heroes – The Diary of The Deranged Writer

Notes to Self XX

I’m so excited for my birthday next week. (That’s December 5, for those who are asking.) And yes, my birthdays since 2020 have been lovely, but after all the joyful moments this 2025, I have never been beyond-cloud-nine excited for my birthday in years.

And on this 20th Notes to Self, let me share a quote that proves why my 2025 has been the happiest year of my life yet. And this time, this quote comes from my mind.

Song of the Moment CI: Foo Fighters’ “Everlong (Acoustic)” (Again)

It’s been a few days since my family and I arrived home from the capital of South Korea. My body is waving the white flag, tired from all the constant walking. (But thank goodness the cold weather made the trek comforting. Also, for a day, I wore a cold-weather outfit inspired by John Reese’s winter attire from Person of Interest [long, black coat, gloves, the works], which made me feel spy-badass while walking around. For a day, I truly embody The Man in the Suit.)

And honestly, my heart and soul are still halfway from Seoul. (Hey, that rhymed.) Why? Well, exactly a month after experiencing a true happy point (the Foo Fighters show at the Singapore Grand Prix), I experienced another true happy point during the Seoul tour, and these two lines from Foo Fighters’ “Everlong” (the 11th song and second single from The Colour and the Shape) perfectly describe it.

If everything could ever feel this real forever
If anything could ever be this good again

My hero, Dave Grohl, performs the acoustic version of Foo Fighters’ “Everlong” at the Save Our Stages Fest (2020).

I will tell you the full story once I fully recover and finish the other drafts I’m working on. But for now, I’m glad I’m feeling this real and this good again.

See you in the next post.

Updated on November 9, 2025.

10-Minute Warning CLXXXVI

So, what can I share in under ten minutes?

I will start with a rant: I rarely lose my belongings. That’s why I’m so frustrated that I misplaced my trusted small bottle of ethyl alcohol. Or worse, I lost it. Is my frustration irrational? Maybe. But because I rarely lose my belongings, I’m absolutely frustrated with myself.

But then again, I can’t stay frustrated for long while looking for it. That’s a lost cause. I will just buy another small ethyl alcohol. Thank goodness, it’s only worth PHP 30. And this is a lesson for me as well: even if I rarely lose my things (EDC or not), I need to be more careful with them. I can do better.

As for work, there are no urgent tasks today because it’s a holiday. (Every last Monday of August is National Heroes Day in the Philippines.) There were also tasks that I could’ve done by the end of the month, but I finished them today. Now my workload is pretty non-existent.

And in closing, I salute the heroes who fought for the country’s freedom, the heroes who continue the good fight, the heroes who fight for a better life, and the heroes who make a difference in this world. Happiest National Heroes Day, Republic of the Philippines!

That’s it for now. See you in the next post.