j a n s e n. i. s. m.

Nobody likes to be sick
or spend some time at a hospital. As kids, we would always give our parents a
hard time in taking that raspberry-flavored cough syrup. We would fear and
oftentimes end up crying whenever we need an injection. And we hate visits to
the doctor, especially having to wait long before we get our turn. As we become
grown-ups, our worries go beyond injections, bad-tasting medicines and doctor
visits… we become more conscious with our health yet we are never excused from
getting sick and spending time at a hospital…

March 19, early Monday
morning, I got up having a headache from a bad chain of dreams and fever due to
my cough & cold that have gotten worse since Saturday evening. I knew I
wasn’t feeling well and despite mom having prepared my breakfast already, I
opted to return to bed and not to go to work. When I finally got up to eat some
breakfast it wasn’t long till I felt nauseous and soon my vision faded to blackout
for a minute. I thought I was going blind, but soon the images went clear and
after which was extremely perspiring like I’ve just run a mile. With mom, kuya, and my trusty health card, I was
brought to the doctor for a check-up. Doctor said it was probably just because
I abruptly got up from lying on bed that caused the momentary blackout. I was
given a new set of medicines and after which, it was decided that I just take
my rest at home. After almost 8 hours only, I experienced the brief vision
blackout again. We returned to the hospital I was taken that morning. My blood
pressure went low while my body temperature was high. Despite no obvious and
serious life threat, I decided to be confined to have a better rest and medical
attention in my own private room at the hospital.

After 3 days and 2
nights (though officially the bill stated only two days) in room 2, four bags
of dextrose and about a dozen of temperature and BP checks by different nurses,
I was discharged and I realized many things out of this experience. From simple
ones like how hospital food are well-prepared and actually tasted good… how the
dextrose attached on my left hand could be uncomfortable after a few days… to
deeper matters, like how a mother selflessly attends to their sick children
even if they’ve grown adults now… and how relatives are there to give emotional
support when one is sick while some others we expect aren’t. Most importantly,
I realized that this hospital experience is good but I don’t think it’s one of
those experiences I’d like to go through all over again, because as anyone
would want, I’d rather stay healthy.

As cliché as it sounds,
health is really wealth. Nobody likes to be sick or spend some time at a
hospital but even if we unconsciously try to avoid these from happening… one
time or many times in our lives we will experience them and will teach us a
lesson or two about our lives.

Nobody likes to be sick
or spend some time at a hospital. As kids, we would always give our parents a
hard time in taking that raspberry-flavored cough syrup. We would fear and
oftentimes end up crying whenever we need an injection. And we hate visits to
the doctor, especially having to wait long before we get our turn. As we become
grown-ups, our worries go beyond injections, bad-tasting medicines and doctor
visits… we become more conscious with our health yet we are never excused from
getting sick and spending time at a hospital…

March 19, early Monday
morning, I got up having a headache from a bad chain of dreams and fever due to
my cough & cold that have gotten worse since Saturday evening. I knew I
wasn’t feeling well and despite mom having prepared my breakfast already, I
opted to return to bed and not to go to work. When I finally got up to eat some
breakfast it wasn’t long till I felt nauseous and soon my vision faded to blackout
for a minute. I thought I was going blind, but soon the images went clear and
after which was extremely perspiring like I’ve just run a mile. With mom, kuya, and my trusty health card, I was
brought to the doctor for a check-up. Doctor said it was probably just because
I abruptly got up from lying on bed that caused the momentary blackout. I was
given a new set of medicines and after which, it was decided that I just take
my rest at home. After almost 8 hours only, I experienced the brief vision
blackout again. We returned to the hospital I was taken that morning. My blood
pressure went low while my body temperature was high. Despite no obvious and
serious life threat, I decided to be confined to have a better rest and medical
attention in my own private room at the hospital.

After 3 days and 2
nights (though officially the bill stated only two days) in room 2, four bags
of dextrose and about a dozen of temperature and BP checks by different nurses,
I was discharged and I realized many things out of this experience. From simple
ones like how hospital food are well-prepared and actually tasted good… how the
dextrose attached on my left hand could be uncomfortable after a few days… to
deeper matters, like how a mother selflessly attends to their sick children
even if they’ve grown adults now… and how relatives are there to give emotional
support when one is sick while some others we expect aren’t. Most importantly,
I realized that this hospital experience is good but I don’t think it’s one of
those experiences I’d like to go through all over again, because as anyone
would want, I’d rather stay healthy.

As cliché as it sounds,
health is really wealth. Nobody likes to be sick or spend some time at a
hospital but even if we unconsciously try to avoid these from happening… one
time or many times in our lives we will experience them and will teach us a
lesson or two about our lives.

