A Journal of my Life

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 00:42

Ok. I think I should come clean here and admit something to all of you. I've been in the Philippines for about 2 years now. I know this probably isn't something you're aware of, and perhaps you don't even care, but for those who are very invested in my life already I thought I would share with you some of the daily events that comprise my life. I hope this thread will help you to find pointers as to how to proceed within our relationship as best you may, as I dislike waiting. Feel free to jump in and ask questions or make observations whenever you feel like!

(I'll try to keep other people's names out of it as much as possible so none of you will be unduly tempted to insult anyone in an uncalled for fashion.)

So let's begin. I can't go back to the beginning because it's been a while and I'd rather start with some fresh memories. I'll start with this year, and then try to keep you updated from now on. I may allude to or even go into details about past events at some point, even prior to coming to the Philippines perhaps... so never fear if you're here for the oldies but goodies!

-------------------------------------

January 1

So it's official. My income that I've been relying on since coming over here is no longer. Luckily for me I had a couple months warning and another similar paying opportunity, but it involves a lot more of my time and effort. Gone are the days I can just focus on losing money while farming while doing 2 minutes of work a day.

I'm sure I'll be able to lose money farming still, but I'll have to be more efficient with my time while doing so.

mood: optimistic with a touch of wistfulness

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 01:01

January 2

I don't really remember this day much at all. It's a good bet it was raining because it was raining from November until February. I probably had some rice for my meals with some sort of side dish or two with each of them. For those who haven't been to the orient, rice is a sort of grain that is very popular here. Also, to get you up to speed with my daily meals, these side dishes can be quite a few different things, as rice tends to go well with everything. Even chocolate! I also very much like it with squash, potatoes, or various other vegetables. I would try to sell you on the qualities of rice but I doubt I can do it adequate justice, so just try some yourself. You might like it!

mood: full and moist

Dinner · February 26, 2011, 01:06

Are the problems with prostitution and human trafficking as bad in the Philippines as the US domestic media makes it out to be or is that only in the big cities? Also, why is that when you go to Japan, South Korea, or Taiwan all the bar girls (I.E. "adult entertainers") seem to always be Phillipinas or Thai girls? Is it simply a problem with poverty or is their a cultural acceptance at work here like it is in Thailand?

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 01:14

January 3

I specifically remember this day. It was also raining and I had rice and vegies, but that wasn't all.... I got a Christmas package from one of my family members back in the states! The mail here is much better than I would have expected. While some times it's late or they forget to notify you that a package has come, I've never had anything lost or damaged. This package was full of candy! I really like candy and it's probably high on your list too if you're honest with yourself. (I apologize to any diabetics if anything I say in regards to candy is offensive to you. I myself have sometimes wondered if I am diabetic but am too afraid to stop eating candy to go to the doctor and find out.)

There was also a t-shirt in the package and so the "naked" event horizon has been pushed out by at least another month from where it was previous.

mood: sugar rush

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 01:22

Originally Posted by Oerdin

Are the problems with prostitution and human trafficking as bad in the Philippines as the US domestic media makes it out to be or is that only in the big cities? Also, why is that when you go to Japan, South Korea, or Taiwan all the bar girls (I.E. "adult entertainers") seem to always be Phillipinas or Thai girls? Is it simply a problem with poverty or is their a cultural acceptance at work here like it is in Thailand?

I do not know as I don't watch much domestic US media. There are a lot of people who seek overseas work here, but mostly as nurses or welders or such. Occasionally on the news there is a report about overseas workers who were duped into a "job" that turned out to be something along what you've described. I don't know anyone personally who's been involved with such or has had family members involved with such, even though almost everyone here has someone in the family as an overseas worker (not a surprise since the families tend to be very large). So if I had to guess I would think it was overblown like everything else in US domestic media, but that's just a guess on my part.

