LUNEDI
8:00 AM – Wake up, have breakfast, do chores like arranging wardrobe and shoes or sometimes, do laundry.
10:00 AM – Watch telly, listen to music, read, or simply laze around the house while waiting for the Friday song line up.
11:00 AM – Browse phone and check if the songs are already installed. If not, download it. Check facebook.com while waiting.
12:00 PM – Have lunch.
12:30 PM – Cifra the songs, then practice.
3:00 PM – Go back to sleep.
6:00 PM – Wake up and prepare for work.
8:00 PM – Eat dinner on the desk while continue polishing the songs.
9:00 PM – Work onwards. During breaks, check e-mails, send texts, write on organizer and mark calendars. Plot weekly budget.
MARTEDI
5:00 AM – Go home from work.
6:30 AM – Breakfast.
7:00 AM – Clean up, shower, brush teeth
7:45 AM – Practice songs for Friday in piano.
8:30 AM – Sleep
4:00 PM – Wake up, prepare outfit for the day. Shower and prepare stuff needed for work and cell group meeting.
4:30 PM – Write entries and fill out missed dates in my journal.
5:00 PM – Cell group meeting and soaking.
6:30 PM – Off to work.
8:00 PM – Dinner at my desk.
9:00 PM – Work onwards. During breaks, check e-mails, send texts, write on organizer and mark calendars. Plot weekly budget.
MERCOLEDI:
5:00 AM – Go home from work.
6:30 AM – Breakfast.
7:00 AM – Clean up, shower, brush teeth
7:45 AM – Practice songs in piano.
8:30 AM – Sleep
4:00 PM – Wake up, prepare outfit for the day. Shower and prepare stuff needed for work and band practice.
5:00 PM – Practice and polish songs on piano. Browse phone for songs and download songs for Sunday.
6:30 PM – Band practice.
8:00 PM – Band devotion and sharing of journals.
8:30 PM – Leave CCC to work.
9:30 PM – Dinner at my desk and organize invites.
10:00 PM – Work onwards. During breaks, check e-mails, send texts, write on organizer and mark calendars.
GIOVEDI:
7;00 AM – Go home from work.
8:30 AM – Breakfast.
9:00 AM – Clean up, shower, brush teeth
9:30 AM – Sleep
5:00 PM – Wake up, prepare outfit for the day. Shower and prepare stuff needed for work and my close cell.
5:30 PM – Cell group with Jem and Neri.
6:30 PM – Leave home, off to work.
8:00 PM – Work onwards. Read novels, write giornale entries and text during breaks.
VENERDI:
5:00 AM – Go home from work.
6:30 AM – Breakfast.
7:00 AM – Clean up, shower, brush teeth
7:45 AM – Practice songs for Sunday in piano.
8:30 AM – Sleep
4:00 PM – Wake up, prepare outfit for the day. Shower and prepare stuff needed for work and Remyx.
4:30 PM – Eat dinner at home.
4:50 PM – Visit people and invite / force them to go to church.
5:10 PM – Arrive at church. Set up amps and instruments.
5:20 PM – Get hair done at the nearby salon.
5:30 PM – Pray along with the Remyxters during corporate prayer.
6:00 PM – Remyx proper.
8;00 PM – Socialize with Remyxsters. Unplug chords and wires and put back the instruments to its positions when not being used.
8:30 PM – Leave church, off to work.
10:00 PM – Snack at my desk, while working. Check emails and texts during breaks. Polish song line up for Sunday. Work onwards.
SAMEDI:
7;00 AM – Go home from work.
8:30 AM – Breakfast.
9:00 AM – Clean up, shower, brush teeth
9:30 AM – Sleep
3:00 PM – Wake up, pack stuff for violin classes and band practice. Fill out missed dates in the journal.
4:00 PM – Violin classes.
5:30 PM – Practice songs in piano.
6:30 PM – Band practice.
8:00 PM – Band prayer and devotion.
8:30 PM – Dinner with band mates Chok, Niko and Ria.
9:30 PM – Watch a movie with Mom.
11:00 PM – Lights out. Sleep.
DOMENICA:
8:00 AM – Wake up. Laze around.
8:30 AM – Quick breakfast.
8:40 AM – Cram to prepare for the outfit for the day. Prepare stuff needed at the service.
9:10 AM – Leave home, off to church.
12:00 PM – Lunch with family.
1:00 PM – Laze around, sleep.
2:30 PM – Prepare stuff for SOL classes, then leave home.
