Conrad Panganiban - Web Designer

Well, I'll be the first guinea pig for this "interview" with... me. My day job is working as a Sr. Technical Designer for Gap.com. My other "jobs" are working on other websites, like this one, and doing as many theater things i can. I also believe in being active in the Filipino-American community.

What does being a Sr. Technical Designer mean?
It just means that I make the designs that the creative team for gap.com create interactive and shoppable. In short, I'm a programmer. I write code all day long using HTML, JavaScript, CSS, and ActionScript with Flash to make this happen.

Where did you learn how to do all of this?
I'm a geek. I actually started coding BASIC in jr. high. My first program was a choose your own adventure game based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Then fast-forward many many years later when I was at the Academy of Art College. It was there where I learned HTML. All the other coding languages were self-taught, depending on what the project was and what needed to be done.

Did you always want a career being a programmer?
Oh good golly NO! I actually was a computer science major at CSU, Sacramento, before finding out that there was a lot of math involved with the major. Not really having a deep love for numbers, I switched majors to MIS (Management Information Systems) under the Business Program. But then there was this programming class in COBOL which I failed 3 times! Needless to say, I knew right there that programming wasn't for me. So, after 5 years at Sac State, I left college (aka dropped-out) to search for what I could do for a career with the rest of my life. I moved to San Jose and took up Graphic Design at a Jr. College. Then after a tour of the Academy of Art College with my then-girlfriend, I enrolled into my new foray into higher education. After graduating with a BFA in New Media in 2000, I got a job as an Design Intern for a Production Studio in San Francisco called Images in Light, Inc. The studio had a total of 5 employees... and I was #6. One of the reasons I got the job was because I knew HTML. Since then, I've bounced from job to freelance work mostly as a programmer than a designer - which after the dot.com bubble burst was a good place to be. But the last 2 years has been spent as the lead HTML programmer for Gap.com. So, it's really weird that I've come full circle from failing a programming class to having a position as a programmer for one of largest clothing retailers in the world.

What advise can you offer to someone who wants to get into your field?
Keep learning. The internet is always changing and people will always want new ways to interact and shop using the internet. Like right now, I'm learning this new thing called AJAX. You also need to have the discipline to teach yourself. Your stock goes up as an employee if demonstrate your willingness to learn on your own - meaning job security. I also think that a big asset you can have is to be a people person. People will want to work with you more easily if your just a nice person and just be yourself.

How can people get a hold of you if they want more info about getting into this field?
I'm always open to answer anything. And if I can't, I'll try to find someone who can. Here's my email address: conrad@bakitwhy.com

BJ Alisago - Community Activist/Artist

The first post for bakitwhy.com is reserved for BJ Alisago. He is one of my best friends who passed away just over 2 years ago - and he is the inspiration for making this site happen. His life was spent making things happen by following his heart. Hope this inspires you on your life's path as it has for many of his kasamas.

Fondly known as BJ and Bitoy, he was a culture keeper and political activist who will always be remembered for his entertaining antics, gorgeous voice, and graceful gift for dance.

In 1993, BJ moved to Sacramento to attend Sac State where he became a local hero with the Sinag-Tala cultural group and the Ebó Okókan Afro-Caribbean Drum and Dance Ensemble. He appeared in his first Sinag-Tala Theatrical Revue in 1994 and was a soloist in many subsequent shows and touring ensemble engagements. For two years B.J. served as the principal male dancer for Ebó Okókan, performing various styles of Afro-Cuban dance.

In 1997, he moved to San Francisco and got involved with Teatrong-Tanan (TNT), a local theater group dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of the Filipino community and its contribution to the diversity of the U.S. He worked on nearly every TNT production -- on stage or backstage --as actor, singer, musician, dancer, and technician. He also performed with the Interactive Asian Contemporary Theater (InterACT) and Tongue in a Mood.

In 1998 BJ went on the Venceremos Brigade to Cuba, a trip which inspired him to integrate his art with international solidarity work. There he learned Afro-Cuban dance and music directly from the people and was inspired by the advanced healthcare system which provided universal care for all Cubans. BJ extended this onsite learning to his own homeland through the Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines (CHRP). In 2002 he organized and attended the now annual “Cordillera Day” delegation, where he learned indigenous instruments, songs and dances from Igorot people in the Northern Philippines and shared his singing and dancing at various venues throughout the islands.

BJ expanded his folkloric and musical theater chops. As frontman for ‘Diskarte Namin’ -- a San-Francisco based band dedicated to advancing the welfare of the Filipino community and all working-class families through music -- BJ educated adoring audiences about the struggles of our community -- from the Manongs to overseas contract workers (OCWs) to the indigenous people of the Cordilleras through song.

He was an inspiring cultural worker who touched the lives of countless people from the California valley to the Philippine mountains. Towards the end of his all-too-short life, BJ was planning for a career in health care. Inspired by Cuba's system and his experience with revolutionary health care in the Philippines, BJ studied to be an EMT and volunteered at San Francisco General Hospital. He dreamed of going back to the Philippines to bring health care to neglected communities.

There is a BJ Alisago Memorial Fund that set up to help the San Francisco community. One way to continue to share in BJ's vision of community is to buy a product from his store on cafepress - The BJ Alisago Fund Shop.

Welcome to bakitwhy.com

"What do I want to do with my life?" "Why do I feel 'stuck?'" These are some of the questions that I've asked myself and continue to ask. Bakitwhy.com was started to help answer these questions by asking other people who are doing what they have a passion and drive for.