My Turf

There are a multitude of things I long to write about, but I never could seem to find the time or inspiration to do so. Ngayon na lang–bagaman ginagawa ko ito sa oras na hindi ako dapat nagba-blog. Eh pero kasi naman, kelangan ko rin ng break o ako ay magbe-break na from pressure coming from everywhere!

I warn you that this is one incoherent entry. Gusto ko lang magkwento ng kung ano-ano. Gah.

I. Work Rants

The past few weeks have been unbelievably hectic. What, with the company’s new strategy in selling commercial spots to potential advertisers in Japan: Place an ad and WE WILL PRODUCE YOUR COMMERCIAL FOR YOU!

Easy for them in Japan to make such proposition! Sino ba namang kliyente ang tatanggi sa ganong offer? Aba, may primetime ad spot na siya, wala pang middle-man na ahensya, may libreng TVC pa, tipid talaga! At dahil sanay sila sa presyuhan sa Tokyo, talagang parang kay ganda-ganda at kay mura-mura talaga ng package na ino-offer namin! 

It is simple for our Tokyo counterpart kasi wala naman talagang costs for them. Ang kinakainis ko lang ay ang bulk, if not LAHAT ng creative-slash-dirty work ay ginagawa namin dito sa Pilipinas. For the most part, ako lang at yung video editor namin ang tumitira ng mga TVCs na yun. Buti na nga lang at magaling sya dahil he is able to make my storyboards (na dino-drawing ko lang sa newsprint o scratch papers!) come to life. Still, nase-stress ako ng sobra-sobra dahil pigang-piga na ako sa kakaisip ng mga konsepto at taglines. Ang nakakatawa pa ay ako na rin ang nagvo-voiceover! This is the part na pinaka-hindi ko gusto dahil nawi-weirdohan ako sa tunog ng recorded voice ko, lalo pa’t I’ve always held na okay lang for me to do VOs for documentaries or news bits, pero HINDI FOR COMMERCIALS! I sometimes fear that there will come a time na magkaka-tunog na ang lahat ng commercials namin!   

Isa pa palang mahirap is that we do commercials na WALANG SHOOT. Ang hirap mag-imagine na alam mong puro pictures lang ang pwede mong pagalawin. Halos lahat pa ay walang binibigay na pictures, so iniimbento naming halos lahat ng visuals. Waaa. Challenging kung challenging!

Tempted na tuloy akong lumipat sa advertising agencies na kay laki-laki magbayad for copies. Kung iisipin ko, sa dami ng nasulat kong print at TV ad copies for my company now, ang dami-dami ko na sigurong naipon kung rumaraket lang ako. Kaya lang, I’m feeling quite hesitant kasi baka hindi ko magustuhan ang working environment at malagas pati kilay at buhok ko sa ilong sa sobrang kunsumisyon! Bukod pa don, nage-enjoy ako sa trust at creative freedom that I am accorded here–dahil ako lang ang tanging copywriter-slash-director dito. However, I am also aware na maganda rin na may ka-brainstorm ka, may mga magtuturo sa iyo ng mga bagong bagay o mga hindi mo pa alam, how it should be done in a more professional setup… Ganonpaman, meron man akong mga “nice to have,” they’re still not enough to make me want to leave this job and be somewhere else. Di pa ako nasasagad at marami pa akong gustong gawin. So far, I’m very, very happy here, although financially, I know I could be better off. But God is giving me so many blessings, albeit in small portions, pero constant at basta na lang dumadating kahit di ko kinakarir. Kaya I know that He’s telling me na dito muna ako.

Nung Monday, I was tasked by my boss to deliver a speech sa aming morning gathering. May daily morning assembly kasi na ginagawa–dito ina-announce ang top-sellers from the day before saka kung anong percentage na ang naaabot ng sales teams sa mga monthly quotas previously set by top management. May iba’t-ibang speakers din everyday to give foods for thought,mga motivational speeches, words of wisdom… Kadalasan, mga telemarketers ang nagsi-speech, pero minsan, members from the support group (like us from the Marketing Department) are asked to give the pep talk. At nung Monday, ako ang naatasan para mag "Rah-rah" speech.

