tourists coming. Keep our youth well nourished and blessed with a diversity of food choices. Make improvements where needed but do not erase the market as we have always known it – the market that is our heritage.

The Baguio City Public Market has a unique structure and a living, locally-rooted community. That is a legacy worth saving. Make this your legacy."

You like this? You agree? You have fond memories of all those beautiful fresh fruits vegetables, lovely people, and rows and rows of peanut brittle and ube jam? Then CLICK CLICK CLICK and SIGN SIGN SIGN! This is just the first step in a larger campaign to save our beloved Baguio market. We need to exert pressure on our city's decision-makers who seem to be forever wavering between tearing it down, building another mall-like structure, or leaving it to rot. It would be too painful to lose one of the last remnants of our Baguio heritage without even raising a peep.

http://www.petitiononline.com/market09/

and this is what i have to say...
Capitalists are not bad people but the greedy ones are. My parents went up to Baguio last weekend to pick up my niece and when they arrived last night, my mother told me how bad she felt. Our friends, the vendors who sell the best strawberries and veggies have lost the market to a large fire--allegedly, this was arson at its worst. You think it would be easy enough to just drop a match "accidentally" but these people were horrible! They used CATS! After pouring kerosene on the cats, they lit them and the fire spread because the cats ran away.

Part of me doesn't know what to be sad about first--the fact that animals were used to commit such an atrocity or the fact that I have just lost a part of who I am. Friends, when I was much younger, my lola and I would go to this market after work and boy, you should have seen how wonderful this place was. There was a little bit of everything for everyone.

SO! SIGN THE PETITION ALREADY AND SAVE BAGUIO--I'M SURE YOU'VE BEEN THERE AT LEAST ONCE IN YOUR LIFE AND IF YOU HAVEN'T--YOU STILL HAVE TO GO. BUT SUPPORT THIS FIRST BECAUSE THE BAGUIO I KNEW HAD A WONDERFUL MARKET FILLED WITH THE FRESHEST AND BEST GOODS. IT'S TRAGIC TO KNOW THAT PEOPLE MISS OUT ON WHAT'S IMPORTANT.

In an attempt to revamp my life and keep some faith in the world, I took on a job in a government office that entails less politicking and more "grassroots" level work. The job's a bit scary sometimes because I know what's expected and this seems to be one of those things I can't just run away from. That's a good thing considering my track record. I should have been a champion at the Olympics but there wasn't a division dedicated to org-escapees. In any case, I'm here now and I like what I'm doing. We're getting kids to read and love stories. Hopefully one day, they'll manage to tell their own ones complete with the passion and love for country necessary to be happy in today's world.

Tomorrow, I'm reading a story to a group of kids from the Raya School. It's the first time I'm telling a story in Filipino and the prospect of kids as an audience makes me slightly dizzy. These people (the little one's), they don't lie and I doubt if they'd have any qualms about showing their distaste in my antics but anyway, its worth a shot. :) Boy, this is exciting.

The job's amazing but the heat is slowly threatening to kill my fun. It's really hot out on the road during the day. I have this fear of looking far out into the horizon and watching the heat-simmered stretch...something tells me the earth might open up and melt bringing us all into its gut. Hay, but that's just me. In any case, the travel bug is beginning to take over my sense of righteousness and whoa! I want a vacation!!! I will get it in two weeks. My sister and I are traveling to Indonesia and getting lost for ten days! :) I hope things work out as planned.

I must get out.

Whoops. Haha, sorry, i can't help it. Lj is lj and if this is what an addiction is like, well...

I'm currently involved in this campaign called ilove2read. Maybe you've seen the waiting sheds with the logo or the word "pagbasa" written on it? Anyway, the project needs you! That is, if you love to read and are comfortable reading to elementary school students. (For now, at least.)

I have 17 elementary schools to handle and I would really really appreciate some of your time and talents. :) Don't worry, commitment is not mandatory unless you choose it to be. Also, most of the materials are provided already so at its rawest, all I really need are READERS willing to READ.

BUT! If you've ever envisioned a project or plan that's geared towards the betterment of education or improved literacy, please please please, do not hesitate to let me know. :) And if you are really just passionate about this and would like to help make a difference in however way you know how, well, WE CAN MAKE THAT HAPPEN. :) So buzz me!

Thank you very much! :) I miss you guys! Do we have a reading date scheduled for this month?

nashcowmoo

Nash Tysmans
0917-8458831
nastasia.tysmans@gmail.com

DO YOU LOVE TO READ? :)

Dearest,

This was a definite longshot but I think I'm ready. Goodbye writing on LJ.

Don't worry, I'm keeping this to keep updated on your lives but as for me, I'm setting off on an adventure. Here's to all the years growing up on LJ! :)

& thank you for listening.



find me at tonybeeconvector.wordpress.com



Hope to see you there!

<3 Nash