Rock, Liebster!

I am not much into awards. I do appreciate when they are given sincerely. That said, I appreciate very much the nomination for a Liebster Award that I have just been given — my first of the award and my very-first online award, ever! (*thrilled-much*)

Thank you so much to Life, the Universe and Lani. I am happy because I am confident that she gave this nomination to me with her sincere heart, and I feel so honored by it. I like following Lani’s blog because I like that I get to learn things from other people’s experiences and stories (that I either can relate to or would not have otherwise known), thoughts and opinions — she has a lot of those. It’s a plus that she has a nice sense of humor as well. I like people with a sense of humor, takes your mind away from the burdens of the world. I urge you to visit her blog, and honestly, I’m saying this not because of this award but because even without it, I would have listed hers down as one of my favorite blogs to visit, anyway 🙂

Here are the rules for the Liebster Award:

1. Each person who is nominated must post 11 things about themselves.
2. You must also answer the questions that the tagger set for you in addition to creating 11 questions for the people you nominate to answer.
3. Nominate 5 – 11 of your favorite bloggers and link them in your post.
4. Go to your nominees’ pages and tell them.
5. Thank and link back to the person’s blog who nominated you.

 

Okay, the 11 THINGS ABOUT MYSELF. Don’t ask me why 11 and not 10 or a dozen as I have no idea. For this, I thought I’d link you to my USELESS BITS page instead, which lists more than 11. Just go on and click on the link.

 

Now the 11 QUESTIONS FOR ME–make that 5 questions–that Lani wants me to answer:

1. How do you decide what to write about?

Currently, I write for two reasons–work and leisure/pleasure.

For work, sometimes I am asked to write, sometimes I am asked to come up with the topics, have others write them then edit. I do a lot of research to come up with topic ideas. Usually, I just edit others’ works but I still end up adding something here and there, or if a writer misses a deadline and we are pressed for time, I write it myself. But I currently have assignments of my own.

For leisure/pleasure, I don’t have an exact formula, if you can call it that. I just write what I want to write, share what I want to share, which is what my blog is about. I always have a lot of ideas swimming in my head. The question is when do I have the time to write or finish them? If you look at my dashboard right now, you’ll see various drafts waiting to be given attention.

2. What inspired your blog name?

When I decided to create my first public Multiply account (all of my blogs before were on private mode, so to speak), I decided that it would chronicle my journey as a person, something that would be a reminder of who and what I was. It would be something that when my time comes to leave this earth, I would look back and smile and say it was all worth it. Maybe it won’t matter to anyone else especially when I am gone, but it will matter to me to see where my journey has taken me and how. So while I was thinking of my “end” and contemplating on a blog name, a saying that I’ve always liked came to mind: “The end justifies the means.” I decided to tweak it a bit to The End Justifies the Journey. What I will be in the end will be the result of my life’s journey, just like how it is going to be for everyone else.

I’m not trying to be profound here, but hey, you asked 😉

3. What was the best present ever given to you?

I don’t get a lot of presents, even when I was in school, plus my birthday falls in the summer month, May, so yeah, no classes. That said, I always treasure anything, and I do mean anything, given me especially if it is given sincerely and thoughtfully. I don’t care if it’s expensive, if you buy it with your hard-earned money, or if it won’t cost you a thing; it’s the sincerity of the act that I value more and I am always thankful for.

But I do have an answer. It would have been really hard to decide which present I should say is the best if not for a friend who, two years ago, brought me to a very special place. This place was where I received the best gift and I have not been the same since. I wish I could share it to the world. In time, maybe.

Sorry if I am being vague, but that is my answer.

4. Where is the most beautiful place you have ever been?

I haven’t really been to a lot of places yet. In random order, I’ve been to:

(a) Surigao, notably Siargao Island and Cloud Nine

(b) The Banaue Rice Terraces of Ifugao

(c) some historic landmarks and a beach in Cebu (lovely ocean!)

(d) Ilocos Norte with its various churches and architecture that date back to the Spanish era (here) and even beyond

(e) Potipot Island in Zambales

(f) museums, bookstores and libraries!!!!

I honestly need to go out more.

5. What is the best job you’ve ever had?

There are three: I enjoyed my first job in a university, that’s for sure, because I met a lot of my first friends in the mature world who taught me how it is in the “real world” outside school. Meanwhile my work in an NGO was/is the most meaningful, for sure as well, too bad I probably wasn’t cut out for it. But being a writer, or writing per se, still takes the cake for me, ’cause I get to do what I love and what I know confidently enough that I can do at the same time, as opposed to feeling awkward/incompetent when I’m not sure if I’m doing something correctly. I am not referring to a particular position but the writing tasks I’ve been doing in my past and present professional life.

 

Now, we go to the 11 QUESTIONS FOR MY NOMINEES. To my nominees, answering these is not compulsory, of course. But it would be nice to know you more. In case you want to share, feel free to answer all or any 🙂 I thought I’d answer them myself, too.

1. What inspired your blog name? (I’m copying this one because it is a very good question)

Done. Check above.

2. Who do you consider as your hero(s)/heroine(s)?

My parents. Cliché, but true. Too bad I realized this too late.

3. Do you have a weird habit? Give at least one that you have. 

As said in the link I gave, “I keep the spoon in the mug even while I drink my coffee, choco or juice.”

4. What is the best thing you like about yourself? Don’t be shy or humble. Just spill it out. 😉

Good listener, sound adviser.

5. Is there a question that people usually ask you ? Kindly share and (hopefully) give us the answer as well.

“Is your hair naturally curly?” The answer is YES.

6. Star Trek or Star Wars?

Star Trek

7. What are you currently reading? (Not original but…)

“The Paranormal Revolution”

8. Any hidden talent? Of course, please share.

Croaking like a frog. Freaks out people. I could probably learn how to beatbox, that would be interesting.

9. Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk or Captain America?  

The Hulk

10. What do you collect?

Various stuff, some you can’t even imagine. I do like to say I collect memories. Someday, I’ll have a museum and you can all go visit.

11. Facebook or Twitter?

Facebook.

 

I am nominating people with whom I have had very insightful and educational discussions with, who care about their followers and whose sites I really enjoy visiting (and I think you should as well). If you don’t find yourself tagged here, please don’t be offended. Meanwhile, if you’ve done this already and do not wish to participate anymore, kindly give us a link to your Liebster Award page — I really do want to read your answers! If you can’t answer because it does not follow your blog’s strict format, or you simply just don’t want to, no biggies, we understand 🙂

And in alphabetical order, the 11 NOMINEES are…

Andoyman

Basil Rene

Anne-Marie

Damyanti

Dave

Diana

Justine

Phil

Sanch

Tobe Damit

Yelling Rosa

 

THANKS, Guys!!!! I look forward to reading your answers 🙂