I
was back hanging out in By the Bay at Island Cove with a different set of
college friends last night. Judie, Anne, Jhing, Sheena, Rodel (who introduce us
to this beach-themed bar) and I had our post-Valentine’s celebration there a
few weeks ago.This time, interestingly, only Rodel and I are the ones who have
been there before while Jhoy, Wewe, Gladys and Jane were able to join us to
commemorate the first year anniversary of our college graduation.

It
turned out to be the official press conference for Jane’s recent personal trial
as well. Things were revealed last night, and somehow half of the mystery that
surrounded the reason for this sad happening has been unveiled.

Personally,
the second visit in By the Bay wasn’t as good as my first time. I wasn’t
feeling physically well since that morning, and it was extremely breezy when we
were there that it aggravated my health condition. I didn’t enjoy the food too,
although we ordered the same as previous. The baked mussels, in particular I
think, triggered me to have a nasty vomit, and thank God I was able to make it
to the CR before I messed up and Rodel was there with me.

No
doubt, I was that night’s kill joy. I initially agreed to stay overnight at
Rodel’s place so that we friends can have more bonding time, but after that
nasty puke, I knew it would be best that I just go home.

Gladys
and I went on our respective houses while the four stayed for the night at
Rodel’s. I was feeling better when I got up this morning although I still have
such a bad hangover. I got a text message from Jane, telling me that they were
with ‘someone-I-would-like-to-see’ in the jeepney on their way to Malabon last
night. Talking about coincidence, if only I wasn’t feeling ill last night, I
would have gone with them to Rodel’ house as planned and had that chance in a
lifetime to see this person I have not seen for more than a year. I am having a
bit of regret, until I realized that this person might not be ready to see me
either. Bottom line is, it wasn’t just meant to be. 

03.05.07.I finally
purchased a Palm z22- not the most high-tech gadget out there and definitely an
inexpensive one but something I’ve always wanted to own.

In the past several
weeks, I’ve been contemplating much on what investment I’ll get in time before
coming bonus-a Sony Erricsson phone, an Ipod shuffle/nano, a Gameboy, a digital
camera or a PDA. The last I found most practical since I like doing secretarial
stuffs (setting dates, making to-do lists, writing notes) and for the simple
reason that I wanted to make my life more organized.

Practicality,
distinctiveness and budget were major players in my decision making. After
several googling for product information and user reviews for Palm z22,
realizing that I cannot afford the higher models (like the Palm Treo 680–which
was on ny Xmas wishlist) and finding out in www.complink.com.ph that its price
has been reduced by a thousand pesos, I finally bought it and I am now a few
thousands poorer .

I did make a review
of this gadget in a tech website; you may click on this link if you’re curious:

http://reviews.cnet.com/Palm_Z22/4852-3127_7-31546758.html?tag=srtdate&ord=creationDate+desc

03.05.07.I finally
purchased a Palm z22- not the most high-tech gadget out there and definitely an
inexpensive one but something I’ve always wanted to own.

In the past several
weeks, I’ve been contemplating much on what investment I’ll get in time before
coming bonus-a Sony Erricsson phone, an Ipod shuffle/nano, a Gameboy, a digital
camera or a PDA. The last I found most practical since I like doing secretarial
stuffs (setting dates, making to-do lists, writing notes) and for the simple
reason that I wanted to make my life more organized.

Practicality,
distinctiveness and budget were major players in my decision making. After
several googling for product information and user reviews for Palm z22,
realizing that I cannot afford the higher models (like the Palm Treo 680–which
was on ny Xmas wishlist) and finding out in www.complink.com.ph that its price
has been reduced by a thousand pesos, I finally bought it and I am now a few
thousands poorer .

I did make a review
of this gadget in a tech website; you may click on this link if you’re curious:

http://reviews.cnet.com/Palm_Z22/4852-3127_7-31546758.html?tag=srtdate&ord=creationDate+desc

BREAK
AGAIN

When two people in love break up and they’re
both your friends, which side do you take, the one who called for a break-up for
an undisclosed reason or the one who didn’t see a break-up coming?

The answer
would be very easy but I guess as a friend, you should know how to place yourself
in this kind of situation. A saying goes like ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’, but since the relationship is
already broken, ‘if it ain’t you who
broke it leave the fixing to the ones who caused it’. In the process, I
realized that a break-up is something personal, and something that shouldn’t be
pressured by people outside that broken relationship. None of those two people
owe their friends an explanation unless they want to. But what should be
expected from a concerned friend?

A friend enters the picture once there is a breakdown
and not during a break-up. A friend stays behind, not ahead and hopes that moving on
will come easy for everyone.