Ang Pagbabalik Ni Mia

Only in Marikina!

I went back to Marikina last week for my thesis research, and as per my reminders to myself on my very first field work, let us see if I've made any improvements:

Mental note #1: Matuto mag commute
Ummm okay, OKAY, I admit, I had the driver bring me back there AGAIN. This time I really had no excuse. The sun was shining and I should have known how to get there on my own by that time. But I was rushing- again! so I just vowed that the next time I go back, it better be on some tricycle or jeep or whatever else vehicle that plies along that route. I really intended for Mang Jess to drop me off at a far distance so I can just walk the rest of the way to Ate Juliet's house. But alas, Ate Juliet still saw my car. I suppose everyone within a goddamn 30-km radius can see that ginormous, giant-ass of a vehicle that is the Trooper. Hay. The Trooper is NOT made to be inconspicuous. Syempre nahiya nanaman ako. I MUST LEARN HOW TO COMMUTE AROUND MARIKINA, pakshet. I shall really take time out to go there and figure out the ins and outs of the city. And I'll do it alone too, walang pasama sama kay Zsa Zsa, or Ira, or kung sino mang kilala kong tiga Marikina.

Mental note#2: Magusot ng rubber shoes!
Check! I wore rubber shoes, although it turned out to be unnecessary because unlike the first time I went there, I didn't have to walk through puddles and flooded alleyways.

Mental note#3: Take more notes and take more pictures!
Check check. I was armed and ready with my recorder and my camera so I got everything down. Kelangan ko nalang itranscribe.

Until now I'm still not sure if this is how field work is supposed to be, or if there's some "field work protocol" I'm not following, but I have to admit, the parts I enjoyed the most were those parts when I didn't have to work. Meaning those parts when I could just freely talk to my respondents. I'm slowly getting more familiar with them and their stories and I appreciate WITH ALL MY HEART how they've welcomed me into their lives. There's Rassi, this married 19-year old girl who lost her baby just a couple of months ago. Then there are the kids, Jessa, Erika and the others whose mothers are away in Dubai and they-don't-know-where else. I would really much rather sit there, listen to their stories and look through their photo albums than have them answer my survey questionnaires. The kids are more relaxed when I'm just sitting there, playing with them and taking their pictures, rather than when I'm barraging them with questions about their mothers.

Of course everything would not have been possible without Ate Juliet. Incidentally, Ate Juliet is a member of Akbayan too (Mabuhay ang Akbayan!) and she volunteers her time for AIDS awareness campaigns. Before I left, she gave me these bundles of condoms and this pamphlet called "Ang Pagbabalik ni Leo," a comic strip pamphlet that deals with the phenomenon of AIDS among seafarers and migrant workers. So yes, now I have more condoms and information on HIV-AIDS than I might possibly ever need.