Exercise
Those home TV shopping programs always have a section on physique and health improvement products and equipment. I have discovered one exercise that is quite effective, yet cheap, you only need to do a few simple routines:
1. Gather up your laundry, preferably small items which you can finish in a few minutes, place it in a tub of water, with soap of course.
2. Do your morning ritual, in the john, do routine number 2 (you know what that is...)
3. While settled down and doing your thing, place your reliable batsa or palangana in front of you, on the floor.
4. Start washing your articles of clothing or whatnot.
5. Put great emphasis on your abdomen and shoulder blades while reaching out for your washables, while doing the all too familiar laundry routines.
6. Variant number 2 would be placing the laundry on your side, on top of a stool (as in your bangko, not that other kind of stool...).
7. First do your laundry on your left side, placing great emphasis on the abdomen, shoulders and chest. Wash your laundry like crazy.
8. Now do the other side. Wash like hell.
9. Repeat until you can no longer dish out anything from the original reason you are seated in the throne in the first place.
Now if you want a more streneaous workout using this setup, go with washing your blankets and towels. Such pieces of laundry would require extensive lifting, thus benefitting your chest and shoulders. Wash like crazy.
All of this can be achieved in 5-15 minutes, depending on the amount of time you spend doing number 2. Very appropriate for busy persons. Now go beat the crap out of your laundry! And don't forget to wash after you wash your laundry.
Space
While waiting inside McDonald’s Philcoa, I spied upon the discussion of three college girls for their school work.
Their research is about the distinction between the various levels of intimacy between people, particularly between males and females.
It turns out that their topic is about the study of proxemics, or the delineation of the various levels of distance accepted between people, such as intimate space, personal space, public space, and so forth.
Being a little versed in the subject (little in the sense that I do not recall all of the levels of proxemics itself, especially the numerical values identified by Hall, the author of the said study), I decided to eavesdrop on their conversation and awaited for a moment for me to share my knowledge.
But later on I decided not to intervene in their private group discussion, as butting in on their group would be, in itself, breaking their private space bubbles.
Space for me is a very sacred definition. Being trained in my profession to be sensitive to the needs of man for efficient circulation and carrying out of his tasks through the provision of adequate space, I find that I myself need to provide some level of sensitivity to the need for space of people around me.
A dilemma has engulfed me within my workspace for quite some time now, with the introduction of my coffee maker to the office. The idea for “coffee time” was then created, wherein two to four P.M. in the afternoon would be “dedicated” to making, serving and enjoying coffee. Such a simple idea actually, but it became complicated in my part since I have to share space with the coffee maker and the people wanting to get coffee. I have to evict myself from my work place in order to give way to the various condiments, food and other necessities included in carrying out our daily enjoyment. Not that I am complaining though, since we get to enjoy coffee which is competitive to coffee serve at the local Starbucks or other coffee shops.
What bothers me is that people would lounge around near my work bubble, to the point that my work efficiency is usually affected, to the point that I can’t swivel my arm chair, or when I leave for a few seconds, somebody would get my chair. There was one incident where everybody was enjoying themselves while I have a very deadly deadline, and I just can’t help but curse out loud the annoyance nearest to me, which is the ringing telephone.
But all difficult times must come to an end, and the coffee maker was transferred to the vacant table next to me. Not much of an improvement, but at least my work efficiency greatly improved.
I guess we have to adjust to situations such as these. What Edward Hall did point out that the distance levels are also culture dependent. In our case, we did have one thing that binds us together culturally, “pakikisama”, and also, our frustrations in our boss and work. Kudos go out to the coffee making team of our office, for our bonding sessions continue on with the help of our common love for coffee.
So I am off to my next challenge in keeping my personal space.
Edward Hall did mention one more component of his study that should be greatly considered, not just by space planners but by all people: the concept of territoriality, which goes beyond need for space, but by ownership of space. Now that, is another topic.
Basa
Natawa ako sa isang comment ng aking kasama sa opisina nung pinakita ko ang blog ng isa kong kaklase noong hayskul. Sabi nya "Bakit ka tumitingin sa blog nya, crush mo siya ano?". Shempre hindi ang sagot ko. At pinagpilitan pa nya "E bakit ka naman titingin sa blog ng isang tao, kung hind mo sha crush?". Mejo mababaw na usapin, pero naisip ko na magpaliwanag na rin, hindi lang para sa kapakanan nya, kundi para na rin maungkat sa aking isipan kung bakit nga ba nagbabasa ng blog ang isang tao, at sa kabaliktaran, bakit nagsusulat ang isang tao ng blog.
Sinabi ko na ang blog ay parang friendster, kung saan tinitingnan mo ang kalagayan ng isang tao. Kung ano na ang ginagawa nya sa buhay, ano ang kanyang naabot, kung me asawa na siya, at kung ano na ang posisyon nyo sa buhay. Ipinaliwanag ko na ang pag-ungkat sa buhay ng may buhay sa mundo ng internet ay isang paghahambing sa sarili sa ibang tao, kung saan, mula nang hindi mo na nakita ang taong tinitingnan mo, ay makikita mo kung narating na nya ang mga pinaka-basic na obhetibo sa buhay: pagtatapos ng pag-aaral, pagpapayabong ng pinansiyal na kinatatayuan, pag-aasawa. Kung baga, may "base line" kayo na pinagmulan (maaaring ang panahon bago kayo nagkahiwalay) , at ngayon ay titingnan nyo kung gaano na kalayo ang agwat nyo sa takbuhan na tawag ay buhay.
Hindi ko tuloy mapigilan na magisip ng ibang pang dahilan kung bakit nagbabasa ng blog, at lumalabas ang medyo nakakatakot na mga dahilan kung bakit nagsusulat at nagbabasa ng blog ang isang tao. Pinakaligtas ang una kong paliwanag, ngunit nakakatakot ang ilan pang dahilan, at napapansin kong marami-rami na ganito, gamit ang ilang salitang malalim at mahirap nang ipaliwanag.
Narsisismo, stalking, bigotry, ilan lamang yan sa mga dahilan. At isa pang napakalaganap na pangyayari sa internet, ang
anonimity.
Sana lamang sa aking muling pagbuhay ng aking blog ay mapansin ko agad o may magsabi sa akin kung umaabot ako sa ganoong mga punto. Malay natin, isa pala akong taong nababalot ng megalomanya. Bwahahaha...
