I'm currently in the process of getting lost. My dream used to be to become a teacher. While that's still possible, recent events have led me to rethink it all. The difficulty and even near-impossibility of circumstances have added up to it all. Some may argue it's simply giving up, but there are times when that's exactly what's needed.

So right now, even though teaching brought me joy, in all these months that I haven't done it, I've found joy in other things. And now that a new employment in the gaming industry looms over the horizon, as I now only await information on my schedule and when I start, my dreams have really started to shift.

I'm not really sure where I'm going right now. But one thing's for sure, music is coming back to haunt me. So, I'll try my hand at producing and licensing music, on the side as I maintain my full-time employment. I'll be publishing short samples of work I've been doing over the last few weeks.

I'm sorry, blog, that I haven't posted in a while. I really should've. A lot happened after I last posted, such as my quitting from my job of 1 year because there was no workload, trying to find a new job, Typhoon Ondoy (a.k.a. Ketsana) ravaging our home and the entire city, taking b-boying seriously, Christmas and New Year passing by, taking b-boying even more seriously, and a lot of self-improvement in terms of my discipline and personality. Not to mention, I lost a lot of weight since July, and I'm now only 25 lbs away from my ideal weight.

Sadly, I actually thought of abandoning you altogether. But I realize that this blog is one way for me to look back at my past. What experiences did I go through? What have I learned from them? What games have I played? Why did I like/not like them? I don't have many readers so I obviously don't do it for them.

Anyway, jumping forward, this blog is back, and I'll strive to be able to update it as regularly as possible.

I'm drawing again now, and I've set for myself a target of making one "page" of drawings everyday. This is to train me in discipline. So that means, even if I don't feel like it, I have to draw. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule, for example, days when I'm in a hectic schedule over one of my part-time jobs, other job hunts, etc. But still, I feel it'll be good training.

Here's a recent completed sketch:
I may consider coloring that someday. But for now I gotta keep working on my sketching. I take too long to draw stuff.

I'd just come home today from Hong Kong. After I got home, I took a nap, cuz I was lacking sleep. Went to sleep after midnight and had to wake up at 4 AM cuz of the flight back to Manila.

It was a great trip of firsts for me. My first time to ride a plane, first time to go to another country, first time to Hong Kong or any part of China, of course, and my first time to be a real tourist, rather than travelling with another purpose, like I'd always done, albeit only in the Philippines.

I made a lot of wonderful memories with my sister (her website). She was such a wonderful host and tour guide. Thanks to her, I have wonderful memories of not only Hong Kong, but my first trip to another country.

Anyway, on to the main topic of this post. I'll make a list of THE TOP 10 THINGS I'LL MISS ABOUT HONG KONG, with #1 being the best.

#10: The MTR
The MTR is very similar to the LRT2 here in Manila, but with significant differences. I'll miss the stations particularly, because the stations are very well organized. There's even glass and a door, to prevent people from accidentally falling or dropping things into the tracks. It also makes the whole thing very classy.

#9: Hong Kong Ocean Park
I enjoyed the HK Ocean Park a lot, but we went at an unfortunate time, where there was probably the most people since it's a holiday (for most of the world), so it was crowded and there were long lines for everything and almost no seats anywhere.

#8: Kowloon Park
Kowloon Park is such a beautiful place. They had interesting birds, ponds and plants, and a lot of places to take pictures, including a castle. Very refreshing, and you can spend an entire afternoon here just walking, jogging, or just sitting around for some fresh air. It's also a short walk away from the Avenue of Stars and the harbor.

#7: Mong Kok
Despite how I hate shopping in such crowded places. As a guy, I do my shopping differently anyway. But I did love the airsoft area. I got to buy a couple of things, including a German WWII hat (M43). :D Also, there was a boatload of stuff you don't see in the Philippines, which makes me wish it were that easy to get those things here...

#6: Walking Around the City
I walk a lot, and I like walking, but the Philippines has made it a barely enjoyable thing due to excessive heat and humidity, and pollution, danger, etc. But Hong Kong was very well suited for walking. People walk all the time around the city, and you can't blame them. It's a very wonderful experience, to be able to walk around a city and not worry about dying of heat stroke...

