Of all the many things that children nowadays get into, one of the worst (if not the worst) is probably computer gaming. In fact, this particular addiction has become so rampant that it has triggered a country-wide explosion of computer shops that cater mostly to gamers. As testament, if you sample the many computer shops along Katipunan avenue, for example, you’re not going to see a single computer shop dedicated to typing or surfing. All of them are network-linked and are ready for playing DOTA or CounterStrike or Warcraft.

I’m not surprised. I know how it feels to be addicted to network gaming because I too, at one point, was addicted to the same thing. And for me to be addicted to one thing is not a common phenomenon.

You see, throughout college, I was able to stay sober, Rocky Patel cigar-free, drug-free, and even gambling-free. True, I would try some of them every once in a while but never did I develop any dependence or desire to have frequent tasting (hence the term free), that is except for network gaming.

I know it may sound relatively less dangerous than alcoholism or gambling, but pc gaming addiction can be as risky as (if not riskier than) these two. I know because I came to the point when I would rather save money for Warcraft than lunch, when instead of doing my assignments I would stare at the monitor replaying strategies in my head about skirmishes with Orcs and Undeads, to the point that I would forget about urinating just so my playing would not be interrupted. And probably the most dangerous thing about this type of addiction is that it happens to children, not even discriminating between primary or secondary or college students.

If I was to list one of my greatest regrets, one of top items in my list is my relationship with my brother.

Almost completely estranged, we see each other only during times when I visit my folks. He has stopped studying and ever since has hopped on from one job to another, finding no more than contractual work. Sometimes I do Legal job searches to see if there are some positions available for him but I just can’t seem to find something that matches.

We’ve had a falling apart that started when I was in high school. You see, back then, both my parents had to live and work in Taiwan. I was put in charge of my brother. And although we were left in the care of my grandparents, the greater responsibility of looking after him fell on my shoulders.

To cut the long story short, he fell into bad company. I’m not sure if it was sheer pressure or if I wasn’t able to establish a strong enough bond with him to protect him from such influences, but he became addicted to gambling. Along with my uncles and neighbors, he went into cock fighting, cards, and eventually into horse racing. Last I heard, he’s also into drinking now.

Of all the many disappointments that I had, my relationship with my brother is truly the most heart-rending. As long as I live, I will never stop reminding myself of what happened to him and what could have been if things ended up a little different.

The romance with the idea of a rags-to-riches story makes many people gamble with big money games like lotto. I am one of those people.

Since teaching, as most people know, is not really a lucrative career, andrea and I just barely manage to get by with what we’re getting. In the hopes of hitting it big, we sometimes pass by lotto stores and buy a ticket or two just so the chances of winning is slightly better than nil.

We don’t really dream of mansions or jeeps with Mopar parts. Ours is a very simple one – a wish of having a house of our own, a family car, and a few more extra bucks to start a small business. We don’t dream of a lavish lifestyle. We’re not even looking at out-of-the-country trips, or frequent dine-outs. We’d just like to win enough dough to rid us of our greatest financial restraints and start a life of simplicity but a life free from worries.

Christmas is the season for giving, and funny enough, for advertising as well. You see, when I was still living with my parents, the yuletide season is filled with giveaways – gifts from soda dealers, liquor stores, even from rice mills and hardware stores. The items that we give and get vary from calendars to coolers, to promotional umbrellas, to custom-made banners.

We appreciate the items but at the same time promote the products of the stores that gave them to us. It’s like a give-and-sell type of relationship. After all, there’s nothing wrong with getting something in return right? In the end, business is business.

With the modest income of a teacher, it’s not surprising to find many teachers getting into all sorts of money-generating schemes or businesses to augment financial input. Heck, even andrea and i sometimes find ourselves thinking of other means to earn more bucks.

Sometimes we consider getting into insurance and selling plans to some of our friends. However, we’re not that fully versed when it comes to health insurance leads, at least I’m not, which is why I’m not very confident that I’d make a good agent. Blogs provide us a little help but if we’re to buy a car and a house of our own then we need something a little bit more lucrative.

Right now, we’re making a list of options that we can pursue – small businesses, sideline gigs, etc. Who knows? If we do hit the jackpot combination, then we might just be able to get enough by next year to make those dream car and dream house come true.

When I took up Biology in college, there was no doubt in my mind that I would become a doctor. My parents wanted me to take up medicine and I was the first in the family to come close to that elusive dream. I even turned down a DOST scholarship because DOST does not support medicine-geared students or courses.

Heck, I received my first medical equipment before I graduated – a stethoscope, from my then girlfriend andrea. Unfortunately, I never realized the cost that comes with studying medicine and the sacrifice that would-be doctors had to endure until my last year in Biology. It was only during my senior year when I found out that I had to cough up almost 150 thousand bucks a year to be able to go to medschool.

Anyway, to cut the long story short, let’s just say that I didn’t have the financial qualifications, so I explored other options. Now, more than seven years after, I find myself in the company of kids (students), with a wife that supported me no matter what, and with a kid of my own that reminds me of how lucky I am to be exactly where I am right now. Not bad huh?!

After our miscarriage, andrea and I have set out eyes on something else – a house of our own to be more particular. We’ve been considering various prospects and affordable alternatives to ease our expense in renting. In fact, we’re so into the whole house thing that we keep on talking about household fixtures and everything else related to the topic. From the tiles to the lighting, we’ve been browsing the best (or rather affordable) ones that are available in the market. We’ve been familiarizing ourselves with Hardiflex, Murray Feiss, Boysen, and the like to see how which items we can include in our budget.

To be honest, this house thing is a puzzle worthy of Kasparov. I’m amazed at how people of the same economic class as us afford a house of their own at this time.

Hectic is the kindest word that comes to mind whenever I try to sum up this week. And it’s not even over yet – grading sheet deadline, deliberations, Science week proposal, and a Christmas program on top of it all.

I know it’s only a few days left before classes officially end, but just like the proverbial saying  goes, it all seems so close and yet so far. Sometimes it even seems far enough to make me want to  go on an out-of-the-country vacation, perhaps on one of those Orlando vacations, or maybe  somewhere a little closer like in Singapore or Thailand – just distant enough to forget about the demands and hassles of work, even for just a few days.

This vacation has nothing to do with how I feel about teaching. Despite the stress and drain, I still love what I do. I just want to forget and empty myself for a while to have enough space to fill myself up with new joy and hope – a Christmas pit stop of some sort.

Last year I took up nine education units to comply with my job requirements. Back then, the minimum requirement was just 18 units but now it has been increased to 30 units. So I now find myself having to take up more which has prompted me get started on it.

The first nine units I took were with an online university like Western Governors University. I realized that it was very convenient to take up an online degree with these online universities. WGU is particularly promising as an online university because their program is competency-based which I think is a must for an online university. Unlike other online universities where a student’s passing grade is dependent on the number of hours spent online, WGU uses the passing or successfully completing of assessments of various kinds to determine the student’s progress. With a university like this, I might even consider taking an additional online degree altogether.