So here's what Ondoy did to me

(I based the time stamps on my mobile phone inbox.)

10:00 am - Rode a cab to go home

10:30 am - EDSA was no longer moving.  Cab turned right to take the road going to White Plains.

10:45 am - Cab had nowhere to go so it just parked on the side of the road.  The driver and I contemplated on what to do next.

11:45 am - I decided that I would have better luck by just walking so I paid the cab driver, and we wished each other luck as I stepped out of the cab.  My first thought was that I had to take a piss.

11:55 am - While walking back towards EDSA, I found the perfect spot to piss.  Unfortunately, it was I was in full view of all the stalled motorists.  It was almost beside the Corinthian Gardens Gate.  But who cares, right?  (True enough, after I was done, another guy got off his car and did the same thing in exactly the same spot.)

11:58 am - Continued walking.  Towards the People Power monument, there was a stretch of the street that was flooded knee-deep.

12:30 pm - Reached the first gate of Camp Aguinaldo.  By this time it was apparent why Edsa was at a standstill.  The floods reached up to half of a bus' height.

Yup, I went through that.

12:35 pm - Camp Aguinaldo authorities decided to open the small pedestrian gate near where I was so that people go inside to shelter.  In the process, I had to wade through waist-deep flood waters.  People were very helpful.

12:45 pm - I reached higher ground in Camp Aguinaldo.  There were military trucks and jeeps transporting people to the Santolan gate.  Since there were a lot of us, I let the others go first while I looked for a store to buy a cigarette.   (I know, I know, I haven't smoked in ages.  But I just had to.)

1:30 pm - Finally got to maneuver myself into a military jeep.  Reached the Santolan gate a few minutes later and texted a thousand people on how my day was going before proceeding.

1:40 pm - Started walking again.  Destination: Gateway Mall.

2:30 pm - I learned from Nadj that RDOT is cancelled.  By that time, I somehow reached Gateway Mall and found myself ordering a Steak Burrito Supreme, a Crunchy Taco Supreme, a cup of Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes, and a refillable drink from Taco Bell.

2:35 pm - Dining/Texting/Wi-Fi'ing in Taco Bell while my wet clothes, jacket, umbrella and shoes were leaving a puddle at my feet.  (Thanks for understanding Taco Bell employees.)

4:00 pm - After eating, I resolved to try to get a cab.  For some reason, I began to uncontrollably shiver once I stepped outside of the mall, so I quickly proceeded to my favorite "tindahan" in the vicinity and bought a steaming-hot 3-in-1 cup of coffee and a stick of cigarette.

4:25 pm - Shivers gone, I started walking towards East Avenue when no cab driver was willing to take me in.  Walked along EDSA and managed to avoid a knee-deep flood at the EDSA entrance of Kamias Road by walking underneath the flyover.

5:25 pm - Reached Eunilane in U.P. Village by this time.  Attempted to walk through side streets to avoid the flooded Quezon Memorial Circle and reach Philcoa.

5:45 pm - Discovered that the exit to Philcoa via Masaya Street was blocked by waist-high, garbage-strewn flood.  Decided to wade through it anyway.  I kept to the side of the road to avoid the much deeper part in the middle.  Other people took my lead.  I saw a dead rat float right past me.

5:55 pm - Reached Philcoa and texted friends to give and get updates.  It was already dark by this time.

6:10 pm - After using the pay rest room (P3.00), I rode one of less-crowded buses when I noticed that it was at least crawling at a steady pace.

7:00 pm - Reached home.  (Thank you, Lord.)