Simbang Gabi sa Qatar

If there is one thing that is so memorable this Christmas, it would be the nine evening masses here in Qatar. Before I left Pinas I thought I would never experience the Christmas spirit this year. Having no Christmas tree or colorful lights I was already settling to the idea that my Christmas would be just an ordinary and dry event this year. I was wrong. Never did I know that there is simbang gabi here.

Unlike the usual simbang gabi in Pinas, the mass was held at 10 in the evening (literal na simbang gabi talaga), which is 3 in the morning in Pinas. There were also some kakanin (puto, kutsinta, bibingka, piche-piche you name it) outside the Church and even arroz caldo and taho to warm our tummies. When I looked around, only Pinoys were buying food and walking around the church’s premises.

The church was always filled with big number of Kabayan (ang tawag namin sa kapwa Pinoy). Parang may laro lang ang Ginebra sa Araneta sa dami ng tao sa loob ng simbahan. I never thought that Filipino community has truly grown so fast here in Qatar. Para na rin akong nasa Pinas sa dami ng Pinoy na nakita ko.

One of the tradition of evening masses here in Qatar is to have someone to share his/her personal life lessons or experiences. There were duly assigned speaker for the night and some who had great courage volunteered to speak impromptu. Different stories from different people from all walks of life. There was a story of infidelity of a man who was far from his wife; a story of misfortunes with employers, unpaid salaries, the struggles of an ex-addict and now working abroad, a mother’s story abouth her daughter’s near-death experience while she is in Doha, a lovely couple’s story about the miracle of having a baby amidst the mom’s heart ailment and the story of a nurse who has been living in Qatar for almost 38 years and counting.

After listening to their stories, I felt the sudden sadness while looking at other people inside the Church. These Pinoys like me would be celebrating Christmas away from their families from our beloved country. I couldn’t imagine how many Christmases or any other events they missed out just to have something to be provided for their families. Inisip ko nga, ano kaya magiging life story ko dito sa Qatar? Magiging happy ending story ba din ako? Kakayanin ko rin kaya mga stuggles at hirap dito? Then naisip ko tama na muna ang drama. Isipin ko na lang hanggat kasama si lovelife makakasurvive na ako. (Yun yun eh!)

Going back to my simbang gabi story, I realized that what I am searching for this year’s Christmas spirit is only a product ofcommercial or material aspect of life. Kahit papaano naging materialistic din ako ng kunti lang naman. Siguro kasi nasanay ako sa makulay, masaya at maingay na kasiyahan tuwing Pasko.

I realized, there is greater and deeper side of Christmas which I witnessed through the nine evening masses.

If I will look at the spiritual aspect of Christmas, pakiramdam ko busog na busog na ako. Naimpatso na ako sa dami ng magagandang reflections I received from the nine evening masses. Magaling kasi maghomily si Father Kabayan (I forgot the name of the Pinoy priest). Eto lang ang simbang gabing hindi ako inantok sa homily. Para kasing tv series ang homily ni Father, meron at meron kang susundang kwento. Aside from the punch lines nya, sagad to the bones ang mga life lessons at insights nya about sa buhay-buhay.

If there is one thing I will truly keep as my life lesson from this year’s simbang gabi, it would be these two:

“Kung ano ang inumpisahan ay kelangan tapusin” and

“Sit and plan your life, kneel and offer your plans to God, and walk and act your plan.”

I hope in 2013 I could apply what I learned from simbang gabi.

 

All I Want For Christmas Year 3 Wishlist

Thanks to PM at muling nagbabalik ang All I Want forv Christmas. Eventhough I am miles away from Pinas, I still want to join to this annual event. Thanks again PM for waiting for my entry. I don’t want to make excuses pero busy lang ako sa work and sa pagdate. =) Finally mainit na ang Pasko ko… kasi nasa Disyerto. hehehe

So without further delay eto na ang aking mahiwagang wishlist:

Dorm Boy’s All I Want for Christmas Wishlist

Something small: coins from any country. Plan ko magcollect. =)

Something big: Sweat shirt (XL or large).