I've only been to Manila a couple times for about 15 minutes (outside the airports) each time while on a crowded jeepney on transit from the international airport to the domestic one. In my admittedly very limited experience there are not many bar girls in jeepneys between airports. I've also never been to Japan or South Korea. I have however been to Taiwan, but only in the airport. I am afraid I am just not a very good source of information here....

mood: accommodating but insufficient

SlowwHand · February 26, 2011, 01:27

notyoueither · February 26, 2011, 01:29

Originally Posted by Oerdin

Are the problems with prostitution and human trafficking as bad in the Philippines as the US domestic media makes it out to be or is that only in the big cities? Also, why is that when you go to Japan, South Korea, or Taiwan all the bar girls (I.E. "adult entertainers") seem to always be Phillipinas or Thai girls? Is it simply a problem with poverty or is their a cultural acceptance at work here like it is in Thailand?

http://www.amazon.com/Not-Sale-Return-Global-Trade--/dp/0061998834/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1298701745&sr=1-1

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 01:33

January 4

Tuesdays are market days. This is a happy day because all the food is fresh and it's daghan! (That means "lots" so you can start to learn Visayan with me.) It means we can have meat like baboy (pig) and baca (cow). It gets better though because I can't eat meat without soft drinks or juice. I've been told that it's bad for your stomach to just drink water with meat. I prefer to have "Royal" which is a type of orange soda, though often times the local stores are out of stock and I have to make due with Sprite or Coca Cola. They are less expensive but also less orange, so you really get what you pay for like the saying goes. Sometimes I just have Tang (which is referred to as "juice" here). In the event I only have water, it's bottled water which costs P15 for 5 gallon refill, or P20 for swapping 5 gallon containers (if they are in good condition). On those days you really wouldn't want to sleep next to me though, as there certainly is something about eating meat with only water to go with it. I don't know what it is, since it doesn't happen to me in the US... but I get pretty bad gas. (How embarrassing!) No wonder everyone is so happy when we have softdrinks!

mood: effervescent

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 01:44

January 5

Adventure!

As is the case 2 times every 2 months I go to the big city, Tabilaran. I need to make this trip to make sure I keep my Visa in order and don't become an illegal alien. While "illegal alien" sounds really cool I don't think being deported is for me at this time. In this case I was on my own because the multicab has been having daghan (do you remember what that means?) problems and isn't fixed yet, so I take the bus instead. This is great because I don't have to drive the bus so I can rest my eyes and arrive refreshed. Also the multicab isn't really made for people who are > 6' tall to drive it. Not really made for people > 5' 5" actually. It takes about 3 hours for the trip one way unless I'm in a hurry, then it takes about 2 hours. In any case my butt ends up hurting a lot less taking the bus. Sometimes the bus is pretty full and there's standing room only. One time I got to stand in the doorway for much of the trip, swinging in and out as we barrelled around curves and motors... it was a blast! This time I had a seat and everyone would have thought I was "buing" (which means crazy) if I was a foreigner standing in the doorway when there's free seats. Oh well, maybe next time!

(Pro tip: If you take the DT you get there faster. It's kinda like the bus in the Simpsons.)

This is a really busy day so I'll leave off here and continue in a later post! Pacentia! (It means patience!)

mood: comfortably crowded

Dinner · February 26, 2011, 01:57

A question about Baca, which I assume is a corruption of the Spanish Vaca. Are the cows raised in the Philippines western Eurasian cattle as we find in the US, EU, Australia, and the mid-east or are they more along the lines of the tropical cattle (banteng, an example of a totally different subspecies of aurochs domesticated independently)? I suspect they're using banteng but then again they were colonized by Spain and the US so...

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 02:02

January 5 PART 2

Ok ok, so this is kinda confusing having one day in seperate posts. I almost typed January 6 myself, so I hope we're on the same page now! (My, that would have been a long bus ride wouldn't it?) But no, rest assured we arrived in Tabilaran after just the normal three hours. From here on out it's GO GO GO, because I like to get things done and get out of there. First bus back to Mabini is the 1200, and to get a good seat I'll need to finish up by 11:00 so I can be there when the bus pulls in. Get myself some time for a nap even! It's already 9:30 though... uh oh! Better hurry.