#5: The Bus and Traffic System
Seeing a wonderful traffic system where it barely ever congests, even at stoplights, where all the drivers and the pedestrians are disciplined: priceless... The busses are predictable and you know where they go, because the bus numbers are actually route numbers. So you can even choose which route you wanna go by. They will never pick up a passenger in the wrong bus stop or in the middle of the road, nor will they let anybody off anywhere but the correct bus stop. And most of the bus stops have bays, so the stopping or slowing busses do not usually disrupt traffic at all... It's so beautiful.

#4: The Octopus Card
The Octopus Card really makes life easier. I put mine in my wallet, and it felt so cool just passing my wallet over the sensors in the bus, MTR, and other places. I'll miss that feeling and the beep.

#3: Central/Hong Kong Station
The place called Central, a.k.a. Hong Kong Station, is one of the most important waypoints. You can get a bus to practically everywhere (I think) from here, and the MTR is also underneath this place. There's also a lot of shops, restaurants, etc., in the area. It's a very familiar-looking place now to me, due to the number of times we got a bus the MTR from there.

#2: The Cantonese Girls
A lot of pretty girls. A city teeming with them. Walking around, in the malls, on the transport systems, in tourist spots, restaurants, etc... Zettai Ryouiki and Meganekko prone, as well. The fashion sense, though clearly trend-based, is interesting yet not overboard, if you ask me. Very nice.

#1: The Weather/Temperature!
Yes, and a very clear NUMBER ONE THING I WILL MISS ABOUT HONG KONG is the weather! It's the spring time at the time of our visit, so it's very fresh, still cold but not bitterly so. And I'm sure it gets hot in the summer. But hot is not that big a problem in a place that isn't friggen humid. I can imagine people are still walking on the streets in the summer, appropriately dressed for the weather. Something completely unthinkable here in the Philippines unless you're already very dark-skinned and therefore protected from the sun (or otherwise protected from the sun). You also don't need air conditioning, unless you need it for heating...


All in all it was such a wonderful trip. I'll definitely try to come back ASAP. :)

I don't normally care about Valentine's Day, but since I've been actually dating since I started working here at Edulynx, it's become a bit of an excitement for me. I don't have a date yet, but I'm trying to interest a girl in particular.

And since I'm trying to save money, I've decided to just give out handmade cards instead of chocolates or flowers, to my friends and the girl(s?) I like. It's more personal, and it gives me a chance to use/practice one of my talents.

Connected to that poetic talent, I've also had a lot of practice this week with freestyle rapping. I'm nowhere near any good to be entertaining to listen to, but I'm getting faster at thinking of coherent words with a rhythm and rhyme haha.

There's a war going on in Gaza right now, between the IDF and the militants of Hamas. I won't go into details on this post, but maybe the next post. There's actually a lot to talk about with what CNN calls a crisis.

But more importantly for this post I started to realize just how close we are to what may be what the Bible was talking about in Ezekiel 38 and 39, and how much the world needs Jesus right now. I got into a discussion with my class yesterday and had the opportunity of sharing the essence of the Gospel. It was good, though I dunno if any of them believed what I said or just thought of it as the same mumbo jumbo they might hear at a Catholic mass.

Yesterday I was pretty excited about Jesus and stuff. Cuz I started looking around for more Jesus Muzik and I found a song by The Cross Movement called Off The Hook. As I was listening to this song in the car on the way to work I found myself unable to hold back my tears. By the middle of the second verse I was already sniffling. Cuz the lyrics of the song cut very deep and tell you in a figurative way exactly what the situation is for people.

Easily one of my favorite songs of all time, and definitely the song of the week for me.

Yes in only a few hours from the time of this writing, the new year will be in. This is the time when we look back at the great and wonderful things that happened in the past year so that all the lessons and goodness can be carried over into the new one.

The year 2008 was extremely busy for me, probably more so than any other year in my life so far. It was greatly educational, and I feel like I matured at least a few years with just the things I learned this year. Haha, maybe my maturity level is finally catching up with my age now.