Something cute:  a real puppy will do. =) Gusto ko na ng pet dog. =)

Something soft: pillow ulit kahit anong size.

Something techie: lalagyan ng Iphone (in preparation for Iphone 5). =)

Something fancy: NBA Jersey na lang… wag lang Miami because I have one already. =)

Something white: T-shirt XL please. =)

Something wearable: Wrist band

Something you need: Any Adam Sandler DVD

Something you can use for work: Tumbler from Starbucks =)

Something sweet: Hershey’s nuggets na rin =)

All I (really, really) want for Christmas: Makauwi sa Pinas and enjoy time with my family. =)

 

Advance Merry Christmas to all!

 

New Guy in Doha City

It has been more than a month now since I flew to Doha. Mabilis lang ang araw when you are working in abroad. Good thing is, I am not being attacked by homesickness yet. Let’s see how will I react in the days to come especially Christmas season is only a month away from now. It will be my first Christmas away from home and the first not celebrating it with my family and relatives. I will surely miss the Noche Buena and our family reunion.

I already have many stories to share during my short stay here in Doha. Kaso panira ng moment ang aking dot com (http://thedormboy.com). Due to unknown reason I couldn’t access the dashboard of my blog account. Neither I can check comments nor edit my posts.  For the past weeks I kept on trying and hoping that my account would be fixed. I thought my dot com was just blocked here in Middle East but when I asked my sister to access my blog back in the Philippines the result was the same.

Kating- kati na ako magblog. But it seems like I am just waiting in vain.

I decided to leave my dot com (for now) and go back to my former WordPress account (the first and the original lol). My WordPress account is indeed like a home in blogosphere. Kahit na may dot com na ako at meron pa akong ibang blog, bumabalik balik pa rin ako sa pinaka una kong account. I realized that it is quite similar in real life. Kahit gaano pa ako kalayo at kung saan man ako mapadpad, I will always go back to the place I called home.

My life was designed to go places and leave temporarily the comfort of my home. I started moving out back in college days. After college and passing the board exam, I packed my things to Makati and set my foot to corporate world. I thought happy na ako sa Makati but I was wrong. After months of processing my job application and papers here I am now, a new guy in a small city of Doha.

Who ever said that being away from home is cool is absolutely correct. There are some things in life you will learn once you leave your home. On my part, I enjoy my freedom and independence. I travel to places I only read before in magazines and meet people from different sides of the world and from all walks of life. I also capture some experiences which are new to me. And the best part of it is that I learn how to manage and take good care of myself.

Living away from home is not always a bed of roses. There are also some thorns along the way. It is true that you cannot have the best of both worlds. I left my home to pursue my education, build a career and follow my dreams in life (and also lovelife). I remember the lines of  Harvey Specter of TV series The Suits, “Life is like this (positioning lowly his hand and moves it horizontally), I like this (raising higher his hand).” I could say I am like Harvey who simply wants to level up the kind of life I want for me and my family. I am also conscious in planning for my future. But as I pursue that kind of life, I need to pay something for it and that is leaving behind the comfort of my home.

Knowing that I cannot have the best of both worlds, I decided to maximize the benefits of the world I am living in. It’s like looking at the brighter side of the coin.  So far I am enjoying the kind of life in Doha. Even if this city is quite small and has limited places to visit, I still look forward to explore it. In the days to come (and hopefully I still have time to blog), I will share to you stories of people I met, and places I have been to.

Let’s see if Doha will make it in my list of favorite cities.

