Monday, March 19, 2007

Commute tayo

I was cleaning up my e-files and found this. I wrote it last April 5, 2005 and forgot all about it until tonight. Better late than never I guess.

All my life I’ve been a frequent commuter. Tricycles, pedicabs, jeepneys, buses, trains, Tamaraw FXs. The commute can be a hassle sometimes – the 35*C heat of summer, the icky feeling of wet feet during the rainy season, the mad scramble for a seat, the terror of dying with a cab/ jeepney driver gone amok, the shock of unruly hair at the office entrance (“mahangin sa labas?”), and the agony of bearing a raging stomach in a bus that won’t move.

Whatever the heartaches, or tummy aches for that matter, I will still commute. I probably would have turned out a different person had I not been exposed to the perils and joys (what joys?) of the commuting life. Perhaps I’m too lazy right now to elaborate or simply cheering myself up because I’m broke and unable to buy my own car.

My point, however, is that all these public transport vehicles didn’t just bring me to Project 6, UP Diliman, Makati, Divisoria, Vito Cruz, my office, and countless other places. They led me to an unexpected field trip of virtues. Patience (lots and lots of it), humor, and humility I found in the heart of Manila’s smoke belching, gut-wrenching, death-defying PUVs.

9 Comments:

At 10:15 PM, March 19, 2007, Blogger Vanishing Point said...

Amen to that. And here's some other good things you should be thankful bout commuting. In Japan I drive my own car, and I started getting fat and lazy. I'd go to the convenience store at the next block and i'd drive. My daily exercise is the basement parking lot to my desk. I missed the Sun and travel life has become a bore. But whenever I get back to Manila I can actually pig-out without gaining...because I'm forced to stand, walk and chase jeepneys/taxis and whatever PUVs I need to get home. : )

 
At 10:37 PM, March 19, 2007, Blogger h. said...

hehehe same here. commuting is an experience i don't miss at all but have to go through from time to time.

 
At 9:50 PM, March 21, 2007, Blogger Nick Ballesteros said...

Hi Donna. Commuting is indeed part of our daily life... konting ingat na nga lang... hwag mag-display ng phones and gadgets. Otherwise, commuting is a nice way to go places. We even commute most of the time when we go to treks.

 
At 6:24 PM, March 25, 2007, Blogger Bebert said...

speaking of treks... nick, trekking tayo! kahit yung malapit lang.:D

 
At 6:03 AM, April 02, 2007, Blogger donna_chocnut said...

Hello vanishing point, thanks for dropping by. You're based in Japan pala. Cool. Yup, the heat of Manila alone will make you lose weight already...Hi Hazel, oo nga, sometimes kelangan talaga mag commute kahit ayaw natin...Ey Nick, salamat sa pagpasyal dito. You're right, simple lang dapat pag nagcocommute. Tama si Bebert, sama kami sa treks niyo ha? Pls let us know pag may climb kayo. Tengks ebriwan for visiting. =)

 
At 7:23 PM, April 02, 2007, Blogger Nick Ballesteros said...

Uyyy sige ba! We are planning something this coming April. Sama kayo ha! Balitaan ko kayo when it materializes. Waterfalls ang pupuntahan.

 
At 6:05 AM, April 03, 2007, Blogger Rabbit said...

Commuting has its perks. You get to meet all sorts of strange people. But I think I'll leave this in my past as much as I can. It's hot!!!

 
At 4:24 PM, April 05, 2007, Blogger donna_chocnut said...

hi nick, uy sige thanks, sabihan mo kami. sana matuloy at sana makasama kami...uy napadalaw si noy, thanks. oo nga, mainit talaga. lalo na ngayon, summer na naman.

 
At 10:33 PM, April 30, 2007, Blogger The Accidental Reviewer said...

I'm not much of a commuter since I tend to get lost and I have a lousy sense of direction :) Cabs are the most convenient form of public transport for me now. Plus the MRT since It'll be pretty difficult to get lost there. :)

 

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