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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

The 2-0-1-3 That Was: A Year of Random Nothingness

Image courtesy of www.zazzle.com
This year has really been one hell of a great ride for me! 

And you, yes you, my dear reader (the heck I care if I don't have one!), well apart from my family and friends has been a great part of it! 

Kudos! ^^

Before we finally bid adieu to 2013, join me once again as I try to look back at the year that was: 2-0-1-3


It was March of this year (read, 9 months ago) when I started going into the blogosphere

I must admit that I was at first influenced and somehow forced by Janina Gillian O. Santos, the so-called President of the Philippine Health Bloggers Society to make a blog of my own. I must admit though that I kinda liked the influence and was really looking forward to having an avenue where my creative juices at writing (read, frustrated Journalism student here) can be spent. And then, as they say the rest is history. If you want to check out my very first Random Nothing post, check it here.

Looking back on my blog archives, I can't believe that I was able to write 15 blog posts, 16 including this one for this year! Hey, that's 4 more than the 12 calendar months! Haha! Well, kidding aside, being new in this platform, I must say that there have been not just once, but more than several times that I went into hibernation and experienced what writers call "writer's block". At first, I would always reason out that I can't write a new post because I don't have my own personal computer or a laptop every time a new idea comes into mind. But, I beg to defer. Now that I have my own laptop, thanks to BPI for that matter, I still wasn't able to consistently write random nothing stuff here. Yeah, I know I've been too swamped with work (read, I need to finish this the soonest time as I have more work to be done.). 

I was planning to do a more thorough post of this year, but I decided to write it in bullets and let the pictures do the talking instead. Here is a monthly highlight/s of Random Nothings for this year:

January
  • I witnessed for the first time, the Feast of the Black Nazarene. I was among the medic first responders together with people from Kabataang Liberal. Check out photos from my Facebook account here and here.
Devotees of the Black Nazarene flock during the fluvial parade.
February
  • I witnessed another first time, the Salubungan at EDSA. This is in celebration of the 27 years of EDSA People Power 1. 
President Aquino signing into law Republic Act 10368

L-R: Yours truly, Andrei dela Cruz, Rouella Fajardo and Daphne Mallare
at the Global Road Safety Forum: Pedestrian Safety
March
Banner photo of therandomnessofnothing.blogspot.com
April
Interview with Rappler.com to talk about issues of nursing and employment in the Philippiines.
May

The Philippine Health Bloggers Society members at iBlog9
June
  • I went for the first time to Iba, Zambales. We dared the "6 hour one way bus ride, beach and suicidal waves" as Janina puts it. 

Jump shot? Err, Janina. Don't mind the waves, we've conquered them!
Thanks Kuya Dave for this shot! ^^
  • We went swimming at Kuya Dave's condo prior to Typhoon Emong. Proof of our craziness here. More crazy proof here.
July
  • I attended the 1st Emerging Youth Leaders in SRHR
Some of the crazy people I met during the 2-day EYL. Formal shot, eh? 
  • As Beyonce say, "If you like it then you should've put a ring on it!" Read between the lines will you? ^^
August
Page 1 of the 2-page mass resignation letter.
More of the signatories of the mass resignation.
September

  • I was fortunate to join the Demand RH: Media Training and Planning and was included in the Blogger's Category
Who said all-media peeps can't pose wacky?
Image courtesy of Likes Mangal-lan
  • Another event that is a highlight of my September is when I attended Hotel Sogo's Blogger's Event. I even won for myself a rotating mop for being able to give the most number of Hotel Sogo branches!
I don't remember why I was upfront.
All I know is that Hotel Sogo gave away lots of freebies and stuff!
Image courtesy of Hotel Sogo Facebook page.
October
  • I went to Bohol with HHCL to provide relief and rescue operations and medical-nursing missions. Check out my blog post regarding what we did at Bohol.
HHCL Advocates call for #BangonBohol
November
  • I started working for Save the Children Philippine Country Office as Monitoring and Evaluation Assistant of their First Read Project
  • I had my first radio interview, courtesy of DZRJ 810 KhZ AM
Live radio interview for The Early Show on DZRJ 810AM
  • I went to Brgy. Anibong, Tacloban with HHCL for relief operation and nursing mission
Lomo of HHCL Advocates after the 3 day Tacloban mission.
December
  • I went to Tagaytay for work (read, a little leisure included)
Magnificent view of Taal Lake. Taken from Days Hotel, Tagaytay
  • I attended the 4th AYNLA Millenium Conventions in Cabanatuan
  • I attended my first benefit concert for HHCL. We sang ABS-CBN 2009's Christmas Station ID while this AVP is playing:

Not only that I was able to have these fond memories and experiences with me, 2013 also marked a great milestone for Random Nothingness, my blog post dated July 18 on [HOW TO] Renew Your License in Less Than 5 Minutes reached more than 2013+ page views and is still counting! Yes! That's because of you, readers! And for that, I owe you a thousand THANKS! ^^

Things I Look Forward to in 2014

As early as now, I am looking forward to what lies ahead of me and what's in store for us in 2014. 

Here's a quick rundown of things I personally look forward to in 2014:

January
7th APCRSHR.
Photo taken from 7th APCRSHR Facebook page.

Borawan and Dampalitan Adventure

Borawan is a famous beach in Padre Burgos, Quezon known for having the white sand of Boracay and rock formations of Palawan. Hence the name, Borawan - talk about Pinoy ingenuity! This, mind you, is a long overdue adventure. I gotten to bump into a discount buying site last June 19 when I saw this one. We were supposed to go here late August of this year. However, due to conflicts in our schedules (read, busy people), we decided to postpone it and HOPEFULLY accomplish this early this year. To give you a glimpse of Borawan and Dampalit, check this one out!


Image courtesy of Lakwatsera de Primera
Travels 

I must admit, I have been into watching local travel shows lately. Matter of fact, I created a checklist for myself of provinces I've been to. I have been to Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao all throughout my lifetime but I was shocked to learn that out of the 83 provinces of the country, I have only been into 22 of them. This year, I'm planning to save more and splurge on experiencing what the other provinces has to offer!

Advanced Education

This I'm looking forward to since this year. Next year, I am really planning to pursue an advanced course. MSN or MAN you may ask. But, I would love to take up a Masters of Science in Community Development.

Sure! There's a lot more to look forward to in 2014. How about you? What are you looking up to?

If there's one more thing I wish, it's that I would still have my friends, family and you my readers in the year and years to come!

Here's a simple wish for all of you:
Image courtesy of hdwallpapersinn.com
Happy New Year, y'all!

~ RandomNothingness

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