2021 November
-
A Quote "We've always defined ourselves by the ability to overcome the impossible. And we count these moments. These moments when we dare to aim higher, to break barriers, to reach for the stars, to make the unknown known. We count these moments as our proudest achievements. But we lost all that. Or perhaps we've just forgotten that we are still pioneers. And we've barely begun. And that our greatest accomplishments cannot be behind us, because our destiny lies above us." - Cooper, Interstellar The World Metro Manila still at alert level 2; it looks the daily new cases are -
A Quote "I think it's much more interesting to live not knowing than to have answers which might be wrong. I have approximate answers and possible beliefs and different degrees of uncertainty about different things, but I am not absolutely sure of anything and there are many things I don't know anything about, such as whether it means anything to ask why we're here. I don't have to know an answer. I don't feel frightened not knowing things, by being lost in a mysterious universe without any purpose, which is the way it really is as far as I can -
It's November, which means we are that much closer to a second Christmas under the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic. The world: Locally, new Covid cases seem to have plateaued at 2000+, but we'll see what next week brings. The IATF has dropped Metro Manila to the less restrictive alert level 2 as of last Friday, so we'll see whether that causes another spike or we continue on our way to a hopefully merry Christmas (such as it is). Links of interest: Haley Nahman writes about when she was an influencer. A peek into the world of influencers and the
2021 October
-
It's the last day of October. And Halloween, I guess. If that means something to you. The world: Local politics still depresses me. Let's not talk about it today. On the upside, local Covid numbers are getting better, hopefully a trend that continues through Christmas. We're actually starting to inch closer and closer to the recommended 5% positivity rate! Though we'll see how the lowering of alert levels affects the numbers in the coming week. Big news in the tech world this week is how Facebook has rebranded as "Meta", which is personally a bit "meh" for me. I mean, -
It's been about a month since a full-blown weeknotes. Let's catch up on things! The world: PH's 2022 presidential race is in high gear; the deadline for filing of candidacy has passed, but there's still the substitution deadline on Nov 15, so there's still maneuverings going on, with the scions of darkness meeting up for negotiations in Cebu yesterday. Meanwhile, the main opposition candidate is preaching kindness, even as the liberals and the left are kind of squabbling over details and who is supporting who and who is worthy of support and whatnot. The good guys need to get their -
As of tonight, all of the household's Covid patients have been cleared and sent home from the hospital. I wish I could say that was the end of the ordeal, but not everyone came back at full strength and there may still be a significant recovery period to go. What this means for me personally is that my caretaking days are not yet done. I thought I would have the energy for a full-blown weeknotes today, but with everything I've had to handle, it might take me a few more days to get back into my familiar old routines and
-
I have a bit more time and energy this week, though I am still unfortunately stuck at the hospital, taking care of loved ones. The good news is that I myself am no longer a patient, I recovered and was "discharged" a while back. Both of the loved ones still here in the hospital are past the worst of it apparently, but we still need to wait for them to recover before we can go home. The doctors are unable to give us a timeline. As you can imagine, the hospital stay has wreaked havoc on my routines, though now
-
The covid situation is still unfolding, but it's no longer at home. I am relatively fine and doing well, aside from some minor things. But there are others to take care of as well. I wish more words could be spared, but that will have to wait until this is all over. Until then, the blog gets little more than a placeholder. The world can wait.:
2021 September
-
There is an evolving COVID situation at home, so things are a bit busy today, this entry may be shorter than usual. The world: 2022 presidential race is heating up; Manila Mayor Isko Moreno announced his candidacy this past week (with failed senatorial candidate Dr. Willie Ong as his running mate), though some people suspect he is a spoiler candidate meant to split opposition votes. He's never really been opposition though? KBL has expectedly endorsed BongBong Marcos as their presidential candidate. Links of interest: "I quit": Cory Doctorow on peak indifference, big tobacco, disinformation and death Python as a build
-
Just another week. A quote: "Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants." – Epictetus The world: As of the 16th, we are now piloting this "alert level system with granular lockdowns" in Metro Manila. The alert level system is basically changing the ECQ/MECQ/GCQ nomenclature to numbered alert levels (a sensible move, which took them more than a year to figure out). Granular lockdowns have been implemented by LGUs even before (like QC's "special areas of concern"), though I guess these are now standardized maybe? In any case, some implementation details: the lockdowns will not be -
