NORBYGRAM: msu main

13 BEST PHOTOS OF MY 2013

I turn the fan on full blast while the deafening mixes of New Year-related noise of firecrackers, fearless beats of large speakers playing novelty songs and murmur of night street-traffic are battling outside. This situation makes me slam and lock the door of my room from the inside. I lift and sip this 18-minute old cup of coffee near the laptop I am facing right now. My anxieties again. How could that be? The year is over? Again? Another year? I put down the coffee on the table. I brushed my newly cut hair with both of my palms and bury my head in the middle of my arms, gently closing my eyes. I take a deep breath. Then I start writing this year-ender note. I just feel it’s an obligation I need to fulfill not just to myself but also to the rest of the world. Or more specifically, my world.

If last year I summarized my 2012 with 12 people who made outstanding contribution to my year, I came up with a new idea for 2013. It took me a week selecting these. I finally mustered the courage and faced reality that these photos are the ones that mattered most to me in 2013.

And here they are. My 13 most favorite photos of 2013:

13. BATCH BALANCES Graduation Tribute Party

Dubbed as THE LAST SNOW, I picked this as one of my most favorite 2013 moments because this occasion was one of the most emotional ones I’ve had not just this year but also for many years that passed. More than I expected, the hardships in college, as I always put it, both destroyed me and made me a better person more than anything. This event highlighted the emotions I have kept for 5 years. My entire batch and other people heard what I had been meaning to tell the world since then. This event also saw how hard I worked outside the normal and regular times I was at school – my extracurricular activities. And of course, it was the most genius idea that I had it spent with people who knew more than anyone else how hard things were and how we managed to survive them all together.

12. MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY’S 53^rd Foundation Night Celebration

God knows how much I missed the campus. There is not a single day that an aspect of the school leaves my mind. I can proudly say that I am a “University Guy” because apart from loving the life in the campus, I could say that I love the university itself. I mean that genuinely. Even now that I already graduated. I can count in one hand the number of events where students could go out very, very late at night and celebrate. The August 31, eve of the Foundation day has always been one of my favorites. The feel of freedom, the night lights, the loud band, the swarm of people and the always-awaited fireworks are definitely unforgettable. I got to spend this night with my MSU – Honors Program family. With them, that night couldn’t have been better.

11. READYING MY SEMI-ACADEMIC BABIES TO HEAD HOME

I always refer my trophies and medals as my “semi-academic babies”. “Babies” because they are “fruits” of hard work, dedication, determination and sacrifices. A lot of people who knew me well way back college know that I wasn’t just an addict of quiz shows, essay writing and semi-academic events. They know that all these were my life all those 5 years. If you can notice my eyes on this picture, you could tell that apart from being a physical activity of arranging them, this must have also been very emotional for me. I remember all the skipped classes, quizzes, exams. I remember the gastritis and euphoria during quiz shows. The pressure. The losses. The wins. The quiz-friends. The grammatical mistakes. The words. The love of knowledge. The love of being not a typical student.

10. POST-OCTOBER 2013 BOARD EXAM MINI-BALANCES REUNION

People know that I did not take the board exam because of selfish reasons or selfless excuses depending on whom you heard the story from. I always say that I couldn’t ask for a better batch in college. I met a lot of undyingly determined people who are both street-smarts and academically commendable. Some of them did their reviews in Luzon, Visayas and in Mindanao. I started working then when they were in their review. Things were indeed very challenging for me. I let them know how I felt but I also pushed myself to remind them of the things they were so capable of. With this night of treat from Pyang and July after their actual board exam, this mini-BALANCES get-together was a night I always dreamt months before that.

9. MSU – HONORS PROGRAM PROBATIONARY ACCEPTANCE 2013

This photo was accidentally taken at Midway Park in Initao minutes before the Probationary Acceptance of HP happened. I made quite a few on-campus visits before this so the members and applicants of the program still had the chance to see me often unlike other Program Alumni. But the intrigue of the partly-lit night, the time we spent sitting on this big chunk of tree only few feet away from the raging waters, the white sand, the talks, the laughter, the fun, the experience and the feeling of belongingness all redefined this very moment.

