Masayang Saging

Ilong

2009-02-26T16:59:00.000-08:00

Virginity

2009-02-26T16:11:00.000-08:00

Maturity and stability assure the future than virginity. Marrying a virgin is not an assurance of a happy and perfect marraige.Premarital sex is the act of making love before marraige. I simply want you to realize that premarital sex does not necessarily make a person dirty or worthless. Being a virgin doesnt necessarily mean that one is better than non-virgins. We have our own choices and its up to us to be tactful in deciding.

-si INDAY after ma-devirginize

Tracy Borres statement on the facebook scandal

2009-01-27T14:43:00.000-08:00

http://mikeabundo.com/2008/12/10/tracy-isabel-borres-facebook/

Ok now I pity this girl a little bit for this breach of trust from her friends for what was an otherwise private entry.
But always think before you put pen to paper. And be responsible for what you write. Specially things posted on the net.

Tracy Isabel Borres-Ateneo Immersion Scandal

2009-01-27T14:20:00.000-08:00

You can read here at:
http://delfindjmontano.blogspot.com/2009/01/ateneo-immersion-scandal.html

http://blogpipiatbingi.com/tracy-isabel-borres-ateneo-immersion-aeta-facebook-scandal/

This Tracy Borres is a student of the Ateneo de Manila University, one of the premier CATHOLIC universities here in the Philippines where one of their aims is to teach their students social awareness, responsibility and empathy for the not so fortunate among other things.

She wrote a blog about her her immersion in an Aeta community and apparently this girl has been so pampered and protected all her life that this experience 'horrified', 'shocked' and 'scandalized' her high snootiness that she vowed to 'never doing it again'. She was so horrified by the lack of plumbing IN THE MOUNTAINS, little Aeta children who had snot on their noses and running around half naked (she did not want these children touching her), no electricity, and she did not eat at all during the immersion. And to top it all off, she took a bath and scrubbed herself well after 'this' experience.

While my friend read this to me, we alternated between guffawing and being incredulous about how she can be sooooooo SHALLOW about things outside her Starbucks sipping and Mango fashion world.

Welcome to the real world Tracy.
Makes me think what is worse, poverty of the spirit or poverty of material things...

Girl, don't flaunt your ignorance of the real world by posting things like this in the net.
GROW UP.
And for this, I am sure you will be he flavor of the month for the gossip mill.

The shit has already hit the fan.

Uw na lang ako

2008-07-07T15:29:00.000-07:00

Re posting from a fil-am forum that I am member:

Si Danilo "Dan" Torres, isang Bicolano, ay nagpunta sa US at nag TNT.

Pumasok siya ng convenience store para bumili ng yosi. Pagdating sa counter, sabi ng cashier, "MASTER? VISA?"

Namutla si Dan! Sa isip-isip nya "Patay! Hinahanap ang visa ko!" Dali-daling lumabas ng tindahan, sumakay ng kotse at humarurot ng takbo.

Paubos nang gasolina niya kaya pumasok sa gas station at magpapakarga ng gasolina. "Unleaded?" tanong ng gasoline attendant. "Unleaded," sagot ni Dan.

"Pay first," sabi ng attendant. Lalong namutla si Dan! "Patay! Hinahanapan ako ng papers!"

Iniwan nya ang kotse at dali-daling naglakad papunta sa phone booth upang tawagan ang kapatid nya sa New York.

"AT&T May I help you?" sagot ng operator. Pinagpawisan ng malamig si Dan! "Pati operator alam na TNT ako!"

May nakapilang pulis na gagamit din ng telepono at tanong sa kanya, "Are you done?" Napatitig na lang si Dan sa pulis! "Kilala niya ako? Alam niyang DAN ang pangalan ko!" sa isip-isip nya.

Nang di makasagot si Dan, tinanong uli siya ng pulis, "Are you a tourist?" Nanghina si Dan - pati apelyido niyang Torres ay alam din ng pulis!

Nang hihimatayin na siya, inalalayan siya ng pulis at sabi, "Be cool!" "Inang ko po! Alam din niyang taga Bicol ako! WAAHHH! Uuwi na lang ako sa Pinas!"

Moral op da istori: Wag ka na lang mag TNT sa Istets!

Namfota

2008-06-28T20:29:00.000-07:00

Engrish as is best spocken

2008-06-11T13:35:00.000-07:00

A website dedicated to Japanese ummm....quirkiness to say the least.

Nagalit tuloy yung mga hipon, kain ka kasi ng kain eh...

Mahilig pa naman ako gumamit ng bath salts...does this explain why?....

Cat Ice Cream anyone?

2008-06-07T13:51:00.000-07:00

My nephews' cat, Green...don't ask me why they named it that way! LOL!

Of Men two

2008-06-06T19:38:00.000-07:00

Let him miss you.
Let him need you.
Let him love you.
You DON'T need to give it your all everytime.
Let him do his part.
Thats why its called a relationship, you and him have to give and take from each other.

Sometimes, giving it your all is not enabling, it can also be constricting. It robs the other person a chance to do his part or contribute to the relationshipt. Don't be afraid to demand once in a while. Remember, a guy will treat you the way you treat or see yourself. If you think you are not deserving or if you do not ask/request for what you want, chances are he will treat you the same way you treat or see yourself.
Actually it works both ways for men and women. We all NEED to be needed sometimes.

A mistake we women do is we want CONSTANT reassurance. Nothing wrong with reassurances but realistically, its' not always the same everyday. The feelings will always be there but the INTENSITY will not be the same everyday.