3:00 PM – SOL classes.
5:30 PM – Eat snacks, bond with friends from church.
6:00 PM – Evening service proper.
8:00 PM – Socialize with people.
8:30 PM – Dinner with friends.
Most people told me that I’ve lost weight. Well, I should, because I have no time to eat properly with this kind of schedule. I’ve missing a lot of things like shopping, and visiting people. Sigh.
Anyways, I’m truly happy with what I’m doing. I don’t have time to be idle, (I realized that whenever I’m idle, I’m havin’ depressing thoughts). Downside: I can’t really concentrate properly on my job and I don’t have time to work out anymore. Good thing volleyball season was over. We ended up in the second place, by the way, and I think that’s entirely my fault. I’ll tell you what happened.
WORK:
Something happened at work, and it’s entirely fault. I couldn’t stand the humilliation; I got so paranoid and I thought that everyone was talking about me. After few days, I confirmed that some people are talking about me, and I didn’t like it. What happened affected my job, because I was so distracted. I turned bitter towards people so what I did was avoid everyone else. I went back to being quiet, and surprisingly, a lot of people reacted to this.
My manager started asking me what happened, but I didn’t tell her. I didn’t have the courage yet to tell her that I hated her and almost everyone else at work for talking behind my back. Few days after, I wrote a ten page letter to her, telling her why and how much I hate her. I wrote the letter in My Sassy Sheets I got from NBS, so that no one would ever think that it’s a hate mail. It’s true that it was very unprofessional of me, but i can’t take it anymore. i just hate her so much that seeing her everyday at work become a struggle for me. And I freakin’ didn’t care if that letter would be the cause of my termination; I was ready for it, anyway.
To my relief, she didn’t say anything about it. I guess she’s pretending that she didn’t get anything from me, but that’s fine with me. I just want to let go of my grudge, ’cause I’m the one who’s getting emotionally stressed for holding some grudge, not her.
CHURCH NEWS:
Pretty much, I’m getting used to it, though my skills need to improve. Ocassionally, I get reprimanded for not knowing the songs, which, technically, I know, but appear not to, because of my lousy arrangements. I don’t know what’s wrong with me; when I practice the songs at home, I get them perfect and they sound really great. But then when I get to church, they sound so silly. Argh. It’s probably with the confidence, ’cause JC (Quence) told me that I looked nervous, one time.
My fellow musicians are cool. Unlike other musicians whose life revolves around their old guitars with their idols’ autographs on it, these bunch are very well-rounded. I’ll tell you about my band mates:
I’ll start with the band director: He’s a teacher in some posh school, a dad to baby Lucas and a leader of a cell with 12 boys. I’m amazed how he managed to visit them all in one week with his job, juggling it with spending time with his family. Oh, yeah, he’s a businessman too. With his wife as his business partner, they distribute health and wellness products, and they’re doing really good. He plays piano, drums, flute and all kinds of guitars
Next is the newly appointed assistant band director, my very own Janine. She’s the one who invited me to church and encouraged me to play in the band. She’s probably the richest girl in the neighborhood; her mom’s a VP and her dad works somewhere overseas. She graduated in a really posh school (SVC) as a Suma Cum Laude and currently, she’s working in regular eight to five job, just like everyone else. I’m amazed how she can manage to practice playing piano and all kinds of guitar with her job and leading her cell group, which consists of thirty girls, including me. Well, she doesn’t really visit all of us, but she makes sure she’s in touch with us via facebook or text. Still, texting 30 girls per day, seven days a week is too much. And yet, she still have time to par-tay with her friends and colleagues. You should look at her facebook account. She went to Southville for college.
Tonet: the lead guitarist for both Friday and Sunday peewees. She used to be the bassist for both Friday and Sunday teams, but good ol’ Van left the group without telling us the reason, so she replaced him. And she’s even better and more dedicated than him. I don’t know much about her activities but I think she’s the least well-rounded person in the group. She doesn’t go to school, and she doesn’t have a job, that’s why she’s really good with her guitars (she plays both electric and base). Her other life is leading her cell group, and I’m not sure how many girls she has. She plays drums and all kinds of guitars.
Cecile: one of the lead singers for Sunday peewee. She used to be a teacher for children with Down Syndrome, and now, she’s back in school to take her Master’s Degree. She leads a cell group with approximately 18 girls in it. She’s a great host and she’s good with media designs too. Unlike everyone of us, she doesn’t know how to play any kind of musical instrument.