8. RFJPIA REGION 10 & CARAGA - ANNUAL REGIONAL CONVENTION WORD WIZARD CHAMPION

Jade, Florence, and Pyang were with me as we won my most favorite event every ARC. This was a quiz show I could never forget. There was this line, “MAIN versus BRANCH” that described MSU – Main VS MSU – IIT round that really made it accidentally so much more fun for me. How could I ever forget that I was about to cry when the other opponent team in our own one-on-one mini-round took me out of my own team rendering me unable to play at all for the succeeding questions? I was so scared but the expectations I had for my teammates were more than surpassed. I can also still remember Pyang saying, “I’ll pretend na matalino ako para sakaling maunahan nila tayo nang pagsagot, ako ang una nilang taggalin.” Oh God, that was just priceless!

7. EXCURSIONS AFTER THE LAST HELL WEEK IN COLLEGE

Of all weeks in College, Hell Week, that week where exams are on irresistible parade is definitely the least favorite. This picture was taken after our last HELL WEEK in college. For a degree which has a lot of dramas, ups and downs and for a group of people who are more dramatic and with a higher number of ups and downs than normal, you could see in this picture how we felt like we evolved but we still acted like little kids. When you are just very thankful for the things that you have after a storm, the taste of freedom and victory would always break some grounds.

6. BELKIN PIONEERS – ATLANTA HAWKS

When I decided that I would start working, I never expected that I signed up for this. I thought it would be very normal, boring, plain, and serious. However, my Teammates from Atlanta Hawk from Soft skills, to Tech Training, to TQ, to actual call handling and to the many other activities in and outside work gave a whole new definition of “Work Hard, Play Hard.” They are just people who gave me reasons to wake up on mornings and days when things weren’t easy anymore. Some of us might have left or crossed other paths but undeniably, tripping down the memory lane of those days will always give us huge smiles. Smile we always had and we always will have.

5. MY GRADUATION DAY – APRIL 2013

I’ll get back to a line I mentioned on picture no. 13. That line where I said “College both destroyed me and made me a better person more than anything”. I got destroyed primarily because I took risks I wasn’t supposed to take. That right there is way beyond me to explain. You only graduate College once. Even if you take another degree next, the first graduation is always the hardest to forget. You see how the caps are tossed up in the air on this photo? I always thought that it was so cheesy to do this. But when I was the one doing it, it didn’t feel cheesy at all because when you look at the cap that you throw up in the air and it gets back to you, you don’t see the cap as an object anymore. You would see it as yourself. Why? I’ll let you explain that to yourself.

4. DECEMBER 5, 2013

The date stinks. Obviously, this was my birthday. I picked this as one of the best photos of my 2013 not just because I enjoyed watching FROZEN on the big screen with teammates Deo and Haya. This photo reminded me that even though I never oblige myself to celebrate every 5^th of December and even if I am far away from home, I always have some people who want to prompt me that every year is a blessing worth enjoying and worth living. I may not be the one who flaunts a birthday celebration but I sure take very seriously those who give their greetings. It feels good to think that people remember. Indeed, as long as I have friends and my jokes still work, December 5 will always be special.

3. THAT JACKET FOR A FOREVER LOST FRIENDSHIP

Oh God. This would be so awkward. Please don’t get me wrong. This photo is not special because it’s a back-to-back cute selfie. *insert a marching band here*. This is more about the jacket I am wearing on this photo. I promise that this would be the last time that I will bring up this topic about a certain somebody who used to be a very close friend of mine. I used to have this jacket. I wore this everyday. But someone took it, owned it and never gave it back. “Took it”, “owned it” and “never gave it back” are very powerful words to me because these are the same things that happened to the trust I thought we both had. I am insanely concerned of what my friends think of me. I don’t sleep at night knowing that a friend won’t talk to me. But there are just some people who are not worth forgiving, people who are not even worthy of the “friend” label. And along with the loss of this jacket is a friendship that would be lost forever. As expected, of course, we all should move forward. So I did.