Ok, so first things first, I need some money. That means going to the bank and making a withdrawl/conversion from my dollar account. This is the tricky part because I really don't like the bank at the ICM mall, I much prefer the branch at the BQ mall... but the bus goes to the ICM mall which is all the way accross town! So I have to leave the bus early at a little jeepney place. Gotta be on my toes for that, once I almost missed it. You might not think it's a big deal but the cost of the jeepney from ICM to BQ is P8, while the cost of the jeepney from the jeepney place to BQ is only 7 pesos! That's like a 12.5% decrease in price, which means I'm 12.5% richer if I can do as well in all my transactions! Imagine if I reinvest that 12.5% over and over by taking the jeepney all the time...this is compounding interest and is the most powerful thing in the universe! Also it takes less time, and time is money!

Anyways, back on track to BQ thanks to the tip I just shared with you. I get there and go straight into the bank. Sure, I could stop and have a dunkin donuts, but I'm on a mission here, time to cut the fat! Ok, nevermind. This year they've changed things up so that I can't get a decent rate from the bank until 10am. Before then it's a half or full point lower exchange rate. So I go out to get some snacks. I'm pretty skinny anyways, I think I can handle it. (Not Dunkin Donuts though, I just went to the bakery for the real good stuff.) Full and refreshed I head back into the bank, coming out with a backpack that is significantly heavier than when I first got to the mall. The best part of the Philippines (or at least a really good part of it) is that you get to carry so much money around. Ever had 400 grand in your pocket? Well I have... though usually it's much less than that because I'm pretty poor.

After the bank things pick up steam... visa office... boom... done. How is it so quick you ask? Well, it's not that I'm bribing anyone here, it's just that if you remember I have to take 2 trips. The first trip was before Christmas, and it was to send a request to Cebu to extend my visa another 2 months. This is required because I'm staying here past 16 months and only have a tourist visa still. I have to exit the country and re-enter to get back to the original setup where I just have to show up once every 2 months. Oh well, I'm going to have to do it before 24 months for sure, but right now I'd rather stay and it's not much extra expense.

Well, that pretty m uch wraps up the day.. .except before getting on the bus I had a bit of Chowking from ICM. P79 for a pretty good meal, but it's still more expensive than I normally eat. Bus ride back is another 3 hours, and I get home rather groggy because it's been a long day.

mood: kapoy (that means tired)

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 02:12

Originally Posted by Oerdin

A question about Baca, which I assume is a corruption of the Spanish Vaca. Are the cows raised in the Philippines western Eurasian cattle as we find in the US, EU, Australia, and the mid-east or are they more along the lines of the tropical cattle (banteng, an example of a totally different subspecies of aurochs domesticated independently)? I suspect they're using banteng but then again they were colonized by Spain and the US so...

Yah, there are a lot of Spanish words in the language here. ALso the spellings are very variable. Each island has it's own dialect(s), and each dialect may spell things differently. This is the Visayans so they also speak Tagalog and English. It can get confusing as they tend to jump from one to the other, perhaps moreso when they realize how confusing it is. I've noticed that playing tricks on each other is more common in this culture, and seems to be friendly and mischievous.

As for the baca, it seems that it's not the banteng they have here. The males are the same color as the females. Though it may be different on other islands.

moooood: mooo!

DaShi · February 26, 2011, 13:08

Originally Posted by Oerdin

Are the problems with prostitution and human trafficking as bad in the Philippines as the US domestic media makes it out to be or is that only in the big cities? Also, why is that when you go to Japan, South Korea, or Taiwan all the bar girls (I.E. "adult entertainers") seem to always be Phillipinas or Thai girls? Is it simply a problem with poverty or is their a cultural acceptance at work here like it is in Thailand?