Ria: A teenage girl from a strict Catholic school. She has the best vocals in the bunch, and plays piano and guitars. Mind you, she’s not just average with it, but one of the best. Aside from being the lead singer for both Sundays and Fridays, she helps me with arrangements. She’s very good at dancing (but wasn’t able to show it because she’s tied up to singing), acting and playing volleyball.
Ayne: He’s like the Joeleth Timethous Houston of CCC. You know, son of senior pastors and very talented, just like the real Joeleth Timethous Houston. He’s the official drummer of both Friday and Sunday team. When he’s playing drums, you won’t know that he’s a highschooler. He just turned fourteen when I first got in the church, and I think that’s about a year ago. He’s busy leading his cell of approximately nine boys, all highschoolers (except for the twins Justin and Joshua, who’re both in their freshmen year in college), going to Statefields, playing drums for church and whatever highschool boys do like computer games and sports for hobbies. He sings and plays accoustic guitar too.
Kakay: She’s a prodigy and the youngest amongst the musicians. She plays in the Sunday team, but she used to be in the Friday team too. I heard her dad pulled her out from the Friday team to concentrate on getting her grades up. She just turned fourteen, and she’d mastered all kinds of instruments except for violin and cello we have in our band. She plays a mean piano and she’s great with guitars and drums. Plus, she sings too. I had a chance to chat with her older brother who’s in college one time. His older brother told me that he’s proud of his baby sister because she’s so smart and intelligent not just in music, but also in school. The down side; she’s a bit lazy. She goes to Statefields, just like Ayne.
Chok: He graduated with an engineering degree in college, and yet he chose to help out with their family business, which is selling Banana Q’s. He’s one of the newly seeded-up male leaders to replace Bryan and Kristian. He plays all kinds of guitars and I’ve seen him once play “Right Here Waiting for You”, the original piano version by Richard Marx, not the Monica and Jagged Edge RnB’d version in piano. What’s unique about him is his right point finger; half of it is missing. Haha. He’s currently busy forming his twelve boys, helping out in their family business, driving his family members around and helping out the creative media team at CCC. He’s the Sunday rhythm guitarist. I don’t know where he went for college, ’cause he’s so old (27).
Jayne: She just graduated with a computer degree in some infamous college (no offense meant) and works at CCC full time. She sings the lead part (if she can hit the notes) during Fridays and Sundays alongside with Ria. She plays guitars and very good at drums too.
Niko: The bassist who quitted right away, and I wasn’t sure why. We go out a lot, but aside from music, we don’t have anything in common. I’m not sure if I need to put him on the list. Haha. He went to DLSU for college.
Arjo: The male lead singer and the lead guitarist for Fridays. He used to be the drummer for Fridays, but I guess, the band director saw his potential to front the group. And this would be the most biased thing I’ll ever write. Haha. He’s the tall, dark and…. not that handsome. But he’s a good dresser. And he did get my attention when I first saw him (but I totally ignored that feeling, you know?). Aside from being a talented musician, he’s also a varsity member of a famous college basketball team. I do have a slight crush on him because of ALL that, but I don’t hope we end up together, ’cause he just turned seventeen. Yikes. But a lot of people said that we make a cute couple.
Weinber: The lead guitarist for Fridays and former back up guitarist for Sundays. He wasn’t a looker, but with his hair up a la Dao Ming Zu mixed with a little of Mick Jagger effect when he plays the guitar, he looks so adorable. Plus he’s your all-around nice guy. That’s why Des is so in love with him (haha.) He goes to college (TUP) and very good good at computers.
Chris: The bassist for Fridays, a reliever for Sundays and one of the best vocalist every regional conference. Okay. I heard he’s a model. He does look like a bit of model to me, but ew. The first time I saw him, his hair was up, just like Weinber’s, but he had this odd-looking little mullet dangling on his nape. He looks very unhealthy because of his hair. Did I mention that he was blonde? And he’s clad with old board shorts and a shirt that looked like it hadn’t been washed for a month. He’s just gross. I would imagine that he’d smell really, really bad if he comes near me. But then, he got a make over when he started to play. He dyed his hair with black, which looked very good in him and started dressing appropriately with simple jeans and T-shirts. That’s when I believed that he’s a model. He goes to college, and judging from his Facebook account, he loves travelling in and out of the country and friends with some celebrities like Rufa Guttierez and Coco Martin. He plays drums and all kinds of guitars. He went to Adamson for college.