The year began with me going to work immediately on January 2nd, teaching English in D.I.L.C., in U.P. Diliman. Stayed there a couple months until the first week of March. I learned a whole lot there, from dealing with a difficult situation with the bosses due to language barriers and conflict of philosophies when it comes to teaching language, to dealing with a huge infatuation with a girl, one of my students there. I also had to deal with discipline with waking up ridiculously early, and discipline with going straight home after work.

During that time I was also meeting new friends, aside from those in that school. Such as Raja, a fellow WWII fanatic that spends most of his time a year overseas working.

After my contract completed in D.I.L.C., I struggled with the idea of working in a call center, as I sought jobs here and there but found nothing that felt right. After multiple dramatic conversations with my mom, who encouraged the idea, and a lot of prayer, I finally gave in and responded to an ad that ran in a newspaper in May. The ad was for a major call center. My plan was to become a language trainer in there, but first I'd have to be an agent and take calls.

"I don't know if this is God's will or not. But he'll probably stop me if it isn't. And who knows what great blessings I would be missing out on, if I don't try it and it turns out that this was what God wanted me to do." That's what I thought to myself.

I went to their product trainings and learned a lot there as well. I was getting ready to join the call center industry when something hit me during the training. I was to handle a satellite TV account, meaning I would be dealing with everything from billing to activation of channels. From troubleshooting the equipment to answering questions like "what channel is sports?"

Well during this training, around the second week, I started to feel wrong. There was something I would need to be doing that would go against my morals. As part of the job of selling channels and programming, I learned that I would also need to recommend channels. And pornographic programming was no exception. On the contrary, it was, according to our trainer, a large part of what we were expected to do. At least one call a day, sometimes as many as a dozen, would be about that. We spent hours learning about the adult channels, from simple R-18 stuff all the way to the XXX-rated stuff. All the prices and what each channel offers. All the discounts and pay-per-view information...

At first I didn't really mind. The only thing I was thinking of was that this was something I had to go through to get into the call center. After all, I'm not the one watching the pornography. But the LORD kept tapping me, until I came to the realization that God would never want me to sin even on the way to a greater good, nor would He want me to cause other people to sin. With some prayer, after I completed the training, I pleaded with the training and recruitment departments to excuse me from the required one-month call-taking period on my way to becoming a trainer. But they said their policy was ironclad. And I cannot give an excuse to God on judgment day if I tried to justify my decision even if I knew it was wrong.

So after a conversation on the phone with a member of the Human Resources Department, I looked at my computer. Lo and behold, God already honored my sacrifice. A friend of mine, who worked at Edulynx Corporation, the company that trained me in TESOL and sent us to Laguna in July-August 2007 to teach English, had messaged me. Being a Christian, I knew there were no accidents, so I took my opportunity and asked her if there were any job openings. She said yes and asked me to bring my resume the next day.

After a chat with her and the big boss of the company, I was hired and started the next day. And I still work in Edulynx up to now.

As I look back on those fateful events, I now see why God let me get into the call center trainings. He wanted me to know how call centers worked on the inside, something I would find necessary for my job in Edulynx. He also wanted me to know how to deal with various people: my trainer, fellow trainees, H.R. Department, and the training department. And lastly He wanted to strengthen me in my faith, to see if honoring God meant more to me than my dreams of being a well-paid trainer. I work in a lesser-paying job now, but I know every day that I come in for work that I am blessed, and God's blessings will continue to be with me and that company.

"... Who knows what great blessings I would be missing out on, if I don't try it and it turns out that this was what God wanted me to do..." I learned greatly this year that God truly does move in mysterious ways. I think He does it so we never become complacent, and that every step of the way we have to rely on Him, because we really don't know what He's doing.

Aside from that great chapter in my life, God has also blessed me with a lot of learning experiences. I have two educational almost-romantic experiences, that both happened quite recently. I learned a great deal from those.

All in all a good year. I'm exceedingly greatful to God for all that He has done to me, and all He continues to do for me behind the scenes. I know God is setting me up for more great and wonderful things for the next year, and I can already feel some of them brewing up even now.

May the LORD's blessing be upon me and my family, my friends and my workplace, and all who read this, for the New Year. Amen.

:D

I forgot to post a Christmas message due to various business and run-of-the-mill forgetfulness. But anyway Merry Christmas!