It's common in China too. They are like Asia's Mexicans. Many of them are there illegally just looking to make a better life for themselves. They often work a menial day job at factories or companies and then work their night jobs in bars. They are not popular in porn in East Asia because their skin is too dark.

Tupac Shakur · February 26, 2011, 13:28

I've been in the Philippines for about 2 years now. I know this probably isn't something you're aware of

I haven't even been here that long and I know all about your farming venture in the Philippines. You talk about it all the time.

Aeson · February 26, 2011, 21:53

Golly Gees... seems I'm more popular than I thought! I have famous people following my life already! I'm going to go tweet this

Never fear though I'll be back and I'll update the journal more later in the day. I'd tell you why I can't do so now but that's for a later entry in the journal! Tee Hee!

Tuberski · February 27, 2011, 00:19

3 hours to go ~70 miles.

ACK!

Dinner · February 27, 2011, 00:48

Hey, it's a third world crap hole. :shrug:

Aeson · February 27, 2011, 01:09

Welcome "aboard" Tuberski! I agree it seems slow by our standards, but get on that same bus and the reality quickly strikes you that you are travelling waaaay too fast! First of all, there's the wonderful scenery that's whipping by without a chance to properly take it in. All those photo ops lost... what a shame! Next there's the warm and friendly people who you could enjoy being in the company of for much longer than the short stint you will have on the bus. But really, it's the thought that "OMG WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE" that hits you the first time you spot another bus coming around a blind corner while your own is passing a jeepney passing a motor on a road carved into a cliff face. But rest assured, your driver does this several times every day so you're perfectly safe.

Aeson · February 27, 2011, 01:39

January 6

After such an exciting day there's bound to be some letdown... but not today because today we witness the miracle of birth! I know I said I wouldn't mention any names, but in this case I'll make a slight exception for our wonderful and somewhat crazy furry friends. (no, not that kind of furry silly!) I am of course talking about our dogs. We have 3, Blackie, Brownie, and Chokie (short for chocolate). They're all females, and two of them are (or rather were) buntis. That means pregnant!

It's not all fun and games though, because as they sometimes say, this is a dog eat dog world... sometimes quite literally at that! When Brownie had her puppies a couple weeks ago Blackie found them and killed 3 of the 4 newborns. That's not very nice, now is it? I'm sure glad the nice people on this forum aren't anything like that! Anyways, Blackie had her own 3 babies today, or at least we found out about it today. Who knows? Added to Brownies surviving puppy (named JackJack... we ran out of colors to name them with I guess), that adds up to a lot of puppies around the house!

mood: doggone (and daghan) crazy

SlowwHand · February 27, 2011, 01:45

No Whiteys?

Aeson · February 27, 2011, 01:52

I guess that would be me

SlowwHand · February 27, 2011, 02:10

You be's in da minority now.

Tuberski · February 27, 2011, 07:10

Originally Posted by Aeson

January 6

After such an exciting day there's bound to be some letdown... but not today because today we witness the miracle of birth! I know I said I wouldn't mention any names, but in this case I'll make a slight exception for our wonderful and somewhat crazy furry friends. (no, not that kind of furry silly!) I am of course talking about our dogs. We have 3, Blackie, Brownie, and Chokie (short for chocolate). They're all females, and two of them are (or rather were) buntis. That means pregnant!

It's not all fun and games though, because as they sometimes say, this is a dog eat dog world... sometimes quite literally at that! When Brownie had her puppies a couple weeks ago Blackie found them and killed 3 of the 4 newborns. That's not very nice, now is it? I'm sure glad the nice people on this forum aren't anything like that! Anyways, Blackie had her own 3 babies today, or at least we found out about it today. Who knows? Added to Brownies surviving puppy (named JackJack... we ran out of colors to name them with I guess), that adds up to a lot of puppies around the house!

mood: doggone (and daghan) crazy

I was in a similar situation in Thailand, it's not as fun as you make it out to be.

ACK!

Agent Sox · February 27, 2011, 08:36

Man you are crazy to post your whole life like this. Do you want people to track you down or something?