2. FAMILY PIC AT MY GRADUATION STAGE

If there will be a world ranking for parents who want to give up and surrender but never do for their children, I bet my parents will have a good fight at the top of the list. You cannot imagine years of headaches, emotional and physical challenges just to let their eldest son graduate when all that they have is DREAM. If you think that sending a child to school with only hopes and dreams will not last, my parents will give you a good run for your money at that statement. This is absolutely one of those moments in life that I am most proud of myself. But if you’re going to ask me what moment in my life I have been most proud of my parents, I would say this picture should tell you everything.

1. HOME

True enough, the importance of a photograph is not measured by the quality of the resolution it has. It can be found on that specific moment captured by the lens. No matter how pixelated a photo is, just like this one which I took using my low-end phone, if the picture itself paints a thousand words and fills various emotions, it will still be a photo you would need a lifetime to explain. This photo right here is a picture aimlessly taken by my youngest sister when we had one of our normal 4 PM swims in the sea. This is just few feet away from our home. I could never replace the calmness of this very familiar sea with a backdrop of the same sun that had been there when I needed it most. Whenever I am home, I always find time to have some moments with myself swimming in this large ocean thinking completely about nothing at all. This is one of those moments where you don’t ask God “Why”. This is one of those moments which we will always seek for the rest of our lives. Those short moments where we can say there’s nothing we need. Moments that make us feel complete. One of those moments where what matter most is that we’re alive.

My head still aches out of work fatigue. My vision is still blurred from the street traffic. I am still catching my breath even if I didn’t do anything very physically exhausting today. A part of my haggard brain tells me that I should not be scanning, reviewing or throwing myself back to my old glory days by looking at some of the memorable photos I have gathered from the last 12 months of 2013, or any previous year for that matter. It is because my memories could cloud up my mind like a drifting kaleidoscope image or my emotions could deliberately tell me to laugh on some moments and stop my breathing on some seconds. But I guess it’s why they are called moments. They are meant to be treasured.

My hands shake as I press the last key and finish writing this. I close the laptop and manage a big smile. 2014, here I come.#

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GETTING OUT OF HADES’ PREMISES

msu main 10:38:00 AM

Gone are the days that when I stand in a crossroad, I always prefer to go to the right side. Now I tried to use the left path not because it is the only option that I have left. It’s because the right is not right anymore. The false dilemma is then shattered. And so, there was silence.

Don’t get me wrong. This isn’t a life-and-death related decision nor a national issue that everyone has to care. Somehow I got tired of fiction so I wanted to write something this time. I have a tendency though to be easily carried away by my emotions and my thoughts drift from north pole down to the bottom of the equator (Feelin’ some apparent examples, huh?). This is just about my new official home in the university. From almost 4 year of stay in Rajah Dumduma Hall (RD), I have now switched to its better half, Rajah Solaiman Hall (RS). It’s too hard to accept t fact and adjust in my world world. But I’m already here. There’s no turning back.

I know somehow that boys’ dormitories are girls’ nightmares. When you actually reside in RD, you would be eventually be living in Hades’ premises. Even worse. Despite the treasured memories I have left in RD, someone doesn’t want me to stay there anymore. Let’s not just try to widen some narrow-minds. Those minds aren’t garter. They are dull and inelastic so they’ll break. Others laugh at me thinking that I might have caused some serious trouble kicking me out of my old dorm. Come on! I didn’t do any harm. You can ask anyone there in RD except from their diabolic king and you’ll hear nothing. It pains me to think that I wasn’t allowed to stay there anymore because of… wait! Because of what? Only God knows. I still packed my things up and left the dorm not because of tolerance. It was because I pity the fiend. Going down to his level is worse than being buried in the ground alive. Pathetic as it may seem, others don’t think that he still has hope. I’m starting to adhere too.

To cut the long story short, I finally registered myself in Rajah Solaiman Hall. It’s just inches away from RD (they’re just one dorm before but divided later on). I met its manager who’s smart, eloquent and considerate. He’s totally the diabolic king’s opposite. I would admit I prejudiced RS before. I admit my mistake. People here are not troublemakers like I heard. Their beds don’t shake. Their guards do their real jobs. They have to TV’s for all to watch. The real scholars are here (I have nothing against RD scholars though, peace!). And they all seem like a family here with a real father.

Case closed. I just need more weeks to prove to myself that RS is gazillionth times better than RD. But right now, it’s a big Y-E-S!