Let's not forget the reason for the season. No, it's not that guy up in that image above. But rather, the big J who's been lookin' out for us ever since before the world began. :D That's right I'm talking about God in the body of a man himself, Jesus!

It's been a great year, and I'll post a New Year's message on New Year's Eve. :)

Yeah my birthday passed already (Dec. 5th). I am now 25 years old. I know I should've made a post about this back then but I was busy all day Friday and all day today (Saturday).

But anyway, here's to looking back. This has been one of my most educational years. From learning to put up with difficult and overly traditional bosses in D.I.L.C., to dealing with a girl that was showing very confusing signs. From dealing with lazing around while trying to find another job, to dealing with my pride being hurt by applying to a call center, which was then my most hated occupation. From going through training in a call center, to learning about being strong (actually, ironclad) with my principles, and standing up for what's right even if it meant losing a very lucrative job offer. From finding a new job that I love in Edulynx Corporation, to dealing with various types of people, ranging from colleagues to bosses, and trainees to clients. From learning how to handle relationships with friends and women, to learning how to control my own emotions, especially the oh-so-evil pride. From getting over my fear of the Singles Ministry and being counted as one of them, to finally getting into a D-group after what felt like years of stagnation. Yes, this year has been very educational. And there are many many other things I learned as well, but this space is not enough to actually list them all.

Suffice it to say that God has not finished with me. He seems to be targetting my personal quirks that might interfere with present and future relationships, both casual and romantic. It has been a good year for me, but it's time to put aside the age of 24.

It's funny. It felt like so recently when I posted about me actually living to see 24, unlike the character in Coolio's song Gangsta's Paradise. And now, not only did I live to see 24, but I passed right through it and am now 25. I pray for much more growth this year, no matter what it takes. Cuz I have even more confidence in God now. He let me go through a lot of hurts and stuff, but He always somehow made me understand that it was a necessary experience for me. I look forward to what else He has in store.

If you had asked me Friday morning how my week was going, I would've said something like "terrible" or "regrettable". This week has been very educational, but I never would've thought that until the lessons had all completely lined up and my mind was opened and ready to accept them.

All sorts of stuff happened. Actually the week started off to be just another week. But as it went by, things started to go bad. Especially on Thursday, which marked one of the most miserable days I ever had. This was the day when I got angry at the girl I liked.

In my mind, I was justified to be angry. The details of why are not even important. But now that I look back, I was terribly wrong. First of all, I jumped to conclusions. I didn't even know what was really going on, but I let myself be deceived. Second, I was completely lost to my emotions. I didn't want to be angry, but it kept happening anyway. This probably confused her, which was a bit of a shock to me, but I was too consumed in my own hurt pride that I didn't bother with that.

Friday was the breaking point. I felt like I was losing the battle, for almost the entirety of the day. It started off with me trying to apologize for my behavior, but it somehow got out of hand and ended up with me being even angrier than the day before. Why? I don't even know. The poor girl did nothing wrong. Even to now I don't understand what made me angry that day, but all I can think of is that it was a convention of all things that make me angry, and this just happened to be my avenue through which I release.

But in the end, it turned out well. Something happened, when friends gave me the words I needed to hear the most. All of a sudden my paradigm shifted. All of a sudden my anger subsided. It was replaced by an overwhelming sense of... something. I don't know how to describe it, or if there is a name for it. All I know is that I did something wrong. Maybe "stupidity" will suffice for now, for lack of better vocabulary. But even with that, for the first time all week, I felt like everything was going to be all right. I don't even know why.

I mustered what was left of my nerve that day, pulled her aside and properly apologized. We left each other to the weekend on a happier note. And I continued to spend the day pondering on my anger and how I need to curb that. I dealt with that with a [lonely] meal at an Italian restaurant.

This girl is very special to me, and hurting her is the last thing on my mind. But until yesterday, I found that I still valued myself over her. I believe God let me go through that, to teach me that love's opposite is not hate, but selfishness (and pride, which is very related). I need to let go of myself and stop taking everything so personally if I plan to succeed in building friendships and other relationships with people. Otherwise I'll never stop being alone. I figure that's why my life has always been lonely, and I always felt like everybody was against me: because I thought of myself too much.