Ang pinaka-punto ko lang sa sinabi ko ay Attitude of Gratitude. This is one mantra I’ve always strived to live by. I admit marami pa rin akong lapses, pero palagi ko pa ring sinusubukan na magpasalamat sa kahit anong dumating sa buhay ko, even the unfavorable ones.

Maliit ang sweldo, mahirap ang trabaho, nakaka-bad trip ang ilang tao, pero mas marami pa rin akong dapat ipagpasalamat kesa i-angal.

Maliit ang sweldo? Well, it brings food to the table, buys my clothes. It pays the rent and the bills. It helps my parents get by. It sends my brother to school. Small-time is still better than penniless. This is not to say that I will settle with being like this forever, but this job helps me gain momentum that I will need to propel myself to a higher plane.   

Mahirap ang trabaho? The training I get (and am getting) here is incomparable. Everyday, my creativity is challenged. Sometimes, you cannot discover the things you are good at until you are in a situation where you are forced to do things you never thought you could do well. Prior to this job, I’ve always thought my writing skills are limited to essays, magazine articles…but as I look at the commercials we have produced so far, I sit back and tell myself, "Not bad!"  And my bosses and the new clients that keep coming in tell me that this is true. I am the first to critique my own work, but I will give credit where credit is due. Bow. Kaya kahit magkapuyat-puyat ako at duguin sa kakaisip ng bagong treatment, I am still grateful for this chance.

Bad trip ang ilang katrabaho? Sagot ko: Lilipas din yan. We’re all just doing our jobs and irritations here and there can never really be helped, kahit nasaang kumpanya ka man.

II. Hopes for a Lovelife

Mr. James introduced me to this Jason Mraz song, I’m Yours, and I instantly fell in love with it.

Since I heard this song, my staple status message sa Yahoo Messenger is “Love, love, love.” Parang divine encantation

I have been told more than a few friends that they sense that things are likely to change to my liking this year. With all my heart, I hope they are right.

Honestly speaking, I have never been more confident. Malapit na ang panahon na kakanta na rin ako ng, “I won’t hesitate. No more, no more. It cannot wait. This is our fate. I’M YOURS.” 

Could this year finally be the year? Sabi nga ng mga barok, “This is really is it?”

You seem so close, I can almost feel you. 

III. Kwento kay Sherwin

Sa isang linggo ay first day ng kapatid kong si Sherwin bilang 1st year High School. Paminsan, hindi ako makapaniwala na naka-abot na rin sya ng 1st year. Delayed nga lang sya ng 2 years. Medyo challenged kasi ang kapatid kong ito–to this day, I still suspect he has dyslexia, although he is surprisingly able to cope up kahit pakonti-konti bagaman hirap pa rin syang mag-basa. Nag-take nga siya ng remedial classes this summer in preparation for his lessons in highschool. I felt more than a little nostalgic nung tinuturuan ko sya sa Math. Nagkahilo-hilo kaming dalawa sa mga equations (Pasensya ka na, anak, dahil si Ate ay may pagka-boba rin sa Math!). Negative-negative? Positive-negative? Positive-positive? Haluan mo pa ng isang katerbang problem solving chuva, operations at numbers inside brackets at fractions…HAY!

I know that to most, getting to first year highschool is no biggie. But for Sherwin, it is a major feat. When he was young, I kept telling my parents that Sherwin seems to need special education. But they claimed that he probably was just a late bloomer, and insisted on enrolling him in regular schools. What’s even frustrating with these stupid schools is that they kept allowing him to go to the next level even though he was not at all ready for more advanced stuff. In effect, Sherwin always lagged behind in class, failing to cope up with lessons. There were days when Sherwin would come home really sad, then I’d find out later on that classmates were teasing him na “Bobo.” It must have been a terrible time Sherwin went through. Still, he pushed on. What he lacked in reading skills, he made up for in other fields. He used to join singing contests (though he always bungled up the lyrics!). He’s terrific at drawing. He had no formal training whatsoever, but he could draw figures he sees on TV with so much ease.

