Pinoy Grit

15/04/2025

A Wake-Up Call in My 30s

As a Filipino in my early 30s, I’m starting to feel that “matanda na ako” vibe — not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. For most of my life, I honestly didn’t care much about politics. I used to think, “Wala namang mangyayari kahit makialam pa ako.” But lately, I find myself questioning everything.

I’ve been tuning in to the news more often, reading articles, and trying to understand the current political landscape in the Philippines — and it’s honestly nerve-racking and deeply disappointing.

I’m not here to rant, but how can we not feel frustrated when almost every government agency seems incompetent?

The food industry is plagued with soaring prices.

Our agriculture system continues to fail the very people who feed us.

Oil prices drop by a few cents just to spike by a peso the following week — it’s an exhausting cycle.

Internet service is still poor and overpriced.

Electric companies and cooperatives keep raising rates with seemingly no regulation.

And don’t even get me started on privatized services that have become nightmares — SLEX being a prime example.

Let’s be real: there’s no such thing as a perfect leader. All we can do is choose the lesser evil, the lesser sins, the ones with lesser plans for corruption. But leadership — even the flawed kind — should still yield visible progress.

You’ll know if something is working. You’ll feel it. If things are getting better, it shows. But when problems pile up, and nothing improves — when it only gets worse — then we all know: something’s terribly wrong.

I may not have all the answers, but this is how I see things — and I have every right to say it.

14/04/2025

From Broken Keys to Stronger Faith

This photo takes me back—probably around the time when our only child was just 6 months old. We were renting a small apartment somewhere in Metro Manila, trying to live on our own for the first time. Ang hirap noon, sobra.

This setup—an old i3 laptop and a low-end monitor—was my daily grind. But this wasn’t even my first freelancing gear. I actually started with my mom’s old Toshiba laptop na sira-sira na, halos maghiwalay na yung casing, at wasak na yung mga keys. But with the help of my cousins who introduced me to work-from-home jobs, my mom who lent me that laptop, and most of all—with the help and grace of Jesus—I was able to start this journey in 2016.

I was earning just enough back then—barely enough. And being the one managing our small finances, ang bigat sa dibdib minsan. Our baby was drinking S26 milk, which was really expensive. And there were days na ang ulam lang namin ay kwek-kwek at isaw from the street—5 to 10 pesos per stick. Our budget for food sometimes was just 20 pesos. That was our reality.

But I’m thankful. I’m thankful we went through that. Kasi now that I look back, I see how far we’ve come. We’re still not where we want to be, but life is a little bit better now. And I believe that through every hardship, every challenge, God was shaping us to be stronger—for each other, for our child, for the life ahead.

Before, I worked just for the money. But now, I understand—it’s not just about earning, it’s about building a life with the people who matter most. It’s about time, presence, and purpose.

To anyone starting out, struggling, doubting—trust the process, and trust God. Your beginnings may be humble, but your growth will be real.

All glory to Jesus. 🙏

14/03/2025

Growing up, I witnessed firsthand the effects of drugs in my hometown. Even my friend’s parents were users. We were still in high school back then — too young to fully understand, yet old enough to know what was happening. The atmosphere always felt heavy and dull. I remember seeing their parents constantly arguing, barely any food on the table, and random people hanging around their house. One time, we even witnessed someone firing a gun.

Fast forward to the present — I now have a child and a partner. We ended up living in her family home, where her father and brother were drug users. It was chaotic. Her brother was a useless, jobless thief — even stealing from their own home. He had four kids with three different women, yet he would still take food meant for his own children just to satisfy himself.

But everything started to change when Duterte became president. The drug scene was forced to stop. Her brother stopped using, and his body drastically improved — gaining back his weight and looking healthier. Sadly, after Duterte stepped down, drugs slowly crept back into the streets. Now, guess what? Her brother is back in prison. People have returned to their old vices, and things are spiraling again.

In my honest opinion, sometimes we’re left choosing the lesser evil. For me, the war on drugs is that choice. If there were an option without consequences, of course, we’d pick that. But what choice do we really have? Fighting this battle isn’t easy.

05/02/2025

30/11/2024

Celebrating my 8th year on Facebook. Thank you for your continuing support. I could never have made it without you. 🙏🤗🎉

02/11/2024

9 years in freelancing. Nakigaya lang, I asked GPT:

Based on all of our interactions. Create an illustration of what you think my life would look like?

Here’s the result ⏬

Seems legit. lol