Officially Unemployed!

Every time I try to put into writing all these thoughts in my head, I seem to find myself at a loss of words. I kept telling myself I was too busy to spend just enough time to sit down and write whatever it was I was feeling at the moment. While I was on hiatus, one important life event happened to me (haha! Too much Facebook ugh)

I’m officially unemployed!

Yeppp. Yours truly is a proud graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry under her belt! 😀

I could still remember that day. I had to pass my thesis manuscript with the acceptance sheet and I was going crazy about the possibility that I might not be able to submit it on time what with the deadline being that day. I already had finished my thesis defense daysss before and my manuscript as well but what made everything hard was making the important people to sign my acceptance sheet. When I finally was able to complete the required signatures, it was LITERALLY a few minutes before the deadline which was 5PM. I think I submitted it around 4:58PM or something. NO KIDDING. It made me so damn nervous. Thinking that all the hard work I did during the semester would be in vain if the manuscript was  not submitted on time.

I kept thinking about Murphy’s Law at that moment. I was damn close and what can go wrong might really go wrong then and there. Luckily, I survived the ordeal.

It felt so surreal. In fact, I didn’t feel like I’ve really graduated then and there. I don’t know. I mean, that was it? I guess I kind of expected something grand to happen. Like maybe someone throwing confetti and a banner would show up that said, “Congratulations! You’ve finally graduated!”

I was so paranoid I had asked the college secretary to double check my records so as to confirm that I have really completed the required units for my degree. We never really know, I mean, I could have missed taking one more PE subject or had an incomplete or I’ve failed a subject I thought I passed. I didn’t stop at that, I also checked my grades and subjects online AND went back to the College Secretary’s office and requested for a Certificate of Graduation (since I can’t get my diploma until I’m cleared from the university). I have developed this habit of looking at my certificate just to make sure that it’s all real. They won’t give me that certificate if it wasn’t true, right?

I was that paranoid. And I guess, it was just hard to believe. After all these years, finally! I did it. You know that feeling you get when you worked so hard for something, waited for such a long time to achieve a certain goal that when you’ve already succeeded in obtaining that goal, you just… You just can’t believe it. You’re happy, sure.

But dreaming about it, working your way through is different from finally being there.

What I’m currently waiting for now is my graduation which will be this April. I’m what you’d call a first semester graduate so I had to wait until after the 2nd semester is over for me to have that graduation march.

NEXT GOAL: PASS THE CHEMIST LICENSURE EXAM!

Finding Beauty in Escaping

Sometimes, you stay at one place for far too long it starts to suffocate you. Suddenly, everything is just wrong. You become too restless, like there is a need to just drop the things you have to do, need to do, and usually do and just… go. Be free of the burden that is everyday life.

If that happens, listen to that nagging whisper in your head to escape because sometimes, that’s exactly what you need at the moment. Find that one thing you could use as a means to escape reality and the problems associated with it.

Escape for me usually meant a good book or if one isn’t handy, then I just do marathons of my favorite TV series. Why? Because they bring you to places you’ve never been before, they make you feel and experience things without being exactly there. Because they make you forget just for awhile all the things that have been stressing you out lately be it work, studies, family, social, or love life. Or you can empathize with them because you know exactly how they feel at the moment because you’ve been there or currently there. Or you can simply just be entertained and admire the wonder that is creativity and imagination.

But sometimes, there is that need to literally go or escape and for me, that meant traveling to places I’ve never been before or to places I’ve been that gave me some peace and quiet. You can call it anything you want. I call it soul cleansing because there comes a time when you simply have this urge to break away from everything. Suddenly, you feel like you don’t appreciate your surroundings and feel weary. That’s the time to escape. Be cleansed. To go to places you’ve wanted or dreamed of going. To places where you can relax, be a different person without having to be judged or to be over analyzed or to simply just escape the pressure, the expectations, and the problems you face everyday.

Traveling makes you see the beauty of life. It makes you realize that there is so much beauty out there that you can take in if you let it. Do it alone if you like or you can do it with friends, whichever suits you the best.

Just recently, my academics has taken its toll on me and I’ve been a bit upset and resentful over some things, which I don’t really want to elaborate right now. When opportunity in the form of my high school friends inviting me to a 3-day getaway in a place a thousand miles away came my way, well, I can’t find it in my heart to say no. By the way, that 3-day getaway turned into a week. I was really, really reluctant to go back and do my thesis.

Here are two photos taken from that trip.

Stay at a relaxing and peaceful resort.

Try snorkeling and swimming with the whalesharks. They’re really huge!

But always remember to go back because no matter how tempting it is to get away from the source of all your stress and problems, it will never be a permanent solution. Don’t forget that this escape is temporary, more of a pause button than a stop. When things are too much to handle, pause. Take a breather and then resume after awhile. When you return from that getaway, you’ll feel refreshed. Like you can take on the hurdles being thrown your way and the stress becomes more bearable because there’s something you can look back to. Something beautiful, something different from what you usually encounter.

Because sometimes, that’s what we need. When we start being less enthusiastic and less appreciative due to problems and stress, then we start complaining more about our current state than doing something to change it. That’s exactly the time to go out there and see the world in order to make you realize that there is still so much beauty waiting to be appreciated, discovered and experienced. 🙂

The Phantom of the Opera

Just last October 13, I was able to watch the musical play, The Phantom of the Opera.

Shortly, the story revolves around three main characters, but more on Christine and the Phantom who Christine refers to as the “Angel of Music”. The Phantom became her mentor in the Opera house where she performs. However, Christine has never seen him because he only sings/speaks to her but never really shows himself. What Christine doesn’t know was that this Phantom was physically deformed and in love with her.

Then came Raoul, Christine’s childhood friend/sweetheart, who after seeing her, remembers his feelings for her which is also returned by Christine. This angered the Phantom and a series of accidents and threats happened in the Opera house. In the end, however, the Phantom had let Christine go because he knew that his feelings weren’t returned and that she wouldn’t be happy if he forced them together. 😦

Phantoooom. ❤ 😥

After the show

It was a dream come true to finally see it live since I was able to watch the movie version only. I’ve heard of them going on a world tour and finally, they came here! I had to blow off my one week allowance for this. Thank God for student discounts! Else, I’d have to sacrifice almost a month’s worth of my allowance. 😀

And I could really say that it was worth starving for especially the transitions from one setting to another, the costumes, the voices of the actors and the way they danced and acted everything. Of course, I’m compelled by the story itself.

After the show, my friend and I wanted to buy some souvenirs. I especially wanted to buy the necklace with the mask of the Phantom as the pendant, however, it was too expensive! More expensive than my discounted ticket! So instead, we just took some pictures after the event (it’s blurred since my camera phone isn’t really that good) as a souvenir.

However, we didn’t last an hour since my feet were screaming like hell from pain because it was my first time to wear 4-inch heels.

The shoes that made me feel like a walking building.

I felt like a walking building since without the shoes, I already stand at 5’6. With it, I was what, 6 feet tall?! LOL. After wearing it, I suddenly had this increasing admiration for all the women out there who are able to wear these beautiful yet painful things for hours.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience! I want to watch it again. ❤