Either Or, Come What May

2006 hasn't even begun, and already I'm feeling overwhelmed. I'm excited, but also quite exhausted. I'm coming down with a cold, and I'm breaking out.

I've learned so much this past year. And I'm thankful for so many things. I've made awesome new friends. I've gotten to know just how special some of my favorite people are. I've traveled to places I've never been to, I've savored coming home. I've discovered more of myself, and found out a bit more of what I really, really want. I've cried and cried and cried, and laughed my head off (not necessarily in that order). I've felt like a struggling neophyte and seasoned sage. And there's such a wide, wide world to explore, countless pairs of slippers to wear out, a gazillion books to read, pictures to paint, words to pen, and of course, the matter of learning to bike and to cook. Hehe.

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow, learn as if you were to live forever." - Mahatma Gandhi

I got that from the YSEI site.

I pray this new year, we all get to sit back, think about the past year, look to the new one, and smile. We've got a lot to do.

To All The Nadals Out There...

A little bit of family name history. Thank you to Tito Sandro for providing this.

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The Spanish surname Nadal is of nickname origin, deriving from a nickname that was attributed to the original bearer of the name. In this instance, the surname deries from the Catalan word "Nadal", which means "Christmas", further derived from the Latin "dies natalis", or "date of birth", from the verb "nasci", meaning "to be born". In the earliest days of Christianity, "dies natalis" primarily referred to the day of martyrdom, which in turn was also the day of being born into eternal life. However, beginning with the fourth century, the phrase referred to the day of birth of Jesus, or Christmas. Since the ecclesiastical calendar became deeply rooted in folk tradition, many surnames arose from names of religious holidays. The nickname Nadal was thus given to someone who was born during the Christmas season or on Christmas Day. The name may have also arissen from the practice of owing a particular feudal duty to the lord of the manor during the month of December, or may have even been applied to an individual who gave a memorable performance in a church pageant depicting the events surrounding Christmas. The surname Nadal thus means "son or descendant of the one nicknamed Nadal". It is interesting to note that surnames are found in other European countries that derive from a similar origin, such as the English and French surname Noel and the Italian surname Natale.

In the archives we find the listing of several noble families bearing the surname Nadal whose ancestral seats were located in Catalonia, Aragon, and Mallorca. Notable bearers of the name included Father Jeronimo Nadal, who died in 1581, a Jesuit priest and friend of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, who helped to establish the Order of the Society of Jesus. Records also show that one Juan Bautista Nadal defended he town of Pollensa against the Moors in 1560.

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Of course, let's not forget Rafael (the tennis hotshot), and Kitchie. Hehehe.

Team 52

So, my 2006 is already planned all the way until September. Sad thing is, I won't be there at the National Children's Book Day Awarding in July. This last quarter of the year has been something else. I have a lot to be thankful for.

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The British Council, VSO Philippines, and VSO Bahaginan, would like to thank everyone for participating in the GXP Assessment Days held at the Social Development Complex, Ateneo de Manila Campus in Quezon City last December 14 & 15. It was indeed a tough selection process for us as everyone did really well and impressed our selectors with your enthusiasm.

After deliberating the results of the interviews, and activities (as a group and in pairs), we are pleased to announce the selection of the following candidates who will compose the Filipino counterparts of the RP-UK Team 52 of GXP:

Bethany Basis
Rafael Diezmos (pending)
Hazel Galang
Behren Mendoza
Jalidah Moti
Marielle Nadal
Majella Pua
John Henry Sagun
Samsodin Tomawis

And placed on the reserve list are the following candidates:

Rhea Alba
Patrick Asinero
Jason Mortel

Congratulations!

in retrospect: my suicidal schedule

I finally got to upload the photos from the digicam to Winston last night. Whew. Just thinking that all of this happened within the span of less than a month got me tired already. I thought it was just Christmas stress. With cramps kicking in and my left eye in a chronic spasm, I type away and present...the month (almost) that was (work and school aside).

Mishka Adams' Farewell Concert was the best concert I had attended all year. Maybe it was the intimacy of the venue (Music Museum) as compared with the mega-concerts at the Araneta. Somewhere between Tots Tolentino's mind-blowing saxophone solos and Cynthia Alexander's Moon River duet with Mishka, I found myself in audience rapture--and appreciating jazz even more. She really had excellent performers as guests, complementing her music perfectly. Her band, the Blue Echo was amazing too--it draws you in, the way they feel their music as they perform. It simply carries you away. After the concert, we stuck around and got our photo taken with Mishka. Bianca, on cloud nine, got her autograph.