 

Paalam Room 221

Matapos ang masaya at makulit na stay sa Room 221 lumipat ako sa room 207. Hindi ko matandaan kung nakapagpaalam ako ng maayos kina Lakay at Brainy, mga dati kong rummeyts. Hindi na rin kami nagkausapa ni Oca, ang isa ko pang rummeyt. Wala na sya noong sumunod na semester. Ibagsak ba naman halos lahat ng subjects nung first term. Masyado nyang naenjoy ang college days at ang kasabihang , “Ang Happenings Hindi Nauulit pero ang Subjects Oo.”

Feeling ko para akong NBA player na trinade during my rookie season sa ibang team. Nag-eenjoy pa lang ako sa makulit na samahan namin sa Room 211 heto’t kumakaway na ako habang naglilipat ng gamit papuntang Room 207. Isang buong term ko pa lang nakasama sina Lakay, Brainy at Oca pero parang pang Maalala Mo Kaya na ang drama ng aking paglipat ng room sa loob ng buhay ni Kuya.

Sa aking paglipat marami akong namiss. Mga avid readers, ilabas ang papel at lapis at maglista ng limang bagay na namiss ni Dorm Boy sa Room 211?

Time’s up, pass your papers. Let’s check your papers. Ang sagot, wala akong namiss,hindi naman ako galing sa Room 211. Sa Room 221 po ako galing. Gotcha, pacheck mo eyes mo sa EO, love your eyes.

Pero since malakas kayo sa akin, eto lang naman ang mga namiss ko:

1. No farting inside the room policy. Oo Tito Boy, may no farting policy kami sa loob ng room. Hindi ko alam pero madalas magpakawala ng deadly air sa room namin. Ang multa P5.00, not bad para sa aming colon lovers.
2. No bad words inside the room policy. Madalas kasing magmura ng “Kinnam” at “Ukinana” ang mga roommates ko kaya para maiwasan, may multa ang bawat F#cK*n6 word, sorry pardon my French. May improvement ba? Oo meron, napalitan ang mga bad words ng mga salitang “Pusang Ina”, “Tang…”, at “Pusang Gala”. Ang lahat po pala ng mga multang baryang binabayad  ay dinodate po namin sa Lucky Me Pancit Canton Foundation, kapalit ng merienda sa gabi.
3. Ang jungle. Oo gubat ang Room 221, isang magulo pero masayang gubat! May mga landmines sa sahig (mga sapatos at tsinelas na nagkalat), at mga banderitas na tila piyesta (gamit na damit, tuwalya at medyas na nakasabit saan-saan.)
4. Bloopers. Marami kaming bloopers sa room. Dito ako nahuli (naframe-up) na nagjumping rope during study period, ang mga eskapo ni Oca sa bintana. Tinanggal nya ang screen para makalusot sa buta para makapagyosi, ang pag-uwi ni Lakay na lashing at nag-eenglish sa amin.
5. Amoy ng Room 221. Hindi ko maexplain pero me kakaibang amoy sa room namin. Siguro na-immune lang kami sa amoy. Amoy na parang bulok na medyas (gross profit naman yan!)

Marami pa akong namiss sa Room 221 sa aking paglipat sa Room 207. Namiss ko rin ang aking sirang locker at double deck. Pero ganun talaga pinili ko naman ang lumipat kaya panindigan ang desisyong ginawa.

Anu-ano ang mga natutunan ko sa aking paglipat?

Madami! =)

Naisipan ko ulit ipagpatuloy ang dorm stories. Katulad ng mga movies gaya ng Spiderman and Batman nagkaroon ng panibagong umpisa o di kaya re-boot. Pwes ang dorm stories ng buhay ko me kunwaring re-boot dun. Hindi ko na alam ang huling nasulat ko pero sige let’s resume ang masayang kwentuhan.

Kaibigan kwentuhan tayo.

Sino-sino ang mga bago kong rummates? Abangan.

 

Walang Pasok

It’s a rainy Tuesday and thanks to typhoon Pedring classes in schools are suspended and no work in government and private sectors. When I woke up this morning, I was not actually looking forward for a text message from our office informing us that “walang pasok” for today (sinungaling!). After I took a cold shower my phone beeped and lo and behold, I received a text message from my manager.

