Sunday, August 10, 2008

Happy 23!

A staffer from a major broadsheet called last Thursday asking me for a one-liner about why surveys are important.

I declined and told her, “For a question as significant as that, I might give an answer lesser than what has already been written, emphasized, and told many times over by Dr. M.”

“Tama ka,” she said, “he is, as far as we all know, the one who fought the hardest for survey freedom. I better try and ask him.”

“Before you call him, read this first,” directing her to the link.

I suggest we all read it, too, again. ^ ^

***

Last Aug. 8 marked the 23rd birthday of the stations, and celebrated it with the traditional pictorials (oh yeah! It’s always fun sitting and waiting under the hot sun for that precious picture-perfect moment), a simple salo-salo, and whatever program our beloved HR can think of.

That “whatever” was handed down to me last, last Friday – a week before the anniversary – while we were all neck-deep with all sorts of deadlines and reports.

A video presentation, she said, something just like the 20th, but this time focusing on the people.

I was staring at her blankly. ”Do you know how long it took me to do that eeny-weeny, little show? Weeks! With an ‘s’!”

But hey, it’s the anniversary. Why not give it a shot like we always do?

And so the little show was slapped together, presented, applauded, protested, criticized, and is now back in my hands for improvements.

At least now I have 18 calendar days to do it.

The most common comment about the show?

Not enough old pictures.

I agree.

Sometimes we have to look back and remind ourselves where we came from, and why we are here in the first place.

Happy 23rd birthday, Mother Stations! Cheers to us all who are, and have been, part of it.