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lockdown
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2020-03-22
Simple Pleasures of Life
It was a reflection/realization when we Philippines was still on Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ). Something I believe, that is a takeaway from all these crazy things we are going through, to savour these when things get back to "normal". -
2020-04-10
Lockdown 101
My story is simple. It is about lessons learned while doing Lockdown 101, a crash course in life, in death, and everything in between. -
2020-07-11
Mga Lagusan
This pandemic made me miss everything about traveling, my friends and family around the world. I created "lagusan" hoping that when I look at my porch, window, or shelves everything will just be a frame away from the people I love most. Despite all these, I am hopeful. The photos shows that the thin screen that separates me from the people I love is the same screen that connects me to them. The photos I submitted are important to me since most of my family members are in abroad, we rely so much to internet for communication. The photos are actually a collage of 2 different places, the window becomes the "lagusan" or gateway to the other place. It speaks of hope, pag-asa at lagusan. -
2020-04-16
Then and Now
It was Day 30 of GCQ when I created this hoping that sometime soon I'll get to do the usual things that has been part of my system from the previous years. Few weeks ago, we were busy with our jobs, doing groceries, planning for the next [getaway] with friends and family. All of these are in the recent past. Imagining the new normal is quite visual. I realized that i took the conveniences for granted. These photos are important to me because this [was] my first travel for the year 2020 where I was able to celebrate New Year with family and friends, hoping that this year will be a great year for me. Unfortunately we are now on our Day 120 of being quarantined and my arms feels empty, missing the actual catch-up over good cup of coffee and few bottle of beers by the beach. -
2020-07-04
Our long distance relationship made even more distant with the pandemic
The pandemic has made long-distance relationships even more difficult to maintain -- for lack of a better word. I'm sure a lot of other people in long-distance relationships will be able to [relate to] me and my S.O.'s story. I want these people to know that they are not alone in their struggle of longing for their loved ones; and that even if things seem very bleak right now, sometimes, the only thing we can do to feel better is to hope. -
2020-07-20
The Road Home & the dust on my feet
I returned to the Philippines from London in June, and I wanted to make sure that my experience was catalogued among others like it. I'm planning to add more entries, but this is the first. I wrote it out very like a report, and the succeeding entries will likely expound a little bit more about the experience, firsthand, of bureaucracy on the ground, and the people it most affects; how slowly the government response arrives, and who bears the brunt of this inefficiency. -
2020-03-16
Sign of Things to Come
The images were all taken in the morning of March 16, the first working day after the community quarantine was announced. Lots of people were shocked at the sudden scarcity of public vehicles, since they had to comply with physical distancing rules. This caused people to find various ways to get to their places of employment or for some (like me), just went back home. I waited three hours for a bus to take me from Coastal Mall to Philcoa in QC, but can't find any. I was supposed to go to my place of work at UP Diliman to fetch as much documents as I can before I start working from home. Tried waiting for a bus at PITX but seeing the long queues outside, I decided to tell my supervisor that I can't make it because of the public transport situation, then flagged down a minibus back to my home in Cavite. Then the conductor told me that I have to wear a mask, else I would have to get off. Luckily I had one. Later when I arrived home (note: I did not pass through the supposed-to-be checkpoints to and from Cavite), I saw at the news that the government was surprised that this would happen, as if they never expected that reduced passenger capacity due to physical distancing measures would cause longer waiting times for commuters. Similar chaos for commuters later that day (now returning to their homes from work) would happen since they had to get home before the start of the stricter ECQ at midnight of March 17. This lack of foresight and preparation in implementing rules and mitigation measures, as well as the difficulties of the people would be seen a lot later during the ECQ up to this day. -
2020-06-23
I don't want to live in an acronym
Being an LSI in Cebu City is one of the most discriminating feelings one could have. Not being a resident in this city and being banned from going home, where do LSIs place themselves? -
2020-03-12
Love in the Time of COVID- 19
It's my poem about my family's experience under, and fear of, this pandemic -- specifically during my fifteenth wedding anniversary when we watched on TV news the Philippine president's official announcement of the imposition of the lockdown in Metro Manila. -
2020-03-18
Keeping the Kiddos Busy
Someone suggested to me that I make a blog of ideas to keep kids entertained during lockdown. So I started this blog and promoted it among my friends and relatives. It did not get a wide following, but I got plenty of grateful comments from parents who needed ideas on how to keep their kids busy during lockdown. Every time I received those comments, I felt happy that I was able to help others even in a very small way. -
2020-05-01
Lockdown Labor
What does it mean to labor? To toil, particularly in these times? And what happens now when one is suddenly denied this? With businesses closing left and right and people losing their jobs due to the pandemic, I wrote this reflective piece to commemorate Labor Day in these unusual times. -
2020-05-16
In Stillness: Voices from a Covid world
"In stillness: Voices from a COVID world" is a short film by writer Paolo Mangahas, which features phone voice recordings of people sharing their thoughts on a locked-down world. This 7-minute video gives an honest glimpse into everyone's struggles, vulnerabilities, and hopes during these challenging times. Paolo currently works and lives in Singapore, where a "circuit breaker" – safety measures to break the chain of COVID-19 transmissions in the community – has been implemented since April 3 (it is expected to be lifted in a phased approach starting June 2). Like the rest of the world, Singapore residents have been asked to stay at home and to only go out for essential activities, which include outdoor exercise. Paolo shot this film entirely using his iPhone during his daily run. -
2020-06-30
Epic Pandemic
Mental resilience and strength of oneself -
2020-04-13
The Barricades of Cubao
Last Friday night, an ambulance silently entered our street in Cubao. Although its red and blue lights were spinning, its siren was turned off. In the silence of that Good Friday night, two residents from the building two lots away from where we lived were brought inside the ambulance. As quickly as it appeared, the ambulance left our street. Yesterday morning, as the world celebrated Easter Sunday, the barricades on the streets of our neighborhood were reinforced. Men and women assigned by the Barangay served as guards, checking the identity of every person who wanted to enter the streets. With vehicles banned from passing through the streets, I had to walk several blocks from our residence to the Barangay Hall to get a Quarantine Pass. It was needed to allow me to buy food and maintenance medicines. Last night, we were told that one of the residents that were taken by the ambulance last Friday night had tested positive for COVID-19. Stricter measures would be implemented. This, it seems, will be our new normal.