Malapit na akong magresign sa aking trabaho... malapit na kasi akong umuwi. Marami akong plano para sa mga susunod na linggo.. pero hindi ko ito magagawa until magawa ko na ang kauna-unahan kong dapat gawin: Ang mag-resign.

Natatakot ako na magresign. Di ko alam kung ano ang gagawin ko. Wala kasing nakaka-alam sa gagawin ko. Ayoko rin na pagbigay ko ng 2-weeks notice ay tanungin nila ako kung bakit. Hindi ko rin alam kung ano ang sasabihin ko kung bakit ako magreresign. Ang alam ko lang dapat na akong magresign dahil may ticket na ako pauwi.

Kawawa naman ako. What a dilemma. Ang masaklap pa ay bigayan ng bonus sa June. Malaki ang kinita ng Medtronic ngayong fiscal year na ito. Kaya inaasahan ng lahat na magkakaron ng malaking bonus. Sana matanggap ko rin yung akin kahit na resigned na ako.

Eto pa ang problema, pagkatapos kong magresign, ang pinakahuling tseke na matatanggap ko ay malamang makukuha ko pagdating ko na sa Pinas. At ang tseke na yun ay hindi agad mai-cacash sa Pinas. Isang buwan pa daw ang clearing nun. Haay.

Pero ang pinakaproblema ko talaga ay kung paano magpaalam sa mga kaibigan. Malamang sa hindi, hindi ko na makikita ang mga taong ito. Sana pwede akong magdala ng digicam para mapicturan ko sila. Remembrance, kumbaga. Haay. Ang hirap naman. Welcome po kayong magbigay ng advice....

I've been staying late for work for the past two weeks... since I'm soon quitting, might as well earn as much moolah as I can, right? Anyways, late nights make people think differently.. like people are on an overtime high. And here circulates the nicest stories you wouldn't otherwise hear about during regular work hours... because at night, the supervisors go home. As they say, when the cat is away, the mouse will play...

These are stories I overheard on overnight shifts I've worked from 10:00 p.m till midnight. Remember that my team mainly consists of Africans (from Liberia, Guyana, Kenya and Nigeria), Asians (Laos, Vietnam and me, Philippines) and one or two from White America. So cultures clash and well, it's a fascinating insight into different cultures when they start talking...

***
Bride Market. For the lonely people out there who can't find love and devotion through Match.com or some sleazy phone service, short of an arranged marriage, you can troop to Morocco's mountainside where you will find the Bride Market. Here you'll find different women all ready and rarin' to get hitched. But wait, there's a catch. You must do all you can to woo her. Once you've done that, you can go right ahead and get married...

In Kenya, a traditional wedding lasts for 2 days straight. First, the bride and groom celebrate with the Bride's family. There'll be dancing and singing.. and lots of food to keep you awake--for the next celebration with the Groom's side. Here, there's more singing, more dancing, more food and some consumation... Bride and Groom can't sleep for those two days because they host the celebrations, common hospitality, you know.

In the mountainous side of Laos live the Hmong people. The Hmongs have only 13 surnames between them and a person with the same surnames can't marry because they are technically family (even though they're really not). Traditionally, Hmongs marry early and sadly, by parental or "clan" agreement. Lucky for some, they've become a little bit more liberated that the arrangements are sometimes waived for the girl and boy to find somebody they truly like...

Liberia's marriage culture is quite like the American's. Guy asks girl if she wants to marry him. Girl pays guy's family some dowry and pays for the entire wedding. However, that's about the only thing she pays for. Because for the rest of the marriage, traditional Liberian men play the role of provider, not even wanting their wives to work. Of course, Liberian-Americans are now working but the guys still would rather not...

***
This is how I like to learn about cultures you know. I can read many history books and forget tomorrow what I just read. But when it's real people talking about themselves... it has more impact. I wish I were like Truman Capote though, with a 94% recall so I can tell more. But right now I'm groggy. I can't even recall the events of today. Sigh. Bah-humbug.

"525,600 minutes... 525,000 moments so dear... How do you measure a year in the life?"

Homosexuals, Coke, AIDS, death, life.. That's the world that the characters in Rent revolve in. Sometimes by choice, sometimes by chance, either way they are stuck and the dilemma is whether to go on or build a wall around one's self.

Based on Jonathan Larson's award-winning musical play, the movie version does *not* disappoint. From the opening sequence of Seasons of Love to the final scene, you will be hooked. Sure, it's a musical which may make people shy away from this movie, but the music and lyrics are great, if not downright poetic. It's a tribute to the MTV generation, more pop, less Broadway classic.

The actors who played the characters were the original cast members of the Broadway play-- save for Rosario Dawson (Mimi) and Tracie Thoms (Joanne). All are great singers and performers, although sometimes some get a little too theatrical-- as in the case with theater people performing on the big screen. I just love the voice of Jesse L. James (Collins),someone like him should be recording CDs, not chasing goons on Law and Order. :D

Chris Columbus did a fine job, although some scenes are a little too literal when it comes to the MTV concept. Most of Roger's songs for instance, are like music videos reminding me of MB20 and Bon Jovi... But hey, it's a rock opera. Take it or leave it.

If you're homophobic, insanely moralistic and think musicals are God's gift to corny men.. then don't watch it. You'll never see this movie's worth. But if you're all three but with a penchant for artistic appreciation, at least watch the opening sequence. If the song doesn't nudge you from your uptight a** then I'll conclude that you're deaf, asleep or half-dead.

This may be a bitter pill to swallow for some but Jonathan Larson's message is simple: Measure your life in love. All the other complications in life are just bubbles waiting to burst. Measure your life in love.