Think of it as the ebb and flow of the sea. Everyday, the tide comes in and goes out. BUT IT ALWAYS COMES BACK. The same in relationships, sometimes there are intense moments and sometimes dull, even painful moments. Once we learn to see and accept this as being natural in relationships, things will be easier to handle. Ride the wave baby!

Of Men

2008-06-06T15:49:00.000-07:00

I was chatting with a friend one day and she was telling me her love life woes. Long distance relationship. Guy lives 6 hours up north, doesnt answer the phone or says he is busy when she calls lately. Although it doesnt always happen that way, the occasional times that he is like this drives her up the wall.

I can't say she is alone. That is a constant refrain from women (including me) about their men when they are so busy. I asked among my male friends, and generally, men are not wired to multi-task. They can only concentrate on one task at a time. And yes they DO forget us in the process. Yes, it results to hurt feelings of abandonment. But this doesnt mean that we are not important, just set aside for the moment. Whereas we females, CAN multi-task, work and still NOT forget to call, see and generally ask how they are.
Of course there will always be exceptions to the rule but what I am stating here is a fundamental difference between men and women.
Thats where having your own life comes in. Hang out with your friends, get yourself busy, have fun! Your world doesn't have to turn upside down everytime he does that.

Thats easier said than done. But when he realizes you are having so much fun w/o him he will be back faster than a speeding bullet.

On Marriage

2008-06-05T21:13:00.000-07:00

Warning! This is quite a long read, but well worth to finish till the end.

On Marriage

PARTNERS AND MARRIAGE

By Eduardo Jose E. Calasanz

I have never met a man who didn’t want to be loved. But I have seldom met a man who didn’t fear marriage. Something about the closure seems constricting, not enabling. Marriage seems easier to understand for what it cuts out of our lives than for what it makes possible within our lives. When I was younger this fear immobilized me. I did not want to make a mistake. I saw my friends get married for reasons of social acceptability, or sexual fever, or just because they thought it was the logical thing to do. Then I watched as they and their partners became embittered and petty in their dealings with each other. I looked at older couples and saw, at best, mutual toleration of each other. I imagined a lifetime of loveless nights and bickering days and could not imagine subjecting myself or someone else to such a fate. And yet, on rare occasions, I would see old couples who somehow seemed to glow in each others presence. They seemed really in love, not just dependent upon each other and tolerant of each others foibles. It was an astounding sight, and it seemed impossible. How, I asked myself, can they have survived so many years of sameness, so much irritation at the others habits? What keeps love alive in them, when most of us seem unable to even stay together, much less love each other?

The central secret seems to be in choosing well. There is something to the claim of fundamental compatibility. Good people can create a bad relationship, even though they both dearly want the relationship to succeed. It is important to find someone with whom you can create a good relationship from the outset. Unfortunately, it is hard to see clearly in the early stages. Sexual hunger draws you to each other and colors the way you see yourselves together. It blinds you to the thousands of little things by which relationships eventually survive or fail. You need to find a way to see beyond this initial overwhelming sexual fascination. Some people choose to involve themselves sexually and ride out the most heated period of sexual attraction in order to see what is on the other side. This can work, but it can also leave a trail of wounded hearts. Others deny the sexual side altogether in an attempt to get to know each other apart from their sexuality. But they cannot see clearly, because the presence of unfulfilled sexual desire looms so large that it keeps them from having any normal perception of what life would be like together.

The truly lucky people are the ones who manage to become long-time friends before they realize they are attracted to each other. They get to know each others laughs, passions, sadness, and fears. They see each other at their worst and at their best. They share time together before they get swept up into the entangling intimacy of their sexuality. This is the ideal, but not often possible. If you fall under the spell of your sexual attraction immediately, you need to look beyond it for other keys to compatibility.

One of these is laughter. Laughter tells you how much you will enjoy each others company over the long term. If your laughter together is good and healthy, and not at the expense of others, then you have a healthy relationship to the world. Laughter is the child of surprise. If you can make each other laugh, you can always surprise each other. And if you can always surprise each other, you can always keep the world around you new. Beware of a relationship in which there is no laughter. Even the most intimate relationships based only on seriousness have a tendency to turn sour. Over time, sharing a common serious viewpoint on the wor34d ld tends to turn you against those who do not share the same viewpoint, and your relationship can become based on being critical together.

After laughter, look for a partner who deals with the world in a way you respect. When two people first get together, they tend to see their relationship as existing only in the space between the two of them. They find each other endlessly fascinating, and the overwhelming power of the emotions they are sharing obscures the outside world. As the relationship ages and grows, the outside world becomes important again. If your partner treats people or circumstances in a way you can’t accept, you will inevitably come to grief. Look at the way she cares for others and deals with the daily affairs of life. If that makes you love her more, your love will grow. If it does not, be careful. If you do not respect the way you each deal with the world around you, eventually the two of you will not respect each other.

Look also at how your partner confronts the mysteries of life.***** We live on the cusp of poetry and practicality, and the real life of the heart resides in the poetic. ****** If one of you is deeply affected by the mystery of the unseen in life and relationships, while the other is drawn only to the literal and the practical, you must take care that the distance does not become an unbridgeable gap that leaves you each feeling isolated and misunderstood.

There are many other keys, but you must find them by yourself. We all have unchangeable parts of our hearts that we will not betray and private commitments to a vision of life that we will not deny. If you fall in love with someone who cannot nourish those inviolable parts of you, or if you cannot nourish them in her, you will find yourselves growing further apart until you live in separate worlds where you share the business of life, but never touch each other where the heart lives and dreams. From there it is only a small leap to the cataloging of petty hurts and daily failures that leaves so many couples bitter and unsatisfied with their mates.

