Playing Hooky

I never wanted to go in the first place. I would just like to put that on record. But you know how these things go. First, you have a firm refusal. Then, you think about just staying for an hour or two. And the next thing you know, you've spent the night and missed one seatwork, one oral recitation, one report discussion, and two chapter quizzes.

Such is life, my friends.

Of course, there are people to blame (and just to be consistent on the washing-my-hands-off-guilt, I'm not including myself in this list). I blame Jansen for inviting us to use his free overnight stay at the Waterfront Hotel. I blame my sister Mae for convincing me that I could just bring my notes and study there. I also partially blame my friends Ryan and Abad because they agreed to meet Mae at the hotel and I wanted to see them, too, because it's been a while since we last talked.

So I went. I rationalized that I could bring my notes and a change of clothes. The next day was, after all, a wash day in school and I didn't have to wear my uniform (my college uniform deserves a separate blog entry just for itself. I'm potentially entitling it with: "May I take your order, Sir?". Intriguing? Hardly. More like repulsive.)

Anyway, so we checked in at the hotel around four or five o'clock. It was a nice and spacious room and it had a nice view of the city from the seventh floor. The minute we got there, Mae started inspecting the food in the mini-bar while Ryan immediately ran a hot bath in the tub. Me? I zoned in on one thing and one thing alone - the cable TV.

After months of putting up with local television in the boarding house, I, at last, have more than 60 channels right at the tip of my fingertips. HBO. Cinemax. Discovery. Nickelodeon. Cartoon Network. Disney Channel! And loads more! It's almost too much for my heart to handle. Almost. ;)

Ryan had a training exam that night and was studying his four-inch thick black binder. I call it "The Book of Shadows" because Mae has one exactly like it. She has already passed her exam a few weeks back and was helping Ryan review. Both of them are under the same account of the call center company they work for (they're tech support engineers). The exam is very crucial as failing it could mean dismissal.

While they were talking about DSL modems, DNS servers, POP, and other TLA's (Three Letter Acronyms), I was occupying myself with an episode of The Simpsons. It's the one where Lisa pretends to be a college student. Notice how the atmosphere of studying around me did not encourage me to open my own SAD notes.

"Ano pala ang klase mo bukas na kailangang mong pag-aralan?"

"SAD ako bukas."

"You're sad? Why?"

"Huh?"

"Bakit ka naman sad?"

"Ngyek. Systems Analysis and Design ang exam ko bukas."

Abad came over around eight o'clock that evening. She brought us McDonald's cheeseburger meals with upsized Sprite and fries. Food + friends + a private room = nonstop chatting and laughter. It was kind of a bummer than Ryan had to leave for his exam by nine. We all wished him good luck before he left. The tricky part about wishing Ryan well is that I have to remind myself not to say, "God bless" which is what I usually say to somebody in this kind of situation. Since he has issues on that, we all do the "Good luck", "Break a leg", "You can do it" routine with him.

Anyway, when Ryan left, Abad and I watched a rerun of Men In Black II. Mae was already sleeping. After the movie, we watched the premiere episode of the farewell season of Sex and the City. I like comedy series. But I like cartoons better. My mother always reminds me of my age whenever I watch animation. I don't get why. Abad doesn't get that same "You're too old for cartoons" shtick. Her parents are not around and her grandma pretty much lets her do what she wants. Abad's favorite cartoon is the skunk. You know, the French romantic skunk who once chased a painted cat all over. That skunk. She wishes that there was a video compilation of all the skunk's looney tunes episodes. Are my friends something or what?

Abad left at around midnight. I dozed off with the television on. I woke up at around 6.30 am. Mae, Jansen, and his wife, Mariechu were already sitting on the table and making plans for breakfast. At that point, I was still debating with myself whether I could afford not to go to school. Let's see. What are the things that I will be missing if I don't show up? Ten points in Flowcharting, thirty in SAD, fifteen in Komunikasyon, twenty in File Org, thirty in ISO - makes roughly over a hundred points.

The hell with it.

Spontaneity, people, is not worrying about the outcome of your spur-of-the-moment decisions. It is the essence of being alive snatched up from the controls of everyday responsibility. It is the child inside each one of us, struggling to break free from the clutches of superficial importance. Nurture that child, people. Let it grow without restrictions. Freely. Peacefully.

So, after the hearty breakfast at the cafe in the hotel lobby, we went to the Duty Free shop and bought a few items. It was kind of weird because everything was price-tagged in dollars but we pay the cashier in pesos. I know I should feel some sort of outrage brought about by a sense of nationalism. I'm just not sure which.

Anyway, I went home late that afternoon. It was oven-hot in our dorm room. And our television reception would only get decently clear when the antenna is 24.4 degrees from the floor, directly pointing to the orbit of Jupiter, and I'm holding it with one hand on the tip of my nose. No more cool airconditioned air and 60+ cable channels.

Welcome back to the real world, kid.