“Hi everyone wala ng pasok. Ingats na lang!”

Of course I am happy but I would be happier if I read the text message a bit earlier when I was still lying on my bed and enjoying the few minutes to sleep before I would snooze again my alarm clock. As I changed my clothes back to my pambahay outfit, the hand of time brought me back to the days I was still in college. I remember once again the euphoria of cancelled class in the dorm where I stayed for five years.

If you still remember the Nescafe commercial wherein guys are running around the corridor and eagerly going downstairs with a loud shout of Walang Pasooook!!!, it’s a similar scenario back in my dorm days. Interns go wild and shout along the hallways waking all sleepy heads and spreading the good news that classes are suspended. But we are only recipient of the good news. Thanks to our female counterparts in the ladies dorm, they unfailingly update us if classes are suspended during stormy days in Baguio (the dean of students affairs is in charge in announcing cancellation of classes and he used to live in the ladies dorm as director).

Men’s Dorm: Hi Beh gud am gising ka na?  Me pasok ba?

Ladies’Dorm: Hi Beh gud am oo gising na ako. Wala pa announcement si dean eh.

Men’s Dorm: Text mo ko ha pag walang pasok. Lab u!

(after ilang minutes…)

Ladies’ Dorm: Tulog ka pa beh…declared na ni dean walang pasok! Lab u din!

Hindi na nagtext back si Men’s Dorm.

Men’s Dorm: Hi Angel slip pa u. walang pasok declared na. lab u!

Lady outside Ladies Dorm: Talaga? Sure ka? Lab din u!

Men’s Dorm: Oo sinabi ng friend ko sa Ladies Dorm.

(The Other Woman- Dorm Days Version)

Actually I miss this kind of moment and not the conversation above, the days when classes are suspended. Good thing my memory still serves me well. I can still picture out our breakfast when classes are suspended. Walang pasok means longer time to sleep and late breakfast for all of us. No breakfast will be served beyond 8 o’clock, so when 7:50 strikes, that’s the time we all go down to Mess Hall for our breakfast (syempre sinulit bawat minuto ng pagtulog). During those times, we bring with us our mugs and utensils as we go down the Mess Hall. Almost all of us are singkit looking with our eyes half opened with some morning glory (muta) on our chinky eyes. We also look like K-pop stars with our hairs pointing at different direction sans hair wax (talagang bagong gising ang itsura).  Wearing our sweatshirts, pajamas or jogging pants (wearing shorts and shortsleeves are not allowed during mealtime eh) disiplinado pa rin kami to fall in line for our food.  We call it “Blockbuster sa Mess Hall” (parang premiere night lang ng movie ni John Llyod) because of the long queue for our food served in cold silver platter.

After breakfast kanya-kanyang trip na. Interns room hop from one room to another planning for the next best thing to do. Based on the survey conducted here are top five things to do when classes are suspended:

1. Counter Strike- Dota was not yet in the picture during our time.
2. DVD Marathon- Do you still remember burning multiple CD for a season of Smallville?
3. Sound trip- Nothing beats our reliable hangout barkada- Guitar!
4. Matulog at matulog pa ng matulog – no need to explain. This is self explanatory.

And finally joining the list is….

1. Maglaba- I don’t know pero even on rainy days I see interns wash their clothes sa CR.

Interns tend to get bored quickly, after doing the list above, right after eating lunch, mabibigla ka na long some interns changed their outfit to jackets, shorts, and slippers and go out the dorm amid the strong winds and heavy rains. I am one of these guys who goes out. Even if it is raining cats and dogs outside, lakwatsa pa rin without our umbrellas. Naliligo kami sa ulan. We enjoy getting wet under the rain. Our destination most often back then is Centermall but when SM Baguio opened, no one cares to drop by Centermall.

