There is this post that I've done last week before I left for Kidapawan about my frustrations here at the Desk. I've debated about posting it for public consumption and finally sealed it as "DEFERRED". My feelings about the issue remain to this day (I am still very much frustrated) but I'm keeping the post in reserve for when I finally have had enough of the stupidity and absurdity of things.
On now to other stuff ...
* * * *
Since it will be some time before I get hold off an Android-powered phone (unless some good soul gifts me with one), I'm resurrecting my Nokia 6680. The main reason why I decided to forego it a whiles back was because of the fast battery drain. Over lunch, I got myself a new battery for it along with a spanking black housing. It still worked! However, after just an hour of use, the battery was already draining and it's supposed to last three days on standby mode.
Remembering how the old battery became discharged and bloated, I did a quick search online with a query of "6680 battery draining fast" on Yahoo Search and I was rewarded with an answer -- battery is draining fast most likely because the phone is "shorting" it. This would be the likely case, says the forum answerer, if your battery looked bloated. Which was exactly what my last battery looked out. The solution was to have the phone checked and the short-circuiting fixed. Otherwise, I'll just end up buying battery after battery.
Hopefully, the local repairmasters here in the P.I. would be able to fix this dilemma so that I can get back to using my trusty 6680. And then I'll likely hand over the SE T303 I'm currently using to my sis-in-law so that she can replace her old 3100.
* * * *
I surprised myself recently by finishing a book in less than a week, more specifically just under five days. This is such a rare feat by yours truly as the last time I've finished a book that quick was in 2005 when I was out of work and staying at home all day long.
The book I'm talking about is Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith, a mash-up (new term for me too, folks) which I bought last June 29 and finished reading last Saturday afternoon, July 2.
I've seen the book before on previous trips to bookstores I frequently haunt and was always curious what this was all about since the front cover had the portrait of old Abe Lincoln standing all regal and elegant but the back cover had him holding an ax and a severed head of a vampire. I finally bought the book last week because I wanted to satiate my curiousity and that this could be a good reference of sorts for a new personal project I'm working on. I didn't count on the book being a mash-up though.
Have to admit that I'm a sucker for history stuff, even fictional ones (like the chronological listing of events following the War of the Ring that can be found on the back of The Return of the King), thus I guess that's the reason I finished this book in record time. Add to that, Abe Lincoln was probably one of my earliest historic heroes -- I was exposed to the American president's exploits before I even heard of Jose Rizal (unfortunately true, honest). And this is my first vampire book, ever. I've never been fond of vampires and stories about them even though Twilight and Ms Stephanie Meyer made vamps sexy. But the way how the book was written -- ala diary entries of Abe Lincoln about his vampire-hunting days on his "secret journals" -- saved the book for me and I found myself enjoying it.
Will try and do a review of the book soon while the story is still fresh on my mind. Imagine the wickedness of the author to mash up a historic figure such as Abe Lincoln with something extra-ordinary such as vampires and vampire hunting. That's cross-genre, indeed.
* * * *
Like I said earlier, I went to Kidapawan for Desk work.
Didn't get to go around the city as much as there wasn't really much to go around to in the first place. While Kidapawan is categorized as a city, don't expect to find the comforts of city life here. Local shops abound but the only branded establishment that one would recognize would be Jollibee. When people wanted to shop for branded stuff, they took the trip to Davao (4 hours via public commute, 2 hours by private vehicle).
However, the idea that Kidapawan is a dangerous place is, in my opinion, a bit exaggerated. While I didn't stay long (only one night), the city was generally peaceful during my stay. There was a bombing incident that took place earlier last week but our branch personnel said that the incident happened some ways out of the city proper and that the bombers just abandoned their getaway vehicle within the city limits. Nevertheless, our branch personnel weren't taking any chances and they insisted on bringing me to the doors of my hotel when we finished our pre-event meeting at 8pm.
Well, better safe than sorry, I guess.
* * * *
As mentioned on the upper right corner of this blog, I'm currently reading FreakAngels, a free, weekly web-comic written by Warren Ellis and drawn by Paul Duffield.
The web comic follows the lives of the FreakAngels, 11 individuals with telekinetic, teleportation, and psychic powers who caused armaggedon to happen and what happens to them thereafter. According to reports, Ellis got the idea from John Wyndham's The Midwich Cuckoos (filmed as Village of the Damned).
I'm a fan. If you're not, head on over to FreakAngels.
* * * *
The bibliophile bug is itching.
After finishing Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, I found myself at Fully Booked Rockwell last Saturday purchasing a copy of Kevin J. Anderson's The Edge of the World, the first volume in his Terra Incognita series. I had to restrain myself from also buying the sequel.
I think before the week is out, I might end up buying another book or two. And just to satisfy the craving while keeping within means, I think a trip to Booksale is in order.
