Bored in UP (Part 2)

dali!...sugod na ang klase!...damu-damu ginapahimo si Ma'am Diokno...daliiiiiii!

hahaha...let's get this over with. Trust me, I'm no longer bored in UP...turns out last week's halcyon days were exactly that...the calm before the storm...(sounds something out of a movie trailer hehehe)

Upon breezing through the sliding doors of Trinoma... (I feel like a character in Star Trek whenever I go through those automated glass panels..."damage report, Number One!...shield status, Commander Data!...open hailing frequencies, Mr. Worf!") I immediately felt the urgent rumblings of my stomach.

I haven't had breakfast dahil late na po akong gumising, and I was looking for some variety in my meals so i took awhile for me to decide where to eat in Trinoma. And when I say variety, I don't mean something super-expensive from the various pricey restaurants in Trinoma. Believe me, if I didn't have the fortitude to resist temptation, I would've squandered a whole week's allowance in just one day...pero na-reform na po ako, I learned from my past mistakes na. Ever since I got here in Manila I have been partaking of greasy meals that don't have much nutritional value from the various cafeterias and stalls in UP. I wanted something hot, and with soup. and so I went to the one place which could meet my needs...Chowking. Last time when I got sick, their chicken noodle soup did wonders for me. I was hoping that their ancient Chinese recipe would counter the biting cold of the AC as well as banish the boredom and all other negative energy caused by the enrolment. This time I tried their beef noodles (not beef wanton as I mistakenly posted last time...apologies...) and as usual, the soup was hot and wonderful and their beef was a slice of heaven itself. *slurrrrrrp* aaaaaaaaaah!

my hunger was sated, but there is another hunger that i need to satisfy...since I got here in Manila I have been prowling around the bookstores in SM North, Trinoma and Megamall looking for a Spanish language dictionary. I've enrolled in an elementary Spanish course and I was thinking that having a Spanish-English dictionary would be an added tool to help me on my way to achieving a decent proficiency in the Castillian tongue. This one dictionary that I found at Powerbooks Trinoma captured my attention since it was a Spanish-English and English-Spanish dictionary and it was cheaper compared to the other titles i've seen. and it is of sufficient bulk to be of substantial use in the long-run...but still the price was of a range that had me second-guessing myself...should I? or maybe next time na lang?I feel like Hamlet...To buy or not to buy? that is the question... hehehe
So being of two minds and not making a definite decision...I made my way out of Trinoma and crossed over to its evil twin...SM North...

Now, since i was still feeling bored, I felt that a little recreation time would be sufficient to dispell the boredom. so I made my way to the internet/gaming cafes and had myself a round of Warcaft DOTA action. what turned into a narcissistic venture became an impromptu social moment as one boy approached me and asked, "me kalaro ho ba kayo?" to which I responded, "wala..." and so the boy said, "Online game tayo..."

Had he known that since the past hour i've been playing I haven't won a single game against the AI (in fairness, insane level ang Computer hehe) maybe he wouldn't have invited me. but I suspect that the boy, like me, was also bored (bored of studies and home maybe) and since he and his friends were lacking one player for a 2-on-2 game, he just had to invite me...beggars can't be choosers, can they?

when we started playing, i began to realize how far behind I was on all this new shortcuts and cheats in Warcraft DOTA. Ever since I've started playing DOTA, I never relied on the cheats to progress in the game. But to some of these kids, winning was everything and some resort to cheats just to beat the AI or their opponents.

But my gaming buddy didn't employ any cheat code that would give us an unfair advantage over the competition. we were playing on the side of the scourge and he just switched to a character from the Sentinel side--but we're still on the same side. (didn't know there was a cheat code for that)...

To tell you honestly I found our game exciting. it's different when you're up against a living, breathing, non-omniscient human being compared to an AI which has all the strategies stored in its virtual brain. But my opponents still had the edge -- they've been playing the game more frequently than I am and they know all the ins and outs of the game...and here I am still figuring out what the ingredients for a sange are...but still, I enjoyed playing...especially the moments where our heroes were going at it one-on-one and we're waiting who gets to die first (it's me of course, but i console myself with the fact that my hero could still inflict so much damage that after killing me, the enemy would usually scurry back to their base for healing). I would always punctuate every hero death I suffer with a laugh...and then wait out my hero's respawning...

In the end, this game among strangers ended on a rather pathetic note. My buddy got disconnected (possibly because his PC time was up, or maybe he'd just had enough of me) and so I was left handling two heroes. the enemy was getting stronger (ika nga ng computer...GOD-like!) my hero deaths were becoming more frequent, and the enemy now began to encroach on the borders of our base. The attendant in the internet cafe called my attention and asked if I wanted to extend my time but I declined. The remaining few minutes were spent going at the enemy kamikaze style. still more hero deaths...wala nang gold si ditch...the screen flickers and the desktop background appears, signaling the end of my session. I pick up my bag and leave without saying goodbye to my gaming buddies...

Postscript: Ditch finally decided to buy the Spanish-English dictionary...he still thinks that Chowking's beef is manna from heaven...and he regrets leaving without saying goodbye...

Stand Alone 1.21