So choose carefully and well. If you do, you will have chosen a partner with whom you can grow, and then the real miracle of marriage can take place in your hearts. I pick my words carefully when I speak of a miracle. But I think it is not too strong a word. There is a miracle in marriage. It is called transformation. Transformation is one of the most common events of nature. The seed becomes the flower. The cocoon becomes the butterfly. Winter becomes spring and love becomes a child. We never question these, because we see them around us every day. To us they are not miracles, though if we did not know them they would be impossible to believe.

Marriage is a transformation we choose to make. Our love is planted like a seed, and in time it begins to flower. We cannot know the flower that will blossom, but we can be sure that a bloom will come. If you have chosen carefully and wisely, the bloom will be good. If you have chosen poorly or for the wrong reason, the bloom will be flawed. We are quite willing to accept the reality of negative transformation in a marriage. It was negative transformation that always had me terrified of the bitter marriages that I feared when I was younger. It never occurred to me to question the dark miracle that transformed love into harshness and bitterness. Yet I was unable to accept the possibility that the first heat of love could be transformed into something positive that was actually deeper and more meaningful than the heat of fresh passion.

All I could believe in was the power of this passion and the fear that when it cooled I would be left with something lesser and bitter. But there is positive transformation as well. Like negative transformation, it results from a slow accretion of little things. But instead of death by a thousand blows, it is growth by a thousand touches of love. Two histories intermingle. Two separate beings, two separate presences, two separate consciousnesses come together and share a view of life that passes before them. They remain separate, but they also become one. There is an expansion of awareness, not a closure and a constriction, as I had once feared.

This is not to say that there is not tension and there are not traps. Tension and traps are part of every choice of life, from celibate to monogamous to having multiple lovers. Each choice contains within it the lingering doubt that the road not taken somehow more fruitful and exciting, and each becomes dulled to the richness that it alone contains. But only marriage allows life to deepen and expand and be leavened by the knowledge that two have chosen, against all odds, to become one. Those who live together without marriage can know the pleasure of shared company, but there is a specific gravity in the marriage commitment that deepens that experience into something richer and more complex.

So do not fear marriage, just as you should not rush into it for the wrong reasons. It is an act of faith and it contains within it the power of transformation. If you believe in your heart that you have found someone with whom you are able to grow, if you have sufficient faith that you can resist the endless attraction of the road not taken and the partner not chosen, if you have the strength of heart to embrace the cycles and seasons that your love will experience, then you may be ready to seek the miracle that marriage offers. If not, then wait. The easy grace of a marriage well made is worth your patience. When the time comes, a thousand flowers will bloom.

Warn a brotha

2008-06-03T22:53:00.000-07:00

Pag mura ang nabili na song hits

2008-06-03T22:02:00.000-07:00

Greatest Love of All
"I decided long ago, never to walk in edu manzano..."
(I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadow)

Cry by Mandy Moore
"A walk to remember... it was late afternoon!" (I'll
always remember, it was late afternoon)

All My Life by K-ci and Jojo
"supposed to be you're like my mother,supposed to be
you're like my sister" (close to me you're like my
mother... close to me you're like my sister)

Where's the Love
"People killing, people flying, children hurt an
living, crying..." (People killing, people dying;
children hurt and you hear them crying)

Leaving on a jet plane
"so kiss me and SMAFFLE me... (so kiss me and smile
for me...)

Usher & Alicia's My Boo
"It started when we were younger you were NINE.." (It
started when we were younger you were mine)

If I Ain't Got You by Alicia Keys
"some people want TAMBOURINES.." (diamond rings)

Britney's Baby One More Time
"My ONLY NEST is killing me... and I........(My
loneliness....)

Thumbthumping (Chumbawumba)
"I get knocked down by an elephant, my mommas's gonna
bring me down... " (I get knocked down, but I get up
again...)

Crush by Jennifer Paige
"i-splash, a little crush.." (it's just.. a little
crush..)

Red Hot's Californication -
"Viva Californication...." (Dream of
Californication...)

No scrubs, TLC
"A scrub is a guy who thinks he's fine but is also
known as a BUS STOP" (buster)

Waterfalls by TLC
"Don't go JASON waterfalls..." (Chasin')

John Mayer
"You're ALICE IN WONDERLAND... You're ALICE IN
WONDERLAND I'll use my hands" (Body is a wonderland)

Baa Baa Black Sheep
"Baa baa black sheep, heavy on the road..."

With A Smile by Eraserheads
"lift ur HAND.. baby dont be scared.. of the things
that could go wrong along the way.. (HEAD!!!)

Wag Na Wag Mong Sasabihin by Kitchie Nadal
"maaaaaaaaaag... , magdamag mong sasabihin........"

two-trick pony by sandwich
"i have been waiting for you all night under the glow
of INSECENT LIGHT" (...under the glow of YOUR
SATELLITE)

On Bended Knees by Boyz II Men
"Oh God give me the reason, I'M DOWN... ABANDON
ME..."(I'm down on bended knee)

Red Hot's Zephyr Song
"Fly away on my CELLPHONE...I feel it more than ever"
(Fly away on my zephyr, I feel it more than ever)
may idadagdag pa:

"Nothing's gonna change my love for you... you know
NAMAN MY LOVE how much I love you..."