I still can’t forget one of our visits in Centermall when we are soaking wet, we still decided to watch a movie (lakas trip lang). Good thing mabait yung theatre attendant and she allowed us to enter the movie house and enjoy watching Evolution with our A&W burgers and floats! After the movie, we go back rushing our way back to dorm (giniginaw na kasi sa lamig).

Back inside the dorm we just grabbed our towels in our respective rooms and head straight for shower. After having ice-cold shower… mainit na pancit canton awaits our cold death-hungry (patay-gutom) tummies!

Indeed there is euphoria of cancelled class in the dorm.

 

Coffeeness

This week is my third week in the new company. New company means new people surrounding me and a brand new environment. Every new in our life is twined with the word adjustment. As of date, I could say I am still on adjusting period- and I am enjoying each day.

Physically speaking, the new office is beyond comparable to my previous one. My previous company just started more than a year ago so all things including the most trivial facility (gaya ng table? lolz) are brand new. Name the thing you see in a typical office and it is new. I admit medyo namimiss ko rin ang kagarbo at mga bagong gamit sa dati kong company. I miss the pantry (yun talaga ang namiss eh noh)! I also miss the two-monitor desktop and softness of the keyboard. I also miss the “ergonometric “ (pardon for the spelling if mali) chair and the large view of the production area. Isama mo na rin ang mga  vendo machines, the free ice tea, lemonade and syempre ang free coffee.

However beyond physical which my naked eyes could see, I treasure naman the intangibles(hmm intangibles talaga) my new office offers. For me it’s still priceless to work in a place where I could be me; around the people who just let me do my task. I also miss the saktong timpla ng camaraderie- not too close to one another but at the same time not too snobbish with one another. Maybe mali ako on this people-related aspect kasi nga like I said earlier I am still on adjusting period. Every day, ginagamay ko pa ang ugali ng bawat isa. Until know I still have some names which I don’t memorize yet. But their faces are now vivid. I can recognize now who’s who when I walked along the lobby or while riding the elevator.

While I miss the pantry of my previous office and the liberty from productivity measurement (yeah!), I couldn’t help myself to crave for the free coffee during the afternoon. Nasanay kasi ako every time I feel sleepy, I walk straight to the pantry and press the button for a hot cup of coffee. Before I sip my coffee, it becomes a habit of mine to smell the aroma of my coffee (hmmm parang adik lang).

Back to present, sira kasi ang coffee machine (hindi sya vendo) sa floor namin, kaya back to timpla mode lahat ng gusting magkape (so primitive hahaha joke lang nadala lang ng commercial ng suka  lol).

Unfortunately, I am one of those coffee drinkers na hindi makuha ang tamang timpla ng kape. Hindi ko makuha ang timplang gusto ko. Hmmm paanu nga ba yung timpla ko, hmmm ganito karaming kape; hmmm ganito karaming teaspoon of creamer and sugar; and a little budbod of cinnamon powder (sorry nadala lang ulit ng commercial).

Hindi ko masabi sa sarili kong, “Kuha mo ha!”sabay ngiti.

Eh sakto one day, bigla sumakit tyan ko. I badly needed to go to CR just to ease the pain and para sumigaw ng  SUCCESSFUL! I don’t want to make “pupu” sa CR sa floor namin. Ayaw ko kasing me makakita sa akin o di kaya maksalubong sa CR at malalamang pupupu ako (Paumanhin pu sa mga kumakain pu). So what I did is I went down to the other floor. To cut the story short I washed my hands (wink wink).

Then as I walked out of the CR, I took a slight glance over the pantry and I couldn’t believe sa nakita ko- ISANG COFEEE MACHINE and wait here it comes……GUMAGANA!!!