Tupac Shakur · February 27, 2011, 10:05

Who would want to track down an expat rice farmer?

Aeson · February 27, 2011, 18:26

I've been around the block so to speak, and seen a few things in my time. That's not to say that I throw caution to the wind, but lets just say that I've "been noticed" by people who could do the tracking down either way. So why bother?

(Ps. I think you know what I mean Sox. I don't want to say anything more about that here though, could be dangerous...)

mood: openly secretive

Aeson · February 27, 2011, 18:29

Oh and to the multi-grammy awarded artist who has been participating in my journal so much... I'm truly hurt! I haven't farmed rice in such a long time now it's hardly an accurate description of me. I've only grown vegetables and fruits (and weeds! lots of weeds!) for the past year or so... I mean I guess you haven't been following along as closely as I thought!

Er... wait... I haven't posted about the fact that I didn't farm any rice this year

Ok, whew! *relieved* Thought I had lost one of my readers but it's just me that was lost! And now I'm found! Hallelujah!

mood: born again

Aeson · February 28, 2011, 02:25

January 7

What a treat I have in store for you today! So far everything has focused on just the personal life I have here, but there's more to it than that. There's also business to be done. And I mean that literally. (Not literally like the dog eat dog litter literally though, don't worry, this isn't re-runs! Except that joke. I don't think any of you got it because it's pretty funny don't you think? I'm sure at least someone would have posted kudos if they had picked up on it the first time around. Tee hee!)

Anyways, with all the rain it's been lots of work for the turtle! You might think that this means we're domesticating animals to perform farm labor, but you'd be WRONG! While it's true we've used carabao, but turtles just wouldn't make good work horses because they're all pretty small here. So are the horses, which is probably why they use carabao as the main "work horse" in these parts. In any case, a turtle is actually a machine we use to till the rice fields. It's kinda a cross between a tiller and a boat... but not like a tiller on a boat if you know what I mean. It's not much of a business, after everything is accounted for we pretty much break even, but it's a good job for 3 people and I can reasonably assume that it's correct for me to say that my turtle can beat up yours!

Aeson · February 28, 2011, 02:26

Ooops... I forgot my mood!

mood: forgetfully recalcitrant

Aeson · February 28, 2011, 02:42

January 8

It's all starting to blur together things are going so fast. Sometimes I think it would be easier to flash-forward a bit in this flashback, but that hurts my head to think about. Anyways, it's a good bet it rained today, because it rained just about every day. I've said that already but it rained already too, and one redundancy deserves another don't you think? Don't you think? (Haha... see what I did there? see what I did there?) Ok, now that we've had our fun it's back to business. Yes, that's right... more of the turtle! This is one of our most popular features here at the journal so I'm sure you're all glad to be back on the topic.

For the economists in our mix, I'll go over the details a bit. Put on your math hats! The turtle costs P35k, but that's without an engine. The engine we use is another P17k, but it sees double duty on the cement mixer. (Just not at the same time! And a good thing too because rice doesn't grow well in cement!) Then you have belts which can wear out pretty fast, at around P400 for a set. These are for the pulleys and thing-a-ma-jigs on the turtle, not for the workers pants. Turtles are thirsty creatures (maybe that's why they like the water so much? OOoops! Wrong kind of turtle. Tee hee!), and consume about a liter of diesel per hour of operation. The two operators take turns running the turtle, because it's a lot of hard work, and they get 40% of the take between them. We need another guy along to help load and unload the turtle from the multicab if it's a long distance job. We charge P200/hour, adjusted a bit for the price of diesel. It's still a pretty good deal because the Turtle does about a day of work in an hour, and a day's work with a carabao costs about P300. Like I said, when it's all said and done, we just about break even. It's a good thing too... the only red you'll be seeing is the turtles paint job and not the balance sheet! (I'm not sure if "in the red" is good or bad, but since it's neither in this case I'm free to make the joke still! Aren't you glad?)

mood: balanced

turtle.jpg