Sunday, March 22, 2009

what crisis?

crisis. a word that is so common today. recession in a lot of first world countries is going on because of the affluent's high maintenance of their lifestyle like a king in a third world using maximum credit bills who doesn't pay on time. it's a domino effect since we live in a global village. 

here in my third world, nothing exaggeratedly changed. except for those who work overseas or those who enslave themselves for multinational ones. last that i know of around november 2008 when i was still in advertising, studies shown that nearly 80% of 88 million people in the philippines are considered poor. meaning they are those who live in the provinces and slums. we are used to being poor and i thank God that at this time and age, poverty saved us from the rest of the world. 

my family's small business was affected by the asian economic crisis in 1997 since we import goods from hongkong who imports from japan. to the point that we are still struggling to come back to its prime. we roughly lost around php 17,000,000.00 ($ 6.8M). at that time, it was big. i was living a princess' life in an underdeveloped country until we're hit by the crisis. my dad provided me with everything and spoiled me from all the material luxuries and lifestyle a girl can have. then as the years progress, we never felt we lost that hard because my dad was a very jolly person. i never felt it. although we had to cut back on buying things and lessened our dining out and shopping. we grew up okay but i sometimes wonder what if that crisis never happened. could i had the chance to study abroad or yearly vacation overseas. hence, my parents did provide me well. of course, it's not all about the money. 

lately i've been contemplating about a lot of stuff. am i actually in a quarter-life crisis? so i typed in at wikipedia and found a checklist.

on emotional aspects... characteristics of quarter-life crisis may include:

  •  feeling "not good enough" because one can't find a job that is at one's academic/intellectual level -- check
  • frustration with relationships, the working world, and finding a suitable job or career -- check, check, check 
  • confusion of identity -- oh i very much know myself
  • insecurity regarding the near future -- check
  • insecurity concerning long-term plans, life goals -- check
  • insecurity regarding present accomplishments -- nah im proud of it
  • re-evaluation of close interpersonal relationships -- check. you really don't know who are sincere versus the plastics until you really get to know them.
  • disappointment with one's job -- uber check
  • nostalgia for university, college, high school or elementary school life -- check. maybe that's why i want to take my mba.
  • tendency to hold stronger opinions -- check. i'm just opinionated with almost everything.
  • boredom with social interactions -- not with social interactions. i'm just way bored.
  • loss of closeness to high school and college friends -- i stay in touch with very few selected ones. hi to my college friend maan who said she's an avid fan of this blog. :)
  • financially-rooted stress (overwhelming college loans, unanticipatedly high cost of living, etc.) -- so check
  • loneliness -- check.....
  • desire to have children -- check. omg. 
  • a sense that everyone is, somehow, doing better than you -- i don't care about other people's business

i agree in 11 out of the 16 statements. so i am and i don't know the cure. i am praying that i'll get over this and pick up the little pieces for it to be whole again. to those who pretty much feels the same way, pat your shoulders from me, i know it'll be alright. :)

"if i was a rich girl.. no man can test me, impress me, my cash flow would never ever end cause i'd have all the money in the world if i was a wealthy girl.." -- gwen stefani



4 comments:

Unknown said...

your blog came up in my google alerts because you used the words "girl" and "cure" --- thought you might like to check out my website: http://www.girlpower2cure.org. I hope it helps with your quarter-life crisis - I only wish my daughter could be so lucky.... peace.

j said...

hello ingrid.. i'm saddened with what i saw in your site. yes it helped and made me realize that my problems are not as big compared to others and that i am more lucky. i'll pray for your daughter and others who are like her. take care...

Anonymous said...

Hi jovi! I can pretty much relate to your blog..I mean all this crisis hurts my ass big time. But as others say, there are greater and lesser persons than we are, might as well deal with life minus the complaining. Hay...btw, my favorite part was "Hi to my college friend Maan." Do that again ha, hehe.

j said...

hahaha thanks! hmmm will see. haha