How can you say no when you finally got out of hell?#

[DISCLAIMER: This is nonsense really! I’m writing this around 12:30 a.m. All you can read id the madness. I just want to write the anger out. I just want to write. No one can prevent me to do that. I will bite if someone will. ]

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A CHANGE OF ABODE

mindanao state university 2:37:00 PM

Anxiously, my overfatigued body slid through the bed to avoid my eyes from being directly hit by the sunshine that one fierce morning. Everyone else in the room was already busy with their stuffs- folding blankets, combing wet hair, eating breakfast in bed, changing clothes and silent praying. I made my way down from the upper deck to the windows and opened them. A large tree in the middle of a dry golden cornfield surrounded by large unpainted houses made its way to my surprise. I quickly opened the door and checked outside. Untouched hallways, uninhabited rooms and unknown people. Oh I forgot. A new dormitory! This is only few meters away from the old one but it seems like I'm loving this whole new lifestyle. At least I know I'm at peace and I need not to have worries.

Even if the change of abode here in the campus is only temporary, we still struggled our way here in Bolawan Hall, a new and unofficial dormitory at the back of our real one, Raja Dumduma Hall. My blood past its boiling point due to an unprecedented policy that our manager implemented out of nowhere. He's been working and managing the dormitory for over forty years but he only made that decision this semestral break of 2011. He decided to pull everyone out of the dormitory- each and every student who still had exams and thesis defense or even students who didn't go home for the break because they just can't. He cited the absence of the security guard, the maintenance, the janitor, and his assistants as the reason why he resorted to kick everyone out in RD. However, those who he cited that were absent for a short while came back the night before we dug our way out of the dormitory. Yes, it's one of the university policies to empty the dorm after sem break but the manager may opt not to do so. So why now? The problems he mentioned were solved but still he posted in our bulletin board that we should have been out of the dorm not later than 6 pm. That was incredibly hard for us to hurriedly pack our things up but thanks to the petition we made, we were transferred to this dormitory we are now living. Our expulsion is a blessing in disguise. It indeed is.

The exact opposite of our manager in RD greeted us all by his modern humor, American jokes and big eyeglasses. He talks much, very considerate and he's got a lot of patience. He is exactly the manager we wished we'd have. So he's only here and the search is over. Talk about the facilities here in Bolawan Hall. Even if the room in RD is wider, the beds, foams and pillows here are of much greater quality. If the comfort room in RD is a nightmare for many, the comfort room here is the others' dream. More than 10 pairs of cubicles and shower rooms. And when I say shower, I don't mean the shower-shower mechanical thing but a real shower. Moreover, the utility-men here are not mean but are approachable. If only we could stay here longer and with some improvements and installments, living here would be an exception to the MSU struggle.

But back to the real game, I fear now that those who petitioned to remain in RD despite manager's notice and were transferred to Bolawan Hall instead will not be allowed by RD's manager to renew their registration in the dormitory this upcoming semester. If that will happen, then I guess it's but time for us to do better than a petition itself. Leaving RD which I have stayed in for over four years won't be that easy because a lot of memories and people remain in every echo my voice makes there. And especially for selfish reasons, not staying in my enamored abode is unbearable.

I folded my own bed stuffs too and pushed my books aside. I gotta do many things aside from thinking about that misery. I'm gonna hit the showers now. Not the shower-shower mechanical thing but real shower. Oh showers! :D #

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MSU at 50: Integrating People and Building Societies through Quality Education in a Culture of Peace

Mindanao 11:48:00 AM

Fifty years have come and gone like colors in a spectrum of light. Countless generations of world-class warriors have answered the calls of global demands. These warriors were once bounded by cultures, beliefs and religions but integrated themselves into the existence of a relevant national living. The concept of education and learning being embraced by humanity is the impetus of these warriors in enlightening their minds and directing their lives in building societies not just for themselves but also for anyone who may coexist with them in the future. The plow used in cultivating the land that sustains the civilization that Mindanao State University possesses has been passed to various frontrunners and is now on the hands of a man who dreams for the perpetuity of the foundations laid down by a promised oneness. It is in this plow that all hopes, dreams and support of those warriors are parted with in such a hope that maybe one of these days, the pot of gold for MSU will be found. The MSUans are the warriors and life is the battlefield. And for its 50th year, a culture of peace is MSU's golden battlecry.