All in all, this week was more educational than most. I'm just now learning stuff that some people would've learned in high school or college; neither of which did I give time wisely to. I learned about myself, about friendships and relationships, about women, life and emotions. I learned stuff I never even thought I'd have to learn, and brought stuff out that I didn't even know I was keeping a secret, such as my anger and my solitude. I learned that God really does allow some bad things to happen to us, in order to strengthen us.

At the time when it was happening at its worst, I couldn't understand what I could possibly learn from that situation. That whole time I was ranting and complaining, and adamantly refusing to believe that anything could be learned from such incorrigible circumstances. The truth is, the lessons had already been lined up beyond my understanding. And as soon as I opened my mind they all just made sense all of a sudden. I'm glad I went through it, though I wish there were an easier way for me to learn those lessons. Then again, knowing how stubborn I am, I probably would not have learned anything in any other way.

This is why I write this entry. May I never forget what I have learned this week, and may I apply the lessons as often as needed.

And if anybody is at all reading this (though unlikely), I hope you might learn from this as well.

D: They activate this thing in only a few hours. The particle collision is expected on October 21st. I first heard of this months ago, when Raki Brown told me about it, several months ago.

I'll say is...

WHAT HAS SCIENCE DONE?!

Yes, I'm taking a break from posting geopolitical stuff. For a while anyway. But I really have to post about this. I bought a set of Altec Lansing speakers for my PC yesterday. It was a little pricey in comparison to the other brands, as expected, but when I heard it (especially at home) I knew for sure it was worth it.

The sound is so awesome. Listening to my music, even low quality MP3s (like those ripped from FLV files) suddenly sound better. And the stuff that actually does sound good, sounds MUCH better. But I expected that kind of sound quality already. I first heard of Altec Lansing when I went to a Netopia once. All their machines were fitted with Altec Lansing headsets. And I have to say it was an audible treat. We played a LAN game there and even though the game wasn't that much on sound effects (it was just Counter Strike), it still left me with a lingering sensation of pleasure in my ears. And that's saying much from a musician like myself.

My sister bought some Altec Lansing speakers of her own maybe more than a year ago. I had the opportunity to try them sometimes, and the sound difference is just astonishing. So I said even if it took me a while to save up for a set of my own, I'll definitely get Altec Lansing instead.

I was actually thinking of getting one with a subwoofer, or even the very lofty 5.1 surround speaker system. But that's just a bit away from my budget right now. Perhaps in the future. :D

Russia officially recognized the breakaway and independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The only country to do so, so far. In violation of the ceasefire terms as well, btw, since one of the terms involved respect for Georgia's territorial integrity.

Russia also says that the reason they "fought back" was because Georgia killed people in South Ossetia, and they only retaliated to "save lives" and avoid a great human "calamity".

What I find odd about that is that they bombed civilian areas in Georgia and killed many civilians themselves. How is that avoiding a great human calamity? Oh it's okay to do it to other people?

Meanwhile Iran's nuclear power is increasing, still [no] thanks to Russia. D:

It sounds pretty quiet on TV, cable and local news networks but stuff is still going on there. It would be a grave mistake to not read the signs properly.

Not so big on cable anymore, we're not hearing a lot about what's going on in Georgia the last few days. That's a good thing, because we can now focus on good news and other current events, such as the Olympics. But it should in no way let us think that it's over.

Russia is still playing the "we're the good guys here" game. They began pulling out of Georgia yesterday (Monday) and should supposedly be across the South Ossetia borders completely by Friday. Supposedly. But wait, shouldn't this have happened like 2 weeks ago, when they agreed to a ceasefire that said both sides had to pull back immediately?

Anyway Russia still claims that Georgia is guilty of genocide or something (quote: "... using the most terrible solution -- by exterminating an entire people"), with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev calling Georgia's leaders "morons". I'm in no position to say whether this is true or not, but he also said that they "not to let this crime go unpunished."

Meanwhile, some time ago Iran successfully completed long-range missile testing. They had no warheads it seems but they're testing, meaning they're preparing for something.

