Finally, with Aling Maring (our Mon & Fri housekeeper) back in action I don't have to worry about laundry. I'm good with cooking, dish washing, groceries and general cleaning but when it comes to washing and ironing clothes, I have neither the talent nor incliniation. The amount of time it consumes annoys me.

I also had a sit-down with my parents to determine my responsibilities to the household. We came to a pretty rough compromise but it looks like it'll work out. As much as I love my family, they eat up way too much of my time. And so the saying goes, "You've got to draw the line somewhere."

As I have done countless times before, I wrote down a list of responsibilities and a rough day-schedule that ought to meet my needs. Although I have a very bad track record when it comes to implementing these lists, there's still a chance that it'll work. One chance out of a million is still better than nothing, right?

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Last year I did a favor for one of my old crew. I babysat his kid while he and his wife worked shifts at a restaurant down the street.

His name was Benedict Thomas, but we called him Bito. Nice kid, always polite, loves his books.

Also, he was a natural born lady-killer; light skin, pink lips and light brown eyes that drove the girls crazy.

'Course, you couldn't tell, what with that big old breathing mask strapped to his face. Life's a bitch when your lungs are shot.

One of the bitches of advanced asthma is that talking's a chore. Bito could only get six or seven words out before he ran out of breath. The plus side? When he spoke, everyone listened.

I was sitting by his bed, recounting one of my misadventures when he took the deep wheezing breath that meant he was going to say something. I shut up immediately.

"Tito?"

"Yo. May kelangan ka."

"Mama and papa look tired."

"Well... double shifts sila. Nagiipon sila for your new wheelchair."

"Ayoko na mag-work sila ng sobra. Di ko kelangan ng wheelchair."

"Hmmm? Pag meron ka nun makakalabas ka na ng bahay. Bakit ayaw mo?"

"...Basta."

"Maliban sa wheelchair, what do you want?"





"... to be dead."

- - -

I got a call this afternoon.

For the first time in fourteen years, Bito's parents had to leave him alone in the house. Walang mahanap na magbabantay. They were only gone for an hour.

When they got home, the alarms on the life support systems were going crazy.

The respirator was unplugged.

Bito had pulled it.

I think the stress of my daily life is getting to me. Sleep is no longer restful because its filled with my strange and twisted dreams.

There's one in particular where I'm being profiled by a psychiatrist. The thing is, I see it from the psychiatrist's POV. This one really creeps me out, especially because it's so long. I haven't even finished documenting it. Click the link in case you want to (read more)

My blog template is pretty much finished. After four days of intermittent work I've finally got something that looks good and is more or less safe with any browser.

Thinks that I need to do

• fix the javascript so it doesn't cause an ActiveX error when loading the page in IE


• Fix the sidebar so that it loads to full height on IE


• Fix the "speech bubble" for title entries so it doesn't get wrecked when the line wraps


• Find a better way to handle the header navigation. It currently just pops up and down but it does this annoying twitch when you move your cursor just a little bit. Pft.


• Think of a decent "About Me" description (that text above the tagboard). The one I've got now is so cheesy.

I owe a lot of my site's design to the following online resources
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Ain't that a kick in the head. We're playing at this year's Fete de la Musique to be held at The Mall of Asia tomorrow! That's June 30 for you "what-day-again?" people.

Come on and watch, if not for us, then for the event. Support the pinoy music scene. There's a lot of talent out there just waiting to be heard.

I know a lot of people diss the Fete for various reasons. Malayo, mainit, magulo, maraming jologs , puro mainstream (uso kasi ang indie), etc, etc. Personally, I think the Fete has a lot of potential. Hindi lang nasusuportahan ng maayos. Kayo, what do you guys think of the Fete?

Thanks to aie for finding the fete sched. Here's the list of bands and times for the Main Stage (where we'll be playing)

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With this new layout, links are smack dab in the center of the page. This is a big plus for other bloggers, especially those who love seeing their site traffic jump up. But just because you have a blog doesn't mean you want the whole world to see it.

Somebody (you know who you are!) requested not to be linked and I have promptly removed them from the list. Anybody else who wants to be taken off just leave a tag, comment on this entry or PM me. I respect your privacy.

On the other hand, if you WANT to be linked, go ahead and say so. Although the sidebar is reserved for blogs I often visit, I'll still put up a bigger link roll for all my buds. Adding your link will net you a few refer-hits and help me maximize my blog space, too.

- - -

We'll be playing at the Fete later. Just thinking about it gets me all jumpy. But first, I've got to finish some copywriting assignments and then take a nap. I ought to be up by five, be at Louie's by six and at the Mall of Asia by eight. After that, it's a four hour wait 'til our set.

Four hours in a mall... I'm bringing an extra shirt, a bottle of water and a sandwich. Most of all, I will NOT bring money. I must curb my spending. Absolutely no cash in the wallet!

...Well, maybe just a little.

You know... in case we need to pay for parking... or the car breaks down and I have to commute home... or Martin gets kidnapped and we have to pay a couple of hundred bucks for ransom... that sort of thing.

Lord, bless my budget. Please.