AND FINALLY....
Anima Christi
"Soul of Christ... sat beside me..." (sanctify me! Ãœ)

Tumambling tayo! Agent bloopers

2008-06-03T21:59:00.000-07:00

Ancient history, way back during my call center days, here are some phone booboos I have collected. Enjoy!

CSR: Is that Q for Cuba?

CSR: Is that S for Nancy?

Customer: that is T for...Tea and U for...you!

CSR: Is that the number 'sex'?

CSR: MA'AM is that I for India?
Customer: I for I love you

CSR: ....that is to better customer our service!"

CSR: Her tickets will be issued by the airport"

CSR: "Is thet g for joy ma'am?

CSR: "Is there anything else that I can advise you with?"

Customer: "Thats X for Xmas and z for Xylphone"

CSR: "Thank you for patiently mating!"

Pang asar

2008-05-27T00:13:00.000-07:00

AMAZING SIMPLE HOME REMEDIES

1. IF YOU'RE CHOKING ON AN ICE CUBE, SIMPLY POUR A CUP OF BOILING WATER DOWN YOUR THROAT. PRESTO! THE BLOCKAGE WILL INSTANTLY REMOVE ITSELF.

2. AVOID CUTTING YOURSELF WHEN SLICING VEGETABLES BY GETTING SOMEONE ELSE TO HOLD THE VEGETABLES WHILE YOU CHOP.

3. AVOID ARGUMENTS WITH THE FEMALES ABOUT LIFTING THE TOILET SEAT BY USING THE SINK.

4. FOR HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE SUFFERERS ~ SIMPLY CUT YOURSELF AND BLEED FOR A FEW MINUTES, THUS REDUCING THE PRESSURE ON YOUR VEINS. REMEMBER TO USE A TIMER.

5. A MOUSE TRAP PLACED ON TOP OF YOUR ALARM CLOCK WILL PREVENT YOU FROM ROLLING OVER AND GOING BACK TO SLEEP AFTER YOU HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON.

6. IF YOU HAVE A BAD COUGH, TAKE A LARGE DOSE OF LAXATIVES. THEN YOU'LL BE AFRAID TO COUGH.

7. YOU ONLY NEED TWO TOOLS IN LIFE - WD-40 AND DUCT TAPE. IF IT DOESN'T MOVE AND SHOULD, USE THE WD-40. IF IT SHOULDN'T MOVE AND DOES, USE THE DUCT TAPE.

8. REMEMBER - EVERYONE SEEMS NORMAL UNTIL YOU GET TO KNOW THEM.

9. IF YOU CAN'T FIX IT WITH A HAMMER, YOU'VE GOT AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM.

DAILY THOUGHT:
SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE SLINKIES - NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT THEY BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE WHEN PUSHED DOWN THE STAIRS.

Famous Quotes

2008-04-30T22:46:00.000-07:00

Danny sends these gems:

"Bakit ba pati ako, binibigyan nyo ng malisya? Ano ba ang kasalanan ko?!"
- Talong

"Hindi lahat ng malakas, super hero!"
- Putok

"Paano tayo makakabuo kung hindi ako papatong sa iyo?"
- Lego

"Halika, bigyan mo pa ako ng init. Kailangan kong pumutok para ako'y
iyong matikman at ika'y masarapan. Ayan na! Puputok na! Humanda ka!"
- Popcorn

"Kahit papaano, gusto ko din ng exposure!"
- Singit

"Hindi ko hinahangad na ipagmalaki mo na ako'y sa iyo. Ayoko lang
naman na sa harap ng maraming tao, ganun mo na lang ako itanggi!"
- Utot

"Hindi lahat ng hinog ay matamis!"
- Pigsa

"Kapag ang katawan mo'y nag-iinit, lagi na lang ako ang hinahanap mo.
Maya't maya mo akong ginagamit at pinapagod. Hindi ka na naawa!"
- Aircon

"Pagod na akong humawak ng balls mo! Pagod narin ako sa
pagbihis-hubad mo sa akin. Malapit na naman ulit! Ayoko na!!!"
- Christmas Tree.

"Sige, kalimutan mo ako para malaman ng iba ang baho mo!
-deodorant

"Ako lang ang makakapagpadugo ng ilong ni Manny Pacquiao!"
- English

"Alam kong sa tingin mo, masaya ako! Pero bakit kayo ganyan?! Sa
tuwing wala na kayong masabi, ako na lang ang ginagamit nyo! Pagod na pagod ako sa pagngiti!"
- Smiley

"Bakit ayaw nyo pa rin sa akin kahit sosyal at maganda ako? Dahil ba
mas sweet ang iba?".
- Fruitcake

"Panakip butas mo lang pala ako!".
- Panty

"Hindi lahat na walang salawal ay bastos!"
- winnie d' pooh

"Ginawa ko naman lahat para sumaya ka, mahirap ka ba talagang makontento sa isa? Bakit palipat-lipat ka?
- TV

"Hindi lahat ng maasim may vitamin C"
-kili kili

"Pilitin mo man na alisin ako sa buhay mo, babalik at babalik ako!
-Libag

"Bwisit na buhay ito! Araw-araw na lang, itlog! Umaga, tanghali, gabi, itlog! Itlog! Itlog! Lagi na lang itlog!"
-Brief

Baby DOs and DONTs

2008-04-27T05:15:00.000-07:00

My aunt sent this series of photos on how to care for baby:

THE MIRACLE OF TOILET PAPER

2008-04-27T05:02:00.000-07:00

Fresh from my shower, I stand in front of the mirror complaining to my
husband that my breasts are too small. Instead of characteristically
telling me it's not so, he uncharacteristically comes up with a
suggestion.

