Because my memory has been less than spectacular, I need this blog to remember ……………….. things I did today. Or plan to do someday. Or want to remember one day.

Exactly a year ago, I found paradise in Batanes…

One of the locals I befriended there took me to this super secluded, uninhabited place shown above where not so many tourists get to see … I remember him dropping me off at a little patch of grass with an awesome panorama that commanded a 180-degree unobstructed view of the ocean and its roaring waves below … it was soooo beautiful that I felt like the queen of the sea just standing there, commanding the ocean below… (I guess it was the equivalent of how Jack felt when he exclaimed that he was the king of the universe on board the Titanic —or something to that effect, basta, u know what i mean okie? =])…

Anyhow, my local friend had to leave me there to get another friend, since we got there by riding a scooter and he couldn’t hitch both me and my friend at the same time …so, for about an hour there, I felt like the only person left in the universe without any shelter to run to should the rain fall, or with no defense to protect me should I get attacked by some wild animal…of course I had some great photo ops there but I felt so vulnerable and I remember feeling panicky when I saw my friend’s little scooter disappearing in the distance and then upon realizing that my cellphone did not have any signal at all… I remember the strong winds picking up and how I was scared that the winds would carry me off the cliffs and how I swear I could hear my own heart thumping loudly when it seemed that more than an hour had passed already and my friend/s hadn’t come back yet… there were no signs of human life anywhere within a 50-km radius there and the place was just so lonely, so beautiful and so peaceful at the same time…I think I found God in my extended moment of solitude there… Words just cannot express how breathtaking the scenery was and apparently, my photos just cannot do any justice to it either… my friend/s arrived a little before dusk and I swear that by that time, my whole body was so numb from the coldness and had they come later than they did, then I would have most likely gotten frozen to death by then…

Anyhow, I wish I could go back there again this year but this summer’s destination is Bora and the Apo Reef for some conservation projects… after that, there are so many other places to see… I haven’t been to Bohol or Sagada or Palawan so if my schedule between full-time work and doing my master’s project/thesis permits it, then those places should be next on my list… in the meantime, I’ll always be dreaming about returning to Batanes and hopefully I can go back again soon… 

Anyways, I hope everyone will have a happy summer and perhaps, we’ll see each other in Bora or the Apo Reef next month =) 

PS… I’m trying hard not to mind those annoying ads that Friendster decided to pop-up all over people’s blogs including mine =/  the one below is the ugliest one ever (free animated cursors or the next generation of IM Smileys?! Sheesh people!) …oh well…that’s what I get for free service…=/

Whee! =) Photos of Amina from that shoot I blogged about last last week are on today’s Philippine Star Lifestyle Allure Section =)

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Check out the rest of the photos here =)

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Also, do grab a copy of this month’s PeopleAsia Magazine Sports Issue and check out their article on Tyson Sy with photos by me =)

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…In other non-photography related news… I have 8 friggin’ super over-overdue term papers plus an environmental risk assessment of a petroleum products plant I have to get over with really really soon [like this week!? How realistic can I get?!] … Whoever said that taking up gradschool while procrastinating and being preoccupied with other things was ever going to work out for me?! Can I just rant here?! Wish me luck =/ …. Ok, ok…back to schoolwork now =/

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BTW…i know it’s a pretty late post but do attend The Heights’ Art Talks event on basic photography this coming Friday, March 3, at the Berchmans AV room (that’s tomorrow pala =). I’ll be one of the speakers and I’ve been tasked to give a short talk on basic composition and digital darkroom techniques (in other words, adobo putoshop … ewan ko kung bat ako nasama dito… *shrugs*… Anyhow, it starts at 4pm and ends around 630ish… Here’s the poster, see you there!  =)

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ps: Happy Birthday to the best news and public affairs website in this country … I can’t help but beam with pride coz I was once a part of this great company for 2 years =)  … Check out their bday supplement @ INQ7 turns 5! =)

Ok friends….if you’re from Ateneo and would like to learn something new, then why not drop by and show me some lovin’ support:

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Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): A Waste Reduction Strategy to Promote Clean Production and Pollution Prevention

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…as part of the requirements to fulfill my quest for higher learning, I’ll be presenting a seminar on the above mentioned topic on Monday, March 6, 6-7pm at the Lecture Hall 3 (SEC-C 201)… In a nutshell, EPR is a product and waste management system in which manufacturers – not the consumer or the government – take responsibility for the environmentally safe management of their product when it is no longer useful or discarded. In other words, a company must be concerned not only with making and selling the product, but also with what will become of the product at the end of its useful life… This would prevent packaging materials (plastic bags, shampoo sachets, styro scraps and other schtuff) from clogging our drainage systems when they are disposed away without thought, or hazardous materials from leaking into our soils and water systems when old computers and other electronic waste are junked into the garbage dumps when they become obsolete…Since companies are so aggressive in developing and selling their products, it should only be fair that they would also take the same stance in implementing environmentally sound policies that would prevent the further degradation of the environment and human health…

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Oh Shiyet… I’m just rambling on here… basta, wish me luck and see you guys there =)

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If you have the chance, do check out my other classmates’ seminars this coming Saturday, March 4:

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Student’s Area, Manila Observatory
10AM - 11AM - Life Cycle Analysis as a Tool for Decision Making

11AM – 12 noon - How is our current toxic and hazardous waste disposed?

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Lecture Hall 3 (SEC-C 201)

1PM - 2PM - Role of Microorganisms in Soil Productivity

2PM - 3PM - Mangrove Forest Rehabilitation by a Private University

3PM - 4PM - Cordillera Eco-Cultural Trail

March 9 – 6PM-7PM - Environmental Benefits of Bus Rapid Transit System

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