Not all universities in the Philippines are established to aim a systematic quality general education with a focus on cultural consciousness and moral integrity. This boilerplate separates MSU from the others. A peculiar attribute vested on this institution is to become a premier university which will provide the manpower resources of businesses and industries in the country by educating the Moro, Christian and Lumad youth of MINSUPALA to be the prime movers in uplifting the supraregion from its plight like having the poorest municipalities and provinces in the country. This special mandate could have been smooth since then if only the painful history isn't engraved in millions of hearts chained by untold horrors and if only the tug-of-war between clashing ideals and differences has peace as its arbitrator. From this irony emanates the persistence of MSU to be the machinery, amidst a war-shaken land, to put the youth as inputs, to process them in a hollistic manner, and to bring them out in the open as well-rounded outputs ready to do what they are made for. This is the 50-year old challenge accepted by MSU's founding fathers and still remains to be the challenge of anyone who accepts that the starting point of their lives is in any single point in MINSUPALA. This, in its very delicate sense, is the MSU challenge.

As melting pot of the south, MSU has been in a struggle to integrate the people within its territory. In classrooms and even in dormitories, tradition has it that all the tri-people get equal rights with which they unnoticeably part with one another the knowledge of the culture and the world they are born with. It is in this socio-cultural integration unique in MSU that a building of sophisticated society lived by conscious and aware people becomes more meaningfully responsive and productive. It can be everywhere indeed that we learn things from other people historically different from us and thank them for the lessons we can ever treasure for a lifetime.

The current builder of the MSUan civilization is its current president Dr. Macapado A. Muslim. He is the man who faces big problems first-hand but sees to it that quality education should be top of campus priorities. Despite budget cuts, he sought to allocate the funds to meet the basic academic requirements of MSU. He has developed numerous infrastractures for the welfare of the students and their studies. His administration still spawns topnotchers and exemplary board exam performances. He is the man whom students trust their future with and fortunately, MSU should be thankful that those skilled hands of him deserve the battle's forefront.

It is still the culture of peace that will be the turning point of all the realizations of MSU's aspirations and an end to itself. Without peace, quality education is partially achievable and it will take much time to integrate people and thus to build socities is to defy gravity. We know that Mindanao has two warring personas within her with different battlecries but anchored on the same sentiment. The years have left sorrowful footprints and history has written lessons suffice for us to learn. It will all just depend on the way we will heal those wounds and finally pick a paper inside our pot of gold which says, "You can take an MSUan out of MSU, but you can never take MSU out from the believing heart of an MSUan".#

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KNOCKIN' THOUGHTS ON HEAVEN'S DOORS

BALANCES 3:19:00 PM

[Here's more. I wrote this one on November 2010. This mourned, rejoiced, condoled and celebrated my first semester as a Junior College Student.]

How long? Months? Maybe 5 months. Yeah, that’s it. I’ve had 5 months of unrecorded thoughts. I really miss writing. I can feel it along the silence of this trembling cold night as i write after a long break. Again. Given my favourite pen, few sheets of papers, personal privacy as everybody else in the room is asleep and having only the sole light of a lamp to illuminate this unconscious night, I believe I deserve these few hours for myself. Writing whatever matters my head and heart have long wanted to share. With one last and long sigh, here I would go. Knocking my thoughts on heaven’s doors.