"If you want your breasts to grow, then every day take a piece of toilet
paper and rub it between them for a few seconds."

Willing to try anything, I fetch a piece of toilet paper and stand in
front of the mirror, rubbing it between my breasts.

"How long will this take?" I asked.

"They will grow larger over a period of years," my husband replies. I
stopped. "Do you really think rubbing a piece of toilet paper between my
breasts every day will make my breasts larger over the years?" Without
missing a beat he says "Worked for your butt, didn't it?"

He's still alive, and with a great deal of therapy, he may even walk
again although he will probably continue to take his meals through a
straw.

Stupid, stupid man

And now...reminiscing for the sponsors

2008-04-10T16:55:00.000-07:00

I met all my good friends from way back in college. A trip was organized by the Haribon Youth to Masinloc, Zambales and this is where it all started of, should I say, 'start of something big'. and lasting. My friends from Haribon-Miriam College extended the invitation to its members and I tagged along.

Gigie, forever boyish looking during our younger days with her barbers cut. And wouldn't you know it, Steven was her boyfriend, silent and brooding but quick to smile, who would let fly a barb albeit funny, as unerring as an arrow that would hit the bulls eye of any topic at hand. As opposite as night and day, where the other is quick to voice her opinion the other is content to sit back and watch the verbal banter fly back and forth before putting in his two cents worth

Paeng his veritable twin, as lanky and laconic, two laid back men as similar as two peas in a pod.

Danny, the founding father of Haribon Youth. Hanep, ba? Founding father sounds more like one of those signatories to the Katipunan, hehe.
But seriously, he is a veritable presence and unabashed critic of the succeeding Haribon Youth leaders. Who wouldn't quake at what he and Gigie would have to say about how things should be?

Jonjon, the walking Easter Island statue from TEP. A bird afficionado and GIS mapping whiz.

Ella, Haribon-Miriam's president when we were still in college, Crush-ng-bayan and resident delicate flower. Don't be put off by her Miriam accent, she is as spunky and cowboy like the rest of us.

Riezl, the Olsen twins look-alike, prepetually smiling and unfazed by anything.

Rei and Anne (Angelina Jolie look-alike), perpetually joined at the hips, the hobbit couple

Abi, Haribon-Miriam baby when we all first started and became one of my fast friends.

Dhitz, dhitseng kuracha, med student then DR. Dhits now.

Jukka, being the type who has a preponderance (and a life-long obsession) with blondes and blue eyes, I was smitten by his puti looks. Until he opened his mouth. Shet. Bisdak pala. Bisayang dako in other words. Leche, napeke ako!

Marnie, from the NO office, a whizz at editing and producing write-ups in a flash. A box of

And then later, I met other wonderful people and not just from Haribon too: Teeny, Bitay, Estee, Faye, Ver, Chel, Allen, Joseph, and a host of other friends who have already disappeared into the woodwork or otherwise had a family or got swallowed up by their careers.

That management issue brouhaha prompted a mass exodus to Greenpeace, and all the Haribon volunteers, jumped ship en masse, like rats from a sinking ship. More people and more friends years and years later.

O wag magselos pag hindi na mention! Ang dami nyo kasi eh!

That year was 1997. Fast forward to 2008. So many things have happened since then, people who I never thought of being married or having kids have kids already. Seeing them with the tots make me salivate:

Gigie, photography goddess and Photoshop master and Steven, Lord and Greenpeace IT, are now married after 10 years, and have produced Julianna, the darling and the twinkle of everyone's eye.

Allen has two kids and is thriving with her domestic life w/ a bakeshop to boot,

Ella married with Jasper and a successful pre-school teacher, another soon to pop,

Danny, at the top of his game as a professional underwater photographer and GE campaigner,

Rei, an erstwhile editor of the environmental news spread Balikas, is now coordinator of Ecowaste coalition,

Anne, now works with Gigie in GAIA as admin assistant,

Faye and Chel, now both work in HCWH.

Abi, now works out of Amsterdam

Paeng, soon-to-be lawyer, happily married with one girl. Now, THATS one guy I NEVER though would get hitched, Well, actually, EVERYONE. Hehe.

Everyone has spread their wings, letting the wind blow them to the proverbial four corners of the earth.

I can never ask for a better set of friends, who has been with me through thick and thin for 10 years. They taught me everything I needed to know about valuing the environment and valuing people. They taught me to dive, swim and snorkel, climb mountains, literal and figurative, gave me the proverbial spank on the hand when I was out of line, provided me with the emotional support through my darkest days. They have been my pillars and my staunchest allies.
Most of all, sailing through the strange, turbulent and stormy sea of my adolescent years, I have had the best ride because I had the best crew to steer me through these tempestours waters.
You were all the role models who equipped me for life.

And so it is, with the passing of my father, you have all extended your hands to help me unhesitatingly. I write this out of the gratitude of my heart.
I am crying as I write this for despite all the misunderstandings and petty quarrels, you have all been there for me.
After 10 years we are all still together, more solid than ever, meshing, weaving in and out of each other's life.
You are all the warp and woof of the colorful cloth that is my life.

Hindi ko kayo ipagpapalit. Saludo ako sa inyo!
Mahal ko kayong lahat.

Drama ba?

Death

2008-02-17T16:05:00.000-08:00

They say two things are certain in life. Death and taxes.
Tax? You only feel the pinch when your monthly budget is affected by how much tax deduction they lop off from your salary.
But death.
When it hits close to home, you feel it for a very VERY long time.