Today is the second Sunday of September, which apparently is Grandparents Day in the Philippines. A quote: My physics prof told me: "Math is the study of all possible worlds. Science is the study of the world we happen to live in. Someday we may find out whether those are different studies." -- Noah Smith The world: So we were supposed to ease lockdowns in Metro Manila last Sep 7, with restaurants being open again (at reduced capacity) and so on. At the last minute, the night before the lockdown was supposed to ease, the IATF walked back the announcement -
A quote: “Man is only fully human when he plays!” - Friedrich Schiller The world: Our MECQ period is due to end on the 7th, after which NCR is going to enter an experimental phase of "granular lockdowns" where people in certain areas will not be allowed to come and go at all. Presumably food and other supplies will be brought to them, and if they have to leave for work because they are essential workers, they can't come back - employers need to either provide temporary lodging or allow them to WFH. As if those things are easy! We'll
2021 August
-
It's August's end, which means Philippine "Christmas season" is about to begin. This year feels like it went by quickly, but really, who has a proper sense of time anymore. A quote: "Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." -- Howard Thurman The world: Once again we hit record-breaking case numbers, positivity and death rates towards the end of the past week. MECQ was originally scheduled up to end up Aug, but now it's extended up to Sep 7. Are -
A quote: "And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it." -- Roald Dahl (via swiss-miss) The world: We hit record-breaking case numbers and death rates towards the end of the 15-day ECQ period. In spite of this, the IATF in their wisdom has decided to loosen our quarantine level to "MECQ". People note that the described restrictions in this flavor of MECQ are mostly the same as with the just-ended ECQ, except the supposedly -
A quote: "Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it. Always work with it, not against it." - Eckhart Tolle The world: We are one week into the current NCR ECQ lockdown. Covid19 and the Delta variant continue to rampage through the country; the DOH reported 14k+ new cases today, the 2nd highest daily rate since the pandemic started, the positive testing rate staying above 20% for more than a week (signaling not enough testing - WHO recommended rate is 5%). The hospitals are starting to fill up again. Rumors are already circulating that the -
A quote: "Ask yourself: Why am I seeing and feeling this? How am I growing? What am I learning? Remember: Every coincidence is potentially meaningful. How high your awareness level is determines how much meaning you get from your world." – Ansel Adams via Nitch via Swiss-Miss The world: Metro Manila is back under Enhanced Community Quarantine, this is season 3. The delta variant continues to spread, and the case counts over the past couple of days have reached peaks not seen since April. And the response from congress is to... investigate an independent research group that provides covid data -
It's August! A quote: "Here's the thing: there is no real life. There is no full, meaningful, "best life." There are, at best, more and less meaningful pursuits, from your perspective, based on your upbringing, imprinting, and your own specific cocktail of longings. It is natural for us to feel anxiety about how we spend our limited time. No matter how happy you convince yourself to be, you will sometimes feel the vague ache of other possible lives." -- SandwichBear via Amy Hoy The world: Some good news for the country last Monday, and it wasn't the old man's last
2021 July
-
A quote: "I just wanna keep being proof that good people with no hidden agendas still exist in this world." - @diorkenn on Twitter The world: This past week in Metro Manila was very cold and rainy, which came with the attendant problems like flooding and such. There's a typhoon nearby, but I don't think it's in the PAR; instead it's just doing this thing where it drags in rains and winds via the Habagat monsoon. The feared delta variant is here in the PH and has been since May. The DOH confirms local transmission. And the response in Metro -
A quote: "The important work of moving the world forward does not wait to be done by perfect men." - George Eliot The world: Fitch downgrades PH credit rating outlook to "negative" Pacquiao ousted from PDP-Laban by an opposing faction, just as he's preparing for his upcoming fight. Covid-19 delta variant has been detected in the PH, let's hope the government can keep it under control. Valve has announced the Steam Deck, a handheld PC for playing Steam games Links of interest: Hobson's Browser: How Apple, Facebook, and Google Broke the Mobile Browser Market by Silently Undermining User Choice The
-
A quote: "You are the books you read the films you watch, the music you listen to, the people you meet, the dreams you have, the conversations you engage in. You are what you take from these. You are the sound of the ocean, the breath of fresh air, the brightest light and the darkest corner. You are a collective of every experience you have had in your life. You are every single second of every single day. So drown yourself in a sea of knowledge and existence. Let the words run through your veins and let the colours fill