As a junior student, this semester has been so revealing. Revealing in a sense that it showed me who I am, what my strengths and weaknesses are and taught me valuable lessons which I considered absurd months ago. There those things went. Profoundly.Unseen.Uncensored.Unnoticed. Since I haven’t kept a diary to track the things that happened lately, I would love to start reminiscing all those memorable events which opened my eyes, locked my lips and drew my smiles. Selecting the highlights would be a fun job for this may become a short synopsis I would compensate for all the things I left unattended. And I bet, this may take much time. However, that’s not the issue here anymore. So break it free.As for the newest things I have gone with this semester, JPIA has a lot to say about them. This semester embarked with the exhaustive enrolment week. As a student-assistant to the enrolees, this has somehow made me realize that I AM a JPIA Officer, a fact which gradually registered to my instinct. Talk about what I’ve been through during the Accountancy Week. It’s not that I was the only busy one, it is about how floored I am every time I think of the titanic responsibilities and tasks I have overcome. I tell you, it’s never easy when all eyes and expectations are laid in your standing. It was made even more challenging when things were brought up to the regional level. The Regional Midyear Convention in CDO! Winning the Whiz Kids Plus as champion for the second consecutive year despite only reaching 2nd place in the Pop Dance Competition having MSU-Main Chapter as Champion for 4 straight years and receiving the Overall 1st Runner-up award, I am of much pride of myself in behalf of the entire local chapter. It was my 2ndCDo invasion this sem because I had participated the Regional Executive Board Meeting months earlier. That was fun, really. Living in the hotel like we owned everything. Played the piano insanely, repeated using the elevator ‘till it seemed still nauseous even outside, and talked in the meeting proper as if we were never afraid of the things we wanted to convey. For everything that happened and are yet to happen, I look forward more from my co-officers. That’s the spirit.

Jumping onto the other side, let me blab on my academics. One word.Haha. That’s how it all rolled. I would chuckle how this semester just ended where in fact I never really felt it started. One of the wondrous coincidences this sem has offered is the parallelism in terms of final grades my two major subjects incurred. They are both 2.0. It had an offsetting effect. I exerted more effort on the first one but was falling on it. I was too relax with the other one but was passing it. They’re still equal at the end. Though I honestly expected 2.5 and 1.5 on the latter, it seemed like expectations don’t materialize at all times. Tsk. Furthermore, it’s a blessing to have 3.0 in Econ60. Flunking those nerve-wracking exams, I should have failed. I can’t relate with the subject, honestly speaking. Until now. So it’s better done that way, isn’t it? My PE4, Mgt11 and English8 were definitely demanding subjects but based on grades, my instructors should have bestowed mercy by raising them higher. Yet they didn’t. Well then, there’s still hope when Sir Peepo gave me an exhilarating grade in Mktg11 which I prayed since I failed the prelim exam. What an answered prayer! Even if my goal was to push my CGPA up, it went down. I have no one to blame. I guess. I still have my scholarship, no worries! There must be something for the next semesters.

With regards to my beloved MSU-Honors Program, it was also my first 5 months of enjoying my being a full-pledged member. “POOP”, it is the word of the semester taking into consideration the realizations I had and still am having now that I own the spot. Many would kill for this. I’m blessed I have one. Even if I missed the applicants’ Talent Show, that wouldn’t turn down the joy I had with the other activities the program had. Tripping from the rushed Orientation Program where I shockingly spoke, to the Interview phase where I tried to build impressions with people coming in, to the Essay Writing, IQ and Aptitude Tests as well as the Extemporaneous Speaking phases where I saw how the new kids evolved, and to the postponed probationary-members-to-be’s Acceptance, HP still gives reasons for everything. Yet, my favourite for this sem were the things we all did during the University Foundation Anniversary along with the quiz shows we’ve won. HP has yet more to go and it is as cruel as Dan Brown’s novel that it never allows things get predicted. HP people love that sort of twist.Now if there’s a question about what made me happiest during the semester, it would be consolidated with two things.

First, BALANCES! Through up and down, for over three years now, we remained strong. We were there. Present enough to be seen. Everyone’s happiness is shared. Everyone’s sorrow is felt. Everyone’s undertaking is always a joint venture. Indeed, we are an adorable corporation ready to give dividends not just in profits but even in losses. I could never be happier in the department with BALANCES as my family. They’re all damn crazy.

Second would be my home away from home, RD. Doydoy, Baloi, Dann, KuyaGodo, Kingkoi, Adam, Kris and Welvor, they have been the wisest and funniest guys that still keep doing things I never expected them to do. They go beyond limits. Very optimistic yet I enjoy their frailty. Better or worse. Added on the long list are Vit, Ariel, Jeffrey, Junjun and the RS-turning-RD Rowen, I love these kids so much. They are unfolding a new generation of RD that I want to impart with, if not complete. Without RD, maybe I got myself with ropes on my neck every time I was with a burden I couldn’t afford to bear. They are impressive painters. They paint you a smile on your very face. A smile which you never thought still exists.