Year after year, he allowed himself to be subjected to such ordeal (of being “class goat” kung baga sa PMA) with almost no complaint. I knew it was extremely difficult for him, though. I remember this one instance when Sherwin was in Kindergarten or Grade 1, I was reviewing him for some exam. Paulit-ulit kami sa isang lesson na he couldn’t seem to get. I was very frustrated that he couldn’t understand something so simple and began shouting at him. Also very frustrated with himself, he started sobbing. Then he pounded his head with his fist and said, “Hindi na nga kasya dito eh!”

Instantly sorry for what I said, I embraced him and tried to soothe him and told him it’s okay. I was so ashamed of myself for what I did. What was I thinking? Instead of helping, I even made this kid feel worse when he himself could not understand what was wrong with him? I cried, too and apologized profusely.

Like any kid, easy to bounce back, quick to forgive and forget, Sherwin stopped crying a few minutes after. He wiped his tear-streaked face and looked at me. He smiled and said, “Ate, iiyak tayong dalawa, ‘no?”

Several years after, Sherwin finally got his elementary diploma and is about to start his freshman year in higshcool. I couldn’t help but get teary-eyed and nostalgic whenever I remember the odds he bravely faced to get himself to where he is now.

In his graduation picture that he gave to me, he wrote, “You are the best Ate in the world.”

Sherwin who used to struggle with reading and writing, jotted down the most touching words a sister would always want to see: “You are the best Ate in the world.”

Right now it’s the only note I keep in my wallet.

IV. Baby Names

Ang tawag ko kay Sherwin, kahit ngayon na 14 years old na siya ay Pancho. Nag-evolve na lang ito mula sa di ko na mabilang na nicknames na nai-binyag ko sa kanya mula nung baby sya. Mula sa Sherwindodo, Undo, Tabatchoy, Batchoy, Baby Boy Tabatchoy, Panget-batchoy-baho (all said in one breath!), hanggang sa hindi ko na maintindihan kung pano nauwi sa "Pancho."

Ang mga Tito at Tita ko sa mother side ay "Becky" ang tawag sa akin. Nagmula lang yun sa isang Purefoods Meatloaf TV commercial na may baboy at baka na naglalambutsingan (Beef and Pork meatloaf) na sina "Bobby" at "Becky". At dahil kay taba-taba kong bata, nabansagan na akong "Becky"at nag-stick na ito hanggang sa ako’y lumaki.

Sa Father side naman, may Ninang ako na ang tawag sa akin ay "Chikiche." Nung maliit pa ako, ang tawag sa akin ni Daddy ay "Sungkong." Ito ay diminutive ng original nickname nya sa akin na "Sungkunaong" na hindi ko maintindihan sa kanya kung saan nanggaling. Wala naman syang mga kaibigang Thai na maaaring pinagkuhanan niya nito… Ang tawag naman niya sa Ate ko noon ay si "Koo-koo," mula sa original na "Koo-koo Memen. " Ewan ko ba kay Daddy! Okay lang kasi ngayon naman ay di na rin "Daddy" ang tawag namin sa kanya, kundi "Botchok." Hahaha.

Raz used to call me "Chenelyn Potpot" nung college, pero lagi ako naiiinis at nasasabi ng, "Talagang may ‘Potpot’ pa!" kaya ngayon hindi na. Madaya ako kasi ang tawag ko sa isa kong kabarkada na si Tina ay "Potpot" din. Si Tinapotpot Danila. Hehehe.

Dito sa opisina, ang tawag naman sa akin ay "Checheboobear." Minsan binabago ito ng maloko kong boss na si Mommy Mahlu at ginagawang, "Cheche-boobsie." Ang Checheboobear ay na-coin ni Herbert "Pervieboobear" Docena, who I used to lovingly call, “Herbert the Pervert”.

HAHAHA. Sinabi ko naman sa inyo na labo-labo ang entry na ito, di ba? J