According to the Bible, Russia and Iran will form an alliance against Israel. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has vowed to wipe Israel "off the map". This is particularly interesting knowing Russia and Iran's current nuclear and arms alliance. Iran (and Russia) certainly have the capability to wage the kind of war that Ahmadinejad wants, and it's the big War of Gog and Magog that the Bible has spoken about in Ezekiel 38 (where Magog is what they called Russia, and Gog is their "prince"). It sounds like wishful thinking to some, where Christians and those who study the Bible are just connecting crooked invisible dots trying to make it seem like it's coming true even if it isn't (kinda like what many people are doing about Nostradamus' prophecies).

But here's what's funny. And I'm not afraid to say this right now. This war will happen, and it will happen soon. And according to the Bible, Israel will stand alone against the biggest coalition ever assembled including Russia, Iran and other Muslim and Arabic countries around it (except Egypt and Iraq, whom we believe will not take part in this war, if we're understanding the Bible correctly). It's hard to believe now, knowing how protective America is of her allies, especially Israel, and how quickly America jumps into wars that threaten world peace. But America will not help Israel in that war. Who knows why, but the Bible says nobody will help Israel. My guess is America will be trying to avoid all-out nuclear war with Russia and Iran, which would've happened anyway because Iran wants to wipe America (a.k.a., the "Big Satan" while Israel is the "Little Satan") off the map as well. That or the American troops will be in no shape to wage war after just having completed duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. I don't really know. The Bible doesn't detail that.

What I do know is that this war will be big. And Israel will have nobody to turn to, because nobody will help. Then God will show himself and obliterate all of Israel's enemies. And when (not "if") this happens, we will know for sure that the Bible is true, and people will be searching for God. God even details how he'll destroy them, including shaking the earth (not sure if God meant an earthquake per se), and a rain of fire. And no this won't come from Israel's allies. The whole purpose of God's doing this is so that the world will see that the God of Israel is very much real.

Anyway just tossing those things up there. Just so that we know I published these things well before they take place. So when they happen, everybody that was skeptic about the Bible will have something to drop their jaws about. I'm no prophet, nor are any of my sources aside from Ezekiel himself. We're just people who look at the Bible and the world and connect the real dots.

As of the time of this writing, violence apparently initiated by Russian troops continues in Georgia, despite what optimists thought would be a peaceful end to the "conflict". I of course knew that this ceasefire was just for show for the Russians. It seems to me that they're trying to make themselves look like the good guys in this war.

They began the war because they claimed that Russians were being harassed in South Ossetia. That may have been a plausible cause for war, but I don't think it would've been enough for such a massive troop deployment, which I keep stressing. According to CNN, it seems that there are at least 15,000 troops in Georgia right now.

"The cease-fire never stood in the first place," Saakashvili told CNN's "Situation Room" on Wednesday. "Russia never intended to stop fire."

He added that "Russian tanks continue to ravage Georgia town and villages, killing people, destroying buildings, looting. ... They've been doing worse things to what I've heard in the past and I could never imagine happening in my country."

(Quotes taken from CNN.com)

Right now, however, Russia is justifying themselves apparently by saying that Georgia should pay for its crimes, and are now asking America to choose a side; the Georgians whom they openly support, or the Russians with whom they dread going to war with on account of knowing they hold what may be the most powerful army in the world today, to say nothing of their nuclear capabilities, of which the world is very much aware.

Last night it seems the Russian troops ran through the town of Gori, south of South Ossetia, and soon after claimed that there are no more Russian troops in Gori. But eye witness reports spot them going southeast from Gori toward Tblisi. I can't find where they ended up since then right now, but I'll try to keep you posted (or you can check the news). All I know is that the ceasefire meant nothing, just like I said last night.

Again, to stress my points I brought up last night, I think Georgia is looking for control over the region. Georgia is protected by the U.N. and NATO, and may be a hindrance to Russia's dealings with Iran and the jihad-hungry Muslims in Iran. This is my main concern and what I think may be happening, but of course I'm no authority so you need not share my views on this.

Now the big question is, what are they doing? Is my feared outcome of total control over the region what will really happen? Is something more frightening brewing? What is going on in the heads of the leaders involved here, including Georgia's president, the White House and the Pentagon, and Vladimir Putin?