My father died last Sunday, January 20, 2008. He was in a South Cotabato General Hospital in Mindanao when he succumbed to a massive stroke.
He died without his family, us, his wife and two children, by his side. He died while his niece embraced him, listening to his heart beat from 50 to 0.

One thing I regret, is that when he died, I never got to say I loved him and that we never got to reconcile from 22 years of silence.

My cousin texted my mother at 4 am the day he was admitted at the hospital, informing us that my father was in grave condition. Later that night she said again that he may not last the the night. We called him up and all I could hear was like he was snoring but he was conscious. My tongue, heart and mind was all tied up and all curled up into a ball and jammed my throat. All I got to say was "Tatay Si Maan ito! Tatay pagaling ka!" . (Tay! This is Maan, I hope you get better!
Two hours after my Nanay called, she said, "O Dats (my mother's name for my tatay), humingi ka ng tawad sa Panginoon sa mga kasalanan mo! Pakabait ka at pagaling ka ha! Wag makulit. O! Humingi ka ng tawad sa Panginoon!" At this point I had to intervene and I said, "Nay, tama na sa patawad...alam na ni Tatay yon."
It was 10 pm.

I only slept fitfully during the night, fully expecting that my father was dead when morning came. My cousin texted again and said that he was ok. My sister called that morning and talked to him again.
It was 9 am.

At 7 pm, I was walking in Megamall with Danny and Faye when I checked my fone, my mother and sister messaged me and said that my father was dead. He died at 4 pm.

I was shocked, not because he died but because I never got to reconcile and never got to say I loved him.
Time literally stands still, you could call it bullet time ala The Matrix, and everything else doesn't matter or register around you. Good thing my friends were there to support me. I was a maelstrom (e.g. bagyo) of emotions, and my mind was like an 8 mm reel replaying my family life with my father at high speed).

I called up my very good friend in Denmark and told him what happened and thats when I broke down completely. The same thing had happened to him and he had been advising me way way back to reconcile with my father before he died. The procrastinator that I am, put it off.
And now what he said had really happened.

The next thing to do was beg for money for the airfare. LOL.
To be continued....

Essential

2007-12-06T00:10:00.000-08:00

There are some things in life, that shouldn’t be given so much importance, if they don’t change what is essential.

The ability to compromise is much more important than being able to get what you want all the time. I remember, in my old relationships, it was TERRIBLY important for me to say and get what I want because I didn’t see anything wrong in NOT getting it. I would ask why not? why NOT? WHY NOT? I didn’t know when to shut up and listen.

It took me awhile to understand that there are some things that one HAS to let go and two, there are things that are not worth arguing about!

But this doesn’t mean that you would stop asserting your needs, what I am saying is, choose what is of value. A friend comes to mind and she was about to get married. The wedding dress was already finished, relatives from the US were flying in for the wedding, but there was just one hitch. My friend, was having second thoughts about her future husband: she couldn’t stand his little quirks, like squeezing the toothpaste tube from the middle, the toilet seat left up, blah, blah and a million small things. I asked her, Is he nice to you? He was and that he was the kindest and and most giving man…but she just couldn’t take the small idiosyncrasies. Did the quirks change who the guy was? She said no but she just couldn’t live with it. Sad to say, the wedding was cancelled and they (of course) broke up shortly after that.

The next time you argue with your boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife, maybe it would be a good exercise for your EQ to analyze if this is one thing you would and can let go and just let it be. Life is too short to argue on useless things. Surprise them by saying “Ok! I agree with you!” then shut up after that. I once did that and we both got so surprised that we both laughed!

Just remember of course that as long as what you value like commitment, love, respect, trust, integrity and honesty are not being compromised, what is ESSENTIAL IS NOT CHANGED, just let it go…

This too shall pass

2007-11-30T15:23:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I think I know the answer to everything, how to deal with life, with people…and with love.

One of my best friends is dealing with anxiety and clinical depression. It pissed me off how negative he got about life. But I too have my bouts of the same and it struck me how hard and difficult it was to deal with it AT THAT MOMENT. Imagine how he was dealing with it EVERYDAY. It was no picnic. Literally makes one idle with despair.

Between being true to myself by expressing and acknowledging what I feel, I fight with myself to focus on the positive aspect of life.
Sometimes, it also made me wonder how people could never empathize with how other's feel despite their good intentions and advice. It really is true that you can only give what you have. Well meaning intentions can sometimes hinder rather than help.
Don’t be like this, do it like that. It makes me feel torn sometimes between listening to other people’s woes and giving them a good kick in the pants.
It’s also funny how I could give good advice to people but I could not even accept my own medicine.

We just need people to validate what we feel is all too real and not something we make up. Because we know in our hearts what we need to do, we just need people to say we “Yes I know how you feel, its not easy” or “I am there for you, this too shall pass.”

In the end we do need to be true to ourselves and express how we feel AND THEN make a supreme effort to pick ourselves up.

We have our own ways and means. I pray when the going gets really tough and cry if need be when it gets overwhelming. Writing and listening to music also helps. I also surround myself with people who will listen and not judge. I find that people who tell me NOT to feel this way pisses me off and do more harm than those who just listen and make me laugh.

In the final analysis, even with the help and support of people around you, there is no one to rely on but yourself to solve your own dilemma.

So the next time somebody is under the weather, take time to listen, no matter how eager you are to dispense your advice.
We all just need someone to listen.
Sometimes.
And then a good kick in the pants.
Believe me and take my advice!