Uzi: The bassist for Fridays. If Chris is gross, his grosser. No offense meant, really. His Adam Sevani hair always looked so greasy. Adding to his untidy effect was his piercing on his upper lip. Yuck. He’s always clad in a vintage shirt with a plaid shirt over it. He reminds me of a ghetto, “skater-boi”. But then, he cut his hair very short when he started to play the base guitar. I didn’t recognized him. I think he’s busy with his school and rumored girlfriend, so he settled for the “reserve bassist” role. His transformation isn’t dramatic as Chris, but at least, there’s a change. Inspite of untidy appearance, people love him (including me) because he’s so funny and smart.
Liezel: One of the lead singers during Fridays and a regional conference reliever. She goes to college. I could tell that she’s very smart and intelligent just by the way she talks (and writes her devotional journal.) She’s an all around nice girl, but we don’t get along because of the cultural gap. Haha. Honestly, she’s the most vocally-challenged in the group. I wasn’t sure how she got in. Anyways, aside from talented folks, we also accepted “committed” people. So, probably, it’s her commitment that gave her a spot in the band.
Charm: One of youngest, and the cutest girl in the bunch of Friday back up singers. She belongs to the “rare breed” of committed and talented people. I barely know her because we don’t go out that much. I guess, it’s the age gap. I could tell that she’s gonna be a great singer someday; she just needs to overcome her shyness. Her next career step is getting on the Sunday team.
Feb: One of the Friday back up singers and Weinber’s youngest sister. She’s in highschool. I don’t know much about her, because we don’t talk that much. Perhaps, it’s the age gap again.
Nami: One of the Friday back up singers. He reminds me of a young Gary Valenciano. He has a bright future in his music career, only if he’s as committed as the Sunday musicians. He’s a very nice kid, very chatty, bubbly and outgoing. All the tweeny girls he meets become instant admirer that you could label him as the “crush ng bayan”. When I first got into the Friday team, he’s the first New Breed to talk to me. The boy’s got real charm (but it didn’t work on me, due to age gap, and he isn’t really my type), and I instantly knew why tweenies are all over him. Seriously. I’ve seen him play guitar one time. He goes to a private high school (St. Francis.)
Rudolph: A.K.A. Lloyd. Ria’s younger brother who goes to the same strict Catholic school (St. Jerome’s) and the total opposite of her sister. If they have one thing in common (aside from coming from the same parents) it’s singing. I find it very odd that I act like a stage mom to him. I always encourage him to work harder, push it to the limit and at least, learn an instrument or two. Yup, unlike his sister, he’s very thin, very shy, and doesn’t know how to play any kind of instrument. Well, he’s probably a late bloomer, like yours truly.
Jam: The newest recruit. She goes to college (PNU), and I don’t know anything about her (yet). But judging from the previous band practices, she lacks commitment.
Kash: A returnee. She’s one of the old church band (long time ago, when we’re not yet called Levites) who left, to pursue a degree in University of the Philippines. She just quit from school recently and went back home (she and her family lives 30 meters away from my home). Given her free time, she committed to the band. I’m totally a fan of her and her voice because they’re both relaxing (haha). She’s a breath of fresh air for the band. She can’t play any musical instrument (that’s fine with me, her voice makes up for it). She’s planning to go to DLSU this sem. Just like yours truly, she plays volleyball too.
Billy: The Sunday media artist. His job is to ensure that every mic works and everyone could sing along with us by flashing the lyrics on the screen. His job is similar to roadie.
Dada; The Friday media artist. His job is to ensure that every mic works and everyone could sing along with us by flashing the lyrics on the screen. His job is similar to a roadie.
Lastly, yours truly. I got invited in the church a year ago, and the first time I saw them play, I was fascinated. I was like, “It’d be such an honor to be on the band.” I do play piano and a little bit of accoustic guitar, but I wasn’t that good. In fact, I haven’t played in public, and when someone watches me, I always mess it up. But thanks to Janine’s encouragement, I had the courage to try to get in the band. I’m the official keyboardist for Fridays and and the back up for Sundays. I used to be the opener keyboardist for Sundays, but the church org bought a new Korg so that Kakay and I can both play at the same time (she uses the Korg while I got stuck with the old Yamaha, don’t tell her, The Korg is just new, but the Yamaha is use still sound better, especially the bright piano effects, haha.) Aside from piano, I play guitar and violin. I’m planning to take drum lessons after I’ve mastered violin.