I'll continue trying to figure out this situation with the rest of the world. It's sad because I thought I'd be blogging mostly about the Olympics this week (and the stuff happening in the Olympics is pretty cool too, so I just might). But all optimism aside and looking at the situation realistically, we may be looking at the beginnings of the end of the world here.

On a side note, I'm also reading the book Epicenter by Joel Rosenberg. And in frightening detail, this book is describing some of the events that are happening today, despite being written about 2 years ago. It's gripping and eerie. I can't really say I'm scared because that's inaccurate. What I am, though, is very much concerned and yet excited.

I'll keep you posted.

War in the Caucasus, again. It began last week, and after six days of bloody fighting it seems to be over. But I'm going to blog about it because it's bothered me ever since the beginning of the war. Actually it seems nobody really wants to call it a "war", that's why they call it the "Georgia Conflict".

Well anyway, I'm going to write down my thoughts that have been going wild through my head since the first time I heard about the war over CNN a week ago.

First let me begin with a bit of a note. I am no military expert, nor did I serve in any military or law enforcement service. I never worked for the government and I am no intelligence officer of any sort. What I am, though, is an observer and a bit of a history and warfare fan. I wouldn't even call myself a history or war buff because I don't consider my knowledge on either subject to be great. But I do like to analyze things, which is why I am fascinated in both history and war.

It all started when I heard the conflicting ideas on who started the war. Russia claimed Georgia started the war, while Georgia claimed that Russian bombers were the first to initiate contact. I was immediately troubled by that, especially following the disturbing scenes of Russian forces moving into Georgia in droves.

Apparently the war is supposedly about a small disputed province called South Ossetia, in Georgian borders (North Ossetia is Russian territory). Now, this would've been all completely acceptable except for the ridiculous number of forces mobilized by Russia to invade such a small country. Provided that Georgia itself has a formidable army mobilized at the time of over 3000 soldiers, about 100 tanks and many armored vehicles, Russia outnumbered them by a huge amount with more than 10,000 soldiers 150 tanks and hundreds of armored vehicles, and not to mention air superiority (I saw it on CNN but I can't find the article on it to fortify the numbers).

As a student of war like myself, and I think at least some of the professional military analysts out there would probably agree, I find it hard to believe that such a massive, aggressive and sudden troop deployment would be done for such a small province as South Ossetia. There has to be some kind of ulterior motive, one which is yet unclear to me.

People are hesitant to call this a "war" just yet for many reasons. One reason is the fact that the people that are calling this a "conflict" rather than a "war" are the American and other Western politicians. The Americans don't want to call this a war because they openly support Georgia, yet believe that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is America's friend (and Putin feels the same way about America). America does not want to go to war with Russia right now, and though some of the countries that broke away from the hostile grip of the former Soviet Union such as Poland and the Baltic countries want to do something about it, they're thinking smart and not doing anything rash, just the same as how America is responding as of the time of this writing.

As soon as I heard the news of this happening some time last week, I looked at the map because to be honest I didn't really know where Georgia was exactly. I knew it was around the Russian territories but I didn't know its specific geological location. I was very much surprised to see that Georgia lies directly in between Russia and the countries that would link it to Iran (namely Turkey and Armenia). I'm not sure if this means anything honestly, and again, I have to reitterate that I'm not in any way any military expert, but as soon as I saw that, I felt that Russia wanted a firm military hold of the entire region to allow them free access into Iran, their ally in a now growing threat of nuclear arms development.

Now, I'm following everything I can with this war despite my full-time job, via the news and the internet. I began writing this entry this morning at around 9:30 AM (GMT +8), just hours after a "ceasefire" was called as mediated by the French. The terms of the ceasefire favored Moscow heavily in my opinion, but at the very least it should have meant silence on both sides because it required the pulling out of all military forces into their original positions prior to the war. Not intentionally being cynical, but I did not believe that this ceasefire would hold. Russia mobilized such a large number of troops and armor, I don't think it will end with such flimsy ceasefire terms. They're after something. I don't know if it's what I suspect it to be (control over the region for unmonitored access to Iran; remember that Georgia is being watched by the U.N. and NATO), or something completely different. But I think they won't stop until they get it.


