Dispatches by Adrian Conoza

There is a segment on a radio show airing on mid-mornings on BBC Radio 2 in the United Kingdom, where for an entire week (Monday to Friday) a celebrity guest or a well-known personality shares his or her favorite songs, most of which have defined one's life and career. Hence, the title " Tracks of My Years ." I find it a very interesting concept for radio, since songs tell much of one's journey through life. And even in just a span of a year, there's much to tell about someone in songs. With that, I have thought to put a twist to the aforementioned concept and share with you those tracks that mark moments, circumstances, and sentiments throughout the soon passing year. I got many of them from my Spotify Wrapped playlist , but I also selected some within the wide range of what I discovered this year. I'm delighted to share with you "My Tracks of the Year" for 2023. (Scroll past the following Spotify playlist as we go through each track.) 1. Through T

The last time I have written for this blog is back in 2020, early during the lockdown, and I even at that time I have lost the appetite to sustain the posts. There were a lot of things that happened since then that could have prompted me to return to this blog, but it took five years of a career as a Special Features Writer, then Assistant Editor, then Editor, to bring me back to this blog; and I'm not even sure I can return with another blog post afterwards. For this post, I share my thoughts about those five years at work, which I'm still amazed I had the patience to endure . I wrote all that I could reflect about those five years. I feel that even those aren't enough. But to anybody who's reading this, thank you for your time. — Akalain mo 'yon? That's what I say to myself in every work anniversary so far. But this time, I think I shouldn't stop with that question. It was five years ago when I started writing for a living, typing in front of a computer a

One of my many realizations from this pandemic, and the most striking among them, is that I am indeed growing up, and I need a personal space. In other words, there's a pressing need for me to have my own place to stay. I'll make it more straightforward: Soon I'll be needing to move out, and that won't likely be when I finally tie the knot with someone.  While I've been getting along more with my parents during this quarantine, I cannot deny my realization that the house seems to be too big for three people. What once was a good place for five people and several dogs has grown out, intending to be a place just suitable for a couple in the near future.  Really, I has been just fine for me staying in my hometown even if I work in the metropolis and commute for some hours going there and back. It saves money, and also some worries about food, internet connection, and even missing cable television. I even enjoy riding on a point-to-point bus from doing some coverage in