Wasted

In the darkness, the girl stands sobbing. Her immaculate face is drenched in her own tears. She looks haggard, like she hasn’t gotten rest in days. On her nightstand, three or four handkerchiefs lay dripping wet. The depression has taken its toll. She is tired and has nearly lost her will to live. Around her [...]

Soaring

I live in a small city in Southern Mindanao, Philippines. Small is the operative word there, rather than city. We have a small, sub-par mall. Small communities. Narrow roads. Only one or two social watering holes.
And, a small airport.
Maybe you’re wondering why I placed that last sentence in a paragraph by itself. Since my childhood, [...]

Risks

I am, as always, confined to the four corners of my painfully yellow room, again feeling the need to write. It could be the boredom of summer afternoons like this, or perhaps instinct — whatever it is, it’s telling me to write.
I write for many reasons — to while away the hours, to keep my [...]

The Novelist Path

This was published on IndieBloggers on March 31, 2008.
For the gazillionth time since my dad bought me this
laptop, I exit Microsoft Word with dissatisfaction. I ponder, for a
moment, on the possibility of scrapping this prospective novel and
working on another one, with a different plot. The story, entitled
One More Time, is probably my tenth one. [...]

Fixing things

The Philippine political landscape has recently become tumultuous, thanks to the infamous ZTE National Broadband Network deal, which the country forged with China. The revelation of the project’s anomalies by Rodolfo Lozada has shaken the Arroyo government. The people have seemingly lost trust in President Gloria Arroyo, and only her connections to influential entities is [...]

Blogging for Democracy: Why Aren’t Pinoys Into It?

The Philippines is arguably the most democratic country in Asia — perhaps in the world. Since time immemorial, Filipinos have never found it difficult to express their thoughts freely. This was evident during Ferdinand Marcos’ dark two-decade regime, when countless were arrested for publishing material contrary to the philosophies of the dictatorship. Our love for [...]