Now that alone was enough to disturb me and my analysis of the war. But suddenly, just hours after that ceasefire was agreed upon, at the time of this writing, Russian forces are being spotted "in violation" of these ceasefire terms. The first time I heard the news was over the radio, at around 6:30 PM, where hundreds or even thousands of Russian troops in military trucks and armored personnel carriers were spotted miles south of South Ossetia, where they were supposed to stay, into the town of Gori, and travelling southeastward in a column towards Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, in what I estimate to be about 40-50 miles away (it may be more or less, I'm just guessing). Now this is a clear violation of the ceasefire terms because the terms involved having Russia pull its troops back across the border and back into Russia.

As of the time of this writing, which is now 8:50 PM (I started about 20 minutes ago as well), it is still unclear to me what will happen. But if the events unfold as I see it, from a strategic and political standpoint, this won't be good. We could be looking at a big war here.

I will continue to blog on this matter as much as I can, with as much information as I can gather. Just take note that I am not a professional journalist or military analyst. Just some guy who is disturbed by what's happening that felt like writing down his thoughts on the matter before it's too late.

- edit: I may have to note that I began writing this at work at 9:30 AM Philippine time, but had business to attend to and so saved it as a draft. I resumed writing this when I got home, as seen in the second half of this post.

Due to lack of exercise and having too much junkfood these days, I'm starting to feel the effects of being overweight. My ab flabs are getting in the way of stuff, I get tired so easily, and I don't feel good about my appearance anymore.

So, as an obvious resort, I've decided to get in shape by cutting down on unnecessary foods and going back to my exercise routines from back when I was actively b-boying. I wanna be healthy and strong again. It sounds stupid but I miss being able to do clapping push-ups, handstand push-ups, dozens of sit-ups, etc. I miss being able to do two full b-boy routines back to back without getting tired. I tried doing a full routine yesterday and I got tired doing a simple toprock -> uprock -> 6 step -> baby freeze. I was freaking wheezing.

So starting today, I'm gonna go back to my cardio exercises, strength training and flexibility training as well. :D

I've decided to try learning sign language as well, in conjunction with my Deutsch studies. The problem is, contrary to my initial ideas of it, sign language is different across the globe. That's sad. I thought before that I'd be able to travel the world and communicate with any deaf person once I learn "sign language". I was probably naive to think that, though, since obviously each country would've developed its own sign language throughout its own ages.

So I'm not sure if I should continue sign language studies. The American sign language is what I see being used most often, but sadly it's not even the same as the British sign language, according to Wikipedia.

Oh well. I'll stick to my Deutsch studies for now.

Just to mark this, cuz this is unique for me. I think I got food poisoning last Monday night. I went through the stomach pain and the water (not watery; water) stool. I'm getting better, and I think I'm pretty much cured of it now though. I got the stomach pains and all but it's not as bad as a couple of days ago and I'm not having to go to the bathroom every 10-30 minutes or so, which was the case on Tuesday. Monday night I couldn't even sleep cuz of the pain, and I had to go to the bathroom every hour or so. I became dehydrated but I'm taking stuff to combat it and all that. I missed 2 days of work but like I said I'm fine now. I was uncomfortable the whole day but I got through it without having to go to the hospital heheh. It was a mild case that thankfully I got through. Not trying to gross anyone out or anything but I just felt like marking it cuz it was one of the most unique yet uncomfortable experiences in my life.

I had to resign from the job I mentioned in my previous post, but now I'm working for Edulynx (the same company that sent me to Laguna for the How Fun! English Camp almost exactly one year ago). Even so I've still continued my pen spinning. I'm getting pretty good, but I haven't properly customized my pencil yet. I got an orange unsharpened wooden pencil but it needs more weight (those rubber grip things for pens would do nicely, but I haven't found any yet; always out of stock in the stores here).

Anyway I suddenly realized that I haven't made a lot of posts this year yet. We're already past the halfway mark of the year but this would only be my 5th post! Wow. D: Well I've obviously been busy with work and stuff. In fact I'm posting from work right now. I'm having a lot of fun. But I can't neglect my blog, even if I don't actually have a lot of readers. This isn't just for publicity, but also for myself so I can look back on my experiences and see what I was doing at particular points of time.

I'll try to post more regularly. :D