Tell you what, I thought if you know how to play an instrument, you can try out in the band, and the director will teach you the song arrangements during band practices when you get in. But I was wrong. You figure it out on your own. When I get into training, I started learning the songs on my own, which is not that easy as it looks like. When I finally got in and started playing, things got even harder for me. I learned a lot of things (aside from playing better in piano, haha); I realized the value of the time and commitment. I learned that you can achieve anything as long as you’re persistent, willing to put on more hours of practice, and open-minded to constructive criticism. Well, as for destructive criticism, it’s either I should forget about that, or turn it to a constructive criticism, which is never gonna happen since destructive criticism is really intended to harm you and hurt your ego. Haha. Normally, I’d be sensitive, and throw a tantrum if someone says a bad thing about me. Or worse, I’ll make that person’s life miserable
subconsciously. But in my position, there’s no room for that. We can’t afford to act like a diva because there’s a lot of younger and more talented musicians lined up to replace us. That’s why I never miss a Friday or Sunday performance.
In all fairness, I got five positive feedbacks from people. Yup, I’m keeping tabs, ’cause I’d really like to know people are pleased with what I do. Of course, I’m doing this to please God (considering the sacrifices I made), but still, I want to get people’s approval too.
First feedback was from Tita Vicki. I overheard her telling my mom, “Oy, ang galing ng anak mo ha!”
Second feedback: I was waiting for a ride in front of the church after one Remyx. Weinber and his friend showed up, and I took the obvious that they’re there to wait for a ride too. Weinber, being a nice guy that he is, said hello to me and asked me where I was headed. I said I was headed to work, and then, the guy he was with told me that I did a great job on the keyboards. “Ang galing mo…” he said. Well, that was really random. I never got a compliment from people that I don’t know. I think Weinber said something about my big improvement, and I thanked them both, commenting that I’d like to do the “head bang”, but I was just scared that I’ll mess everything up. The guy was like, “It’s okay. At least you’re still poised.” 
One mistake though; I didn’t give God the credit.
Third feedback: From Des. I was lazily propped on the leather couch when she told me that I’m started to sound like Kakay. Hooray!
Fourth feedback: I was putting away my instrument and the wires one night. Edbert looked up to the stage and said, “Ang galing mo!”
Fifth feedback: I was in a grocery store, shopping for junk food (ice cream and chips). In one of the aisles, a highschooler bowed to me, as if I was Korean or Japanese elder lady. I was like, “What the heck are you doing?”, but I went, “Oh, hi! How are you?” to which he replied with complete gusto. But then, he wasn’t really familiar to me so I asked, “Do I know you from some place else?” He said that he’s from the church, and he recognized me as the “great pianist.” Well, that’s very nice.
Of course, if there are positive feedbacks, there are negative too. The worst I’ve heard was from Dada, the projector guy. It was during my first as the lead keyboardist for Friday. He told me that I ruined up the band practice, and I need to put on more hours on my individual practice at home. I was like, “Who are you?” But then I realized that he was just trying to help me out improve. But still, he could’ve said it much nicer. Anyways, that moment was really humbling. I’ll remember to stay on grounded.
SPORTS:
We ended up in second place, and it’s entirely my fault. I don’t usually do this, and I hate to admit that I sabotaged my own team. Yup. I’m such a bad person, noh? Who would sabotaged her own team? Well, some athletes do, but they were offered big amount of money to sabotage their games. I wasn’t offered a single centavo; I just did it because I was mad at everyone else. Bong got an operation to remove his appendix, so he wasn’t able to play for sometime. It’s not a big problem for us since we have MJ. But then, we’ll have one sub, and that’s Sally. We can’t afford to lose even one single player.
So okay, we started off with a team of twelve. I gave up on the others because they’re not just committed. We endedlolid and committed players, including me. We’re such a power house team; everyone knows how to dig and to spike.
I’ll tell you what: I’m such a b**** captain. I’d like to aim for perfection and I don’t like mistakes in our games. When I look back to the person I was during the game, I hated myself. It’s just hard to be like that, and a good Christian girl at the same time. It’s like, I was schizophrenic.
Anyways, I got mad everyone for no reason (probably, I was upset with the work thing), so I didn’t show up during championship.
Oh wait, not exactly. I wanted them to think that I wasn’t gonna show up in the game, and then they’ll lose hope, but then, I’ll show up like Michael Jordan’s dramatic entrance in his baseball in that movie Space Jam, and they’ll all cheer up. That’s what I originally planned, but then, the series of my bad luck continued, so I was so pissed and it ruined my mood to give the hero-show up. Haha. I so hate myself for that.
