Why Bother?

Because right now, there is  someone

 

out there with

 

a wound      in the exact shape

 

       of your words.

 

-- Sean Thomas Dougherty

More is Less and Less is More

Get stressed more by working a thankless job and get stressed less about perpetual stupidity.

Add lactase to milk and it gets easier to break down (see lactose-free milk).

When participating in discussions, I am still getting confused as to whether to keep it simple and just call milk as milk or to add lactase to make it easier for the lactose-intolerant. Maybe I should let chance do its thing and let people shit themselves empty and just grin smugly in a corner and watch the world burn itself.

Out in the Cold III

 

Out in the Cold II

After a good sleep I was able to reflect further on my previous post with more clarity.

It seems that I have been directing my energy on something that I, as one 'irrelevant' (see post script on previous post) person, cannot change. I may have been focusing too much on furthering my knowledge on things that nobody would ever find useful. I have had so much free time that I have delved into rabbit holes and the profound, while the rest of the world has been too busy keeping up with life.

Thus, I have concluded that I have to keep busy by redirecting my energy into something that would allow me to reap monetary rewards. In layman's terms: work an unfulfilling job to make ends meet and get so mythologically tired that I wouldn't have enough energy to spend my leisure time on learning more nor to actually give a fuck about any form of awareness and correctness. I guess this is what normal people do.

So, I guess I will either try this approach or the idea from the former post.

Out in the Cold

Today's post would be like a journal entry. It will be filled with rants and personal thoughts. If you are uncomfortable with such, leave. You have been warned.

This trigger came about when I was invited to attend a small reunion with my cousins (to be hosted at my aunt's home). I felt terrified and am having second thoughts about confirming my attendance.

Background:

As a young student, I have been considered as weird by my peers. I always had an interest for things that a 'normal' person would not care for.

Come high school, I was still considered weird and geeky when I had to discuss the idea of nuclear fusion and fission in front of the class. I mean, the diagram was on the goddamned manila paper and I believe that I have explained the lesson in the simplest way possible. Nobody in the class seemed to appreciate, care, understand, nor learn save for the teacher. And yes, my classmates actually commented that I was weird after the presentation and the teacher had to tell them that the presentation was simple and on point.

A few weeks back, one of my best buds unceremoniously left one of our chat groups on Facebook. The reason was that he considered my commentary as 'toxic' whereas I was merely jesting to get a different view. Again, nobody commented, nobody backed me up, and nobody seemed to care.

Last month, I was in the presence of my cousins and they were discussing differences between generations. I chimed in with a bits of information and was immediately ridiculed as inebriated even though none of us had consumed any amount of alcohol.

I always thought that conversations with friends and family were safe spaces. It turns out that they are the most traumatic. I couldn't have cared less if such comments came from people that I do not know nor interact with, but to get these comments from people who 'know you' just hits different.

As a result, I have skipped this year's Christmas party with my friends out of fear of being ridiculed again. I cannot seem to contribute anything of substance to 'normal' conversations. I'm turning 40 next year and am genuinely concerned about how we do our reunions. It would be the same formula for every year. Food and alcohol coupled with redundant stories from the yesteryears.

I am a creature of habit. I love repetitions and routine, it makes life much simpler and efficient. However, I feel that my mind may start to rot too. I have very little to offer to conversations that stem from a TikTok video. Such are meant for 12-year-olds, not grown men. I cannot do this for the next 10 years. No progression. --No discussions about politics, history, culture, arts, science, philosophy, ideas, etc.

As mentioned in the previous post, I am not at all intelligent. But I fear that a lot more people out there are dumber. I have never paid much attention in school like a normal human being but why I am being dismissed as weird or drunk?

It may be that at my age, I am looking to make a positive impact on the few people that I know or maybe leave a good legacy. I often wonder if I should let my child be ignorant and blissful or teach her to use at least two brain cells and suffer in a world simpletons.

A good conversation with a friend about this topic ultimately ended with me having to adjust and 'blend in' with people. Cause it is the one who is different that gets left out in the cold.

PS: This sounds like a lot of work. And I find myself asking 'is it worth all the effort' to become socially acceptable? Maybe so... Cause if I am not, there may come a time that nobody would testify that I am 'normal' and I might end up in jail or a mental facility. Maybe I just have to realize that it isn't my duty to spread knowledge as it is deemed to be unsolicited advice. People nowadays are so confused between relevance and facts. Relevance in today's world means the number of engagements on a certain topic but it doesn't necessarily have to be factual or significant (see: social media personalities and the shit that they do).

TNVS v Traditional Transportation

It is nice to be back to blogging!