Our organization's Christmas party was the night before. Dressed as gypsies, bohemians and retro kids, they partied while I snapped away. And won a rice cooker. Only to find out that my housemate, Angel won a complete kitchen showcase (rice cooker and ref included)! Wowie! When I got home, my dad happily presented what he won at their raffle--another rice cooker and a microwave oven. Puwedeng puwede na kaming mag rice party.

The Lantern Parade this year I found a bit somber. Not all colleges were required to participate, and those that did did so with minimal participation (e.g. carrying a banner and marching down the academic oval...where's the lantern?). Parang damang-dama mo ang austerity measures sa iilang mga lantern na pumarada. Fine Arts, being the only unit required to participate, delivered with their Earth, Wind, Fire and Water theme (where on earth did that come from?). I even saw Sir Mel Silvestre grading his students as they marched along with the parade. This year, lantern parade technology has evolved to include heavy use of rattan and japanese paper, aside from the usual use of materials such as sliced foam, and chicken wire and paper mache. This I would think, is Sir Mel's doing. That man is a genius (aside from being a really endearing college daddy-figure).

I had my first taste of suckao at the chocolate bar of 'that bald man' with Gay, Nowell and Bas.

The much-awaited second forum on art galleries sponsored by the Met Museum was some sort of a tragedy, with none of the expected speakers actually being there. That was more than made up for with a personal tour (c/o Dang), and quite a bit of ham photo-op moments with Gay, Nowell, Dang, Ajin, Matt and Irene.

Elvis Recharged was rained in, and plagued quite ironically, by brownouts. We left just when it was getting good. We did discover a really makulit band, FMD. The lead singer's stage antics, and the funny lyrics to their cover-spoofs made it worthwhile. Malate was the next stop that evening, with Reg singing the Indigo Girls' 'Galileo' with Cookie Chua and Color it Red at Unplugged.

Mom and Dad came home! And brought Winston a baby brother, Buboy. :-)

Caught Romulus d' Grayt at the PETA Theater with Dang and Dan. Sir Leo Abaya did the stage design. Save for miscalculated english captions, the humorous play on the fall of Rome was true to PETA form, with a dash of timely political innuendos.

Sir Joey Tanedo had an exhibit of photographs at the Oarhouse in Malate. Each photo a tale of his travels. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life during the exhibit opening, with Herb, Marc and I listening to Chong's kakulitan, and to photojournalist Jay Directo's adventures and misadventures. Nabusog ako sa kakatawa. Tuloy, di ko naubos ang aking inorder na schnitzel.

More backtracked kuwentos to follow.

Mami moo-moo

Mami moo-moo. Haha. Talk about regression. Poster paint and india ink. 11"x8.5".

Panalo si Buboy!

It was rather surreal to see my name on someone else's blog. Someone whom I have never been introduced to, especially when my name is one of three listed in a press release of PBBY-Salanga Awardees! Woohoo! Congratulations to Ian Casocot and J. Dennis Teodosio (sana ma-meet ko kayo, at mabasa ang inyong mga kuwento). Salamat din kina Tita Kneekee, Dang, Julia, Herb, Kris, Tata, Gay and roomies Nowell, Vera and Angel for the input and taking time to read. Haha. Nowell tried to sell me an entirely different ending for that story.

What a nice bloghopping surprise.

Press Release:

For the 2006 PBBY-Salanga Prize, The Philippine Board on Books for Young People awards honorable mention to three authors: Ian Casocot (Rosario and Her Stories), J. Dennis Teodosio (Tonyong Turo), and Marielle Nadal (Can you see?). No grand prize was awarded this year.

The three winners shall be awarded cash and certificates from the National Library and the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the National Children's Book Day (NCBD) celebration in July 2006 to be held at the CCP.

Aside from being multi-awarded and well-published, Casocot maintains a website on Filipino writings and literary criticism. Like Casocot, Teodosio has also bagged many awards for his writing, including those for Best Screenplay at the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. Marielle Nadal, on the other hand, is a graphic artist by profession and works full-time at a foundation.

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Life is a tad bit more toxic than usual. Will update soon.

Mantra

Mantra

fly fast,
fly.
leave,
and cry.
we
seek out
life
to lay
down
and
die.







Photo was taken at a bar in Malate.