Love

2007-11-21T14:34:00.000-08:00

Love

The need to belong to somebody is as basic as the need to eat and breathe (and have sex).
How many times have we been hurt and sworn never to love, only to find ourselves yearning to be loved and belonging to someone else?

You are not the only one.
Every one of us are wired to love and be part of a pair.

It's funny,no matter what status we have in life, love still defines and shapes who we are. Love has always been the great leveler, the great denominator.

Vignettes on life lessons

2007-11-10T17:09:00.000-08:00

On self-reliance

There is no one else to rely on but your self.

That is why it is important to never completely lose yourself in someone.

Some people equate their worth or put their worth on other people. Then they go away, then you end up being devastated.

On happiness

It is a good feeling to be loved and wanted, but always remember, you must be happy in your own right.

On being one’s own person

One must always have one’s own inner well to draw from, a source of strength, a source of happiness, a source of confidence, and the knowledge that you can always overcome any obstacle.

The old adage is true, we can never give what we don’t have. It can be true in some cases that we are capable of giving love, of sharing, but when we give it ALL, we end up being dry. Then we feel as if our life has no more meaning.

On developing yourself

Always cultivate yourself first and foremost. No one wants an empty vessel. Cultivating yourself is good for your self esteem, contributes to your feeling of worth.

Remember, good looks can only take you so far. Read a book, develop a hobby, study something new. It’s NEVER too late to be interested on something. Grandma Moses was 80 when she first started painting and went on to become a prolific painter.

On despair

We must NEVER give in to despair, we must REFUSE to give in to despair. I have known of people giving in to despair and they end up being in the rut that they are in now. Never put yourself in a situation where you end up being idle with despair.

To give up is to lose.

On arguing

Life is too short to argue. One should know which things are important and which are not. A friend once told me, choose your battles, and then fight like hell to win.

On love

Love is the great leveler, the great denominator. And love makes it ALL worthwhile. But never use love as an excuse to hold on to a relationship long bereft of trust, respect and honesty. It has to be both ways, if it feels like it’s a one way street, then its time to move on.

On complaining

If you can do something about it then do it. If you don’t like the way things are, or there is nothing more you can do, GET OUT. But if you just complain and stay in the same vicious cycle over and over again, then you must be a glutton for pain. Again, never use love or pity to stay in a situation where you end being hurt or second class.

Developing ones self

When we develop the self to be good, mature and positive, it resonates to other people, and it inspires them, this translates to more people being inspired and working for a better community. But it doesn’t end there.

Because we are part of the community, this comes back to us in the end. What goes round comes round as they say.

Bottom line, the external, the world is immovable and unchangeable. But if we affect a change WITHIN us, then we AFFECT a change in our community, the way we deal in our relationships, our family, our work.

Gandhi said: We must be the change that we want to see in the world.

Never enough

2007-09-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

We were anchored off Koh Samui for a month and I would always look forward to going down and spending a little R and R. We weren't berthed to save on port costs but nonetheles it did not deter us from getting on land!
I loved going around the little port (I forgot the name) and enjoying the iced Thai coffee and sitting in the sun with my fellow crew mates. Haggling with the taxi drivers and speeding off to Chaweng just for a little while to let our hair down at the Mango bar or just dip our feet at the beach....mmmmm the beach just can't forget it!
Funny I even found a fellow Filipino at the Chaweng Beach Resort!
It was also heaven doing grocery shopping at Tesco as it had almost evrything we needed and more (had to stop myself from buying stuff we didnt need onboard LOL!)
We even spent the Christmas day at the Fisherman's Village despite the bad weather and at the end of the day going back to the ship, we saw a double rainbow to greet us home back to the ship :-)
I WILL go back to Koh Samui one day!!

Love

2007-08-15T00:58:00.000-07:00

Love is the most terrible demon of all
-Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Shameless plug

2007-08-09T20:25:00.001-07:00

Ok, here goes nothing. I need your help guys. I am currently on the lam to earn some serious money for a training that I need for my seamanship course, STCW 95.
How?
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Shameless plug

2007-08-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

The Risk

2007-06-18T12:48:00.000-07:00

I took the risk again...and I lost....AGAIN.

Tell me

2007-06-17T23:24:00.001-07:00

Beach in Chaweng, Koh Samui, Thailand

Tell me, how well do you value your loved one?

Do you justify to yourself that the bigger things are more important than doing the smaller things? That doing the bigger things has a higher priority because in the end what you are doing is for them?

Were you too caught up in the moment, confident in the knowledge that they will always be there, waiting for you?

When was the last time that you asked how they were? Gave them flowers? Hugged them or gazed into their eyes or even sat down and talked about the silly little things?

Tell me…when was the last time you told them that you loved them?

Don’t lose sight of the bigger picture but don’t miss out on the details too.

When you look back in your old age, you will always remember

the way you made love,

the way her hair curls just so against her nape,

the piercing gaze a lover makes,

the flower that your child has given you,

that special dinner you cooked for each other,

her smell,

his breath against your neck as you lay sleeping, like two spoons in a drawer,

laughing together,

the way your embraces fit with his,

the time you were sick and you wake up to see that he has fallen asleep beside you on a chair,

your child on your lap as you read to him or her,

the adoring eyes your dog has on you as he enjoys you scratching his head,

You will never remember the paycheck you received that day,

Or the stress you had meeting a deadline,

the traffic on the way to work,

that irritating colleague,

They don’t have forever to wait. Do what you have to do now.

Don’t take your loved ones for granted. The little things are just as important as the big things you do for each other. It’s the small gestures that connects you everyday.