Lumaki ang singkit kong mga mata! Finally hindi na ako magtitiis sa three-in-one, sa green tea na sinasawsaw lang sa mainit na tubig (uy pahealthy effect) at sa milk tea. Kaya as I go back to my area, I was no longer thinking about the flowchart I was reading. I was already thinking on how to go down tomorrow to the other floor just to get my precious cup of coffee. Hussle naman if iaakyat ko pa ang red mug from the other floor (sabihin pa nila nangunguha ako ng mug ng ibang floor).

Alam ko na… ittransfer ko na lang sa covered mug ko.

Kaya kanina… I went down to get my first cup of coffee. Then I transferred it to my mug. When I went back to my area, I finally sipped my very first precious coffee na hindi three-in-one.

 

 

“Iba talaga ang timpla ng dinugas na kape!!!!”

 

Back at Home

I don’t know what happened but my dotcom was suspended since last Friday. I was thinking for any reason why they suspended my blog but I couldn’t figure out any. Maybe it’s God’s way to inform me to stop living in the world of internet this Holy Week and be “holy” at least for the remainder of the week. So I let it passed.

Yesterday, I checked again my blog and it was still suspended (hmmm 2 days na di na to normal). I checked the other dot com of bloggers whom I know and boom it was not me alone. Even their blogs were suspended! Chaos it may seems but still I let it passed. Since I am not that techy-kind-of-guy wala ako alam to troubleshoot this case. So I decided to contact the blogger who made my dot com but before I could send a message in FB, someone already informed her about what happened. I decided not to send the message. I let it passed once again. One complainant is enough to be alarmed. Besides wala pa naman ako iboblog with sense.

Easter Sunday arrived and still my dot com is not yet working. One of the avid readers (ehem meron pala? lolz) asked me what happened bakit daw di maacess ang blog ko. Syempre kasi avid reader sya, I replied and telling that my blog is suspended for unknown reason ang blog ko (wholesome naman ang blog ko bakit kaya?).

Sa kagustuhang magblog kasi Easter Sunday, I opened my old WordPress account, the original dormboy blog. I guess sa sobrang kagustuhan to write something, even the root of my blogging history even brought out today. And then memories began to flashback. I remember the days when I was still struggling in world of blogs. Parang super light and kakengkoyan lang mga laman ng blog kong luma. Nothing serious enough to bleed one’s eyes, nose, and ears. Nakakamiss na rin actually magsulat ng walang sense (lolz!) yung tipong di ka seryoso pero me lesson pala ang laman ng nasulat mo.

Who will ever thought, that I will go back from where I started. For uncertain reason kasi, why o why did I still choose to avail a dotcom before (wala lang para maging “cool” at me kunting “angas” lang). Now that my precious dotcom is gone (temporary or not) it feels good that my ever reliable old WordPress blog is still alive and kicking. Akala ko tapos na ang career at kiliting dumadaloy sa pagsusulat ko. It feels good actually to have something which is always available eventhough being take for granted. Pero kung sa tao yan, it hurts to be taken for granted. Good thing my old account doesn’t have any feeling unlike a homo sapien for sure it’s a messy scene. I know it’s not appropriate to view it, having a spare one while enjoying the thing that gives you pleasure and happiness. Parang ganito lang gusto ko sabihin, dahil sa kasiyahan sa dot com ko, I took for granted or worst abandoned my old blog.

And now, heto ako muling bumabalik sa pinanggalingan ko. Here I am making a McArthur act, “I shall return” to where I started. It feels good actually to be back (wheh di nga!). Parang grand homecoming to my old home. Parang nag-abroad lang at muling nagbabalik sa tinubuang lupa. To be honest it’s really nice to be back (oo na kulet!).

So on Easter Sunday, my old blog also resurrected to life again. Muling nagbabalik sa sirkulasyon ang blog kong halos magsara na ng tuluyan. Kunting ayus pa at muling magiging ok ulit ang original blog ko.

So here I am, Dorm Boy, going back to http://dormboy.wordpress.com.

A new beginning.

A brand new start.

Ang nagbabalik,
DB