When people ask me about how my family is going on. I can’t answer any of their questions. Even now, this section is out of order. I am sorry.

As for the insanity that I thought wouldn’t fade, I ain’t sure about it yet. But now, I have no plans at all. I am settled.

I love the way how things are.I love myself despite anything. I know people love me. There are those who care and even with these miseries, I know heaven’s doors will open. Soon.#

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HOW ABOUT A SIMPLE "WELCOME BACK"

blog 11:53:00 AM

People may say that I have been blogsite-hopping. That I am restlessly changing the sites in which I post my blog entries. I am guilty of that! However, there are tons of reasons why I am back here in blogger. Yes, I AM BACK! I made my first ever blog here 3 years ago. That's about 2008. Quite a long time. So how about some "Welcome Back" streamers out there bloggers?

I started blogging here when I was about 4th year High School. Eventually, I got bored. I knew of not even a single friend who kept their own blog. I was on my own. And everytime I look at and read my old blogspot page [ emopunkprinz.blogspot.com ], I always laugh at my childishness. The posts there are so unplanned, unmanaged, and impulsive. Except for some pictures, it is worth to be hidden from the open. However, I want to keep that as a record. My first blog. Oh come on! That's for my children to read.

The same story happened with my multiply account. On the peak of multiply's 15-minute fame, I left blogger and jumped there at the same year. Still, I had to leave my page [ emopunkprinz.multiply.com ], which is a proof of a dark-loving personality I once conquered, because I got tired of blogging when only a few people follow me. Sadly, those few people are those who viewed my page through accident. I just hope it was serendipity for them. I changed home again.

I stopped blogging after 2 consecutive site failures. But not writing. I never will. When facebook came out, I posted some of my write-ups there as NOTES. Since it's a social networking site, I got the taste of what it's like for my pieces to be scrutinized, rejected and appreciated. Yet, there was still a hole. Something that kept my writing satisfaction on the edge.

I should give credits to Eia Guimbor for directing me to tumblr.com. I saw 30 reasons to love tumblr. *quoted*. I loved the photos there. Undisputedly, it's the best site for pictures. (Try it if you haven't been there!) So I also started building my own tumblr home. I was too delighted by the pictures that maybe my page [ iamnorbert.tumblr.com ] almost resembles earth's ratio of water to land. 70% photos, 30% words. And wait, I want to be a word-blogger and honestly, tumblr is for people with DSLR cameras. And one more thing, I got helpless when posting wordy blog entries in tumblr when I realized that it was inconvenient for readers to leave their comments. Pathetic.

I embraced wordpress after I saw a link on a page of someone I follow on twitter. I was initially floored. Shoot! It was way to cool. [ iamnorbert.wordpress.com ] The widgets: hoverPics, Twitter posts, blogroll, calendar, tag cloud, category cloud and blog hits, they all amused me. Getting me do a single overnight to make the entire page look good. But it's the header thing that greatly pulled me. I always wanted something like that in my blog and so, my wordpress header is something I worked hard for. My problem however with this site is the uploading of photos that must be included in your blog posts. Darn. It really consumes much time. Crunching and Saving suck. It bothered me again but I just let it that way. It was the only one that's not good about wordpress.

Here comes a lady of words, photos and links. *chuckles*. Sittie Ayeesha Dicali's blogger account [ ayeeshamd.blogspot.com ] made some hissing sound. Wooh! I just think her blog is awesome. And I swear to the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus that her header is flooringly eye-catching. I was like, "I shouldn't have left blogger if I knew I could do and have these stuffs her blog brags." Furthermore, I opened Ogie Diaz' Twitter page and clicked on the link of his website. I found out that it is here on blogger and man, he has 1000+ followers. Come on! I wasn't amazed by the number. *really*. I was with the F-O-L-L-O-W-E-R-S. People finally mind reading you.
Isn't this what I was born for?

And so, I am here again. Starting a new blogging life in this site. I promise to keep this updated. And well-structured. Not bad with the site with the highest number of bloggers. Not bad! Click. I am home.

P.S. --> my tumblr and wordpress accounts will still be active. I'll be posting special stuffs to see and read there. Some stuffs fit for them. :)

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