Here are a couple of reasons why I have decided to come back:

1. This blog is secluded from the rest of social media. I can write my thoughts here without getting too much attention online and I can blog in peace without receiving threats and comments about political correctness. It also filters out people who are only interested in getting misguided information from popular social media platforms.
2. I do not vlog because the camera has a knack for capturing the most unflattering angles of my face.

Without further ado, let's get rolling!

There have been a lot of talks and videos circulating online about the disputes between TNVS and tricycle drivers and there's one thing that the people are not grasping --These people live in parallel universes.

One universe is where all people exist, and one is the Tricycle Universe.

For the middle-working-class (TNVS and their customers), tricycles are a nuisance on the road. They charge more, break traffic rules, and scratch their heads too often during accidents.

In the Tricycle Universe however, all the riding public and even the government have to conform to their sub-par service and demands. The TNVS service simply does not exist in their world and they have no way of understanding its workings. They never have invested in one, never operated one, and never rode one. These people are stuck in the outdated mindset of what a service and competition should be.

1. Service is simply transporting the customer from Point A to Point B. No value whatsoever added, no proper change needs to be provided.

2. Competition. Hmm, I've fucked up in writing. Competition does not exist in their world.

Also, one's budget does not exist in their world. They fail to understand that the people who avail of their service receive a fixed income. The working class need to show up for work on time, grind all day, and wait for their salary that only comes twice in a month. If they are not provided the correct change after the ride, their budget takes a hit. It isn't a just a measly five or ten pesos to them. While trike drivers never need to come to work on time and never need to settle on a fixed income. They can grind and make more money depending on the hours that they wish to work during the day.

Competition. Somebody is already selling fishball in this one spot, then a 'competitor' comes later and sells siomai. The fishball vendor goes berserk as he sees the siomai vendor as competition. Same industry, food, yes. Same product? No. People may choose siomai during the times that they have enough money --or maybe just opt for a better product.

The government of course, continue to support these tricycle drivers because they are the masses. The votes to rise and stay in power come from them. In truth, there is no right or wrong. Just constraints and perspectives in a unique environment.

Tricycle drivers have a different view on things --but not because they lack education. They are stuck in a poor mindset.

Education does not necessarily eradicate poor mindset, but it can be an avenue for capitalists to keep the ignorant masses fed with propaganda and remain in the quagmire. In school, we were taught to honor and preserve our distinct culture. Bahay Kubos, Jeepneys, and Tricycles are icons of our esteemed culture are they not? These things are exactly the reason why we are stuck in the poor mindset. Nobody seems to want 'more' and 'better'. We settle for inferior/outdated ideas and practices. We look up to first world cities and countries but do not demand for innovation and betterment nor do we want to sacrifice or be inconvenienced on the way to 'progress'. Would these cities/countries have reached such potential if the masses were naysayers or if their leader did not push for such changes?

Anyway, that's all for now.

Bonus round below ↓

For the newcomers, let me state that I do not see myself as intelligent, just narcissistic. However, that does not scare me. What scares me is that, dumb as I am, there are dumber people out there.

Here's an example: People are irritated with Rendon Labrador as he is a smug know-it-all whose content is about saying people are wrong and dumb. The same people are heartily entertained with the Indian guy who scours the internet for street food preparation videos and act disgusted as he views them. Was he expecting these people to have the same equipment as 5 Star Michelin restaurants? Expecting a French/Italian gourmet while on a hike? That's just lazy content.

Jeepney Phaseout

 

 

I remember having to pay FULL FARE for sitting HALF my ass --only to arrive at work late because the accursed half-assed-poor-excuse-for-a-vehicle had to stop at every turn and gas up with a measly 100 pesos at the very last minute. We Pinoys automatically reject the idea of improvements because we were taught that these death traps are a vital part of our culture and identity --something to be valued and preserved. We are stuck in this quagmire because we do not want to be inconvenienced with subway and/or bus terminal construction and stops. Yet, we demand for improvements/solutions but no one is willing to sacrifice --it doesn't GET ANY MORE PINOY THAN THAT. Tagalugin ko, ha? Anti-poor daw ang modernization, PAHIRAP sa MAHIRAP. Hindi ba pagpapahirap sa mahirap ang ginawagawa ng mga 'Bayani nating Jeepney Drivers'? Magbabayad ka nang tama pero kalahati lang ng ibinayad mo ang nakukuha mong serbisyo? Yung ipagsisiksikan kayo hanggang lahat kayo ay hirap nang huminga? Oo, mahirap ang buhay pero hindi ito nangngangahulugan na dapat mo rin pahirapan ang kapwa PINOY mo. PUTANG INA E!