Sometimes we think there is a race to finish and that we always have to come in first.

Sometimes there is NO race to finish, only a price to pay for our actions.

As you grow older

2007-06-17T23:18:00.000-07:00

As you grow older, you learn that:

You know what you want and don’t want.

Things that have seemed so terribly so important on the onset were trivial.

Issues that you thought were worth fighting for so heatedly was really so silly in the end.

You learn what’s really important and what’s not.

You appreciate what your parents have done to raise you.

You appreciate children for who they are.

The best things in life ARE free.

Earning THAT much money pales in comp arison to finding yourself alone on a Friday or Saturday night, getting drunk alone and no company in sight.

You realize that those silly love songs from the 80’s that told of finding and losing true love…applied to you after all.

You can be childlike without being childish.

What goes round REALLY comes around.

Doing good and helping others helps you put your problems in perspective…and hey your problem wasn’t really that bad after all.

The best sleeping pill is peace of mind.

Despite the cliché sounding so lame when you were crying your eyes out, it WILL pass and you WILL BE ok after.

Despite swearing off eating Durian, you gorge on dried Durian crackers.

Watching porn CAN get boring!

Sun screen is very important.

Dark skin is sexy ;-)

What you took in college is not what you really wanted to do in life.

There really is more to people than meets the eye.

Life doesn’t get easier as you grow old, you just know how to deal with it more.

Bogart the labrador

The Risk

2007-06-17T23:17:00.000-07:00

You will never know unless you try. Even if they are with someone else, in time if you want them badly enough, they will be yours. How many times have we seen this in movies? It seems all so easy watching it on celluloid, man meets woman, they fall in love, either the man or woman has to go away then after a few years they meet again and never lose each other. Some aren’t real but incredibly enough some are real. It’s enough to make you think if it’s even possible for it to happen in your own life.

There is a risk in waiting and a risk in not waiting, a risk in trying and not trying.

In the end it’s a question of choosing love or fear.

Sometimes there is a need to rush things and push the issue: “Should we plunge into love or not?” The anxiety of not wanting to lose what the moment has, but afraid to regret in the end, that it was all shallow to begin with.

The thing is love NEEDS time to develop into something deeper. Then again that entails waiting, and therein lays the risk.

Knowing

2007-06-17T23:15:00.000-07:00

I remember when I was 25, I had a vision of what I wanted in my life: a nice loving husband and a spectacular career that made me happy and fulfilled. I felt ready to be committed to someone for life and was raring to take up my choice of career.

Or so I thought.

I didn’t realize that I still lacked a lot of things to make anything work: I was still immature, I wasn’t grounded, I was impatient, I was given to frequent flights of impulse that made me penniless more than once. I was petty. And horrors of horrors! I was fat!

Fast forward: Reality check, I’m 29, almost got married and a string of jobs (and of boys) that was never permanent (or made me happy). I am still immature (well less than I was before), less impulsive and have finally shed that 20 lbs.

But I will always be thankful for what I went through. Without everything, I wouldn’t KNOW NOW what I want in life. It’s hard NOT KNOWING what you want in life, or worse, not realizing that what you thought you wanted, was not what was meant for you.

It is true that maturity comes with age, because experience makes you learn and experience only comes from what you go through in life as you grow older. Of course there will always be exceptions to the rule. But you know what I mean ;-)

At 29, I know what I want: getting married and sailing. Now, the tricky part is getting there.

Emilie update

2007-06-07T09:11:00.000-07:00

Emilie did wake up after 1 day :-) Thank God for that!
Thank you so much for your prayers. It really helped a lot!

Emilie was lucky. Emilie will have to relearn some things again, like some numbers and she still has her memory largely intact. However, she will also need to learn how to walk again. But we are thankful for these small things.

The girl who was killed will have the funeral on sunday, another one is paralyzed from the neck down and will never walk again. At least the adult company who was with them is doing well.

The drunk driver was convicted and sentenced to 28 years in jail without any parole.

Again thank you all!

I need your prayers for Emilie Hansen

2007-06-03T14:35:00.000-07:00

Please pray for my boyfriends little girl.
She was hit by a drunk driver in Denmark, who plowed into their playground injuring 2 other young girls and an adult who was guarding them.

Emilie Hansen is 6 years old and is in a coma right now. The doctors say that she has to wake up in 48 hours or brain damage will set in.
She is the lucky one. One of the girls died.

So please pray for her recovery!

Thank you so much!

Surreal

2007-05-24T15:06:00.000-07:00

Surreal.
Taken during a sunrise at the bridge on the way to Mexico.

Ang Mag-ina, Fiona and Skuggan

2007-05-24T14:47:00.000-07:00

Galaw galaw sa umaga baka ma-stroke

Bakit po nay?

Nay bakit ang itim itim ko?!!

Theres a blond between my legs

2007-05-24T14:43:00.000-07:00

HEHEHE What were you thinking!

I'm in love

2007-05-03T00:52:00.000-07:00

I'm in love I'm in love I'm in looooovvvveeeeeeee!
He completes me :-)

Jeg elsker dig, min elskelde! (thats danish for I love you, my love)

ano baaaaaaaa....Baduy but so real :-)
I know, I have been very lazy updating this blog. It's almost a year since I last updated this!
Shame shame...
But I will post soon enough.

*wink*wink*

Stand up for your RICE!

2007-03-14T21:32:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends,

Let's keep our rice GMO-free.
Join our Stand Up For Your Rice campaign!

Let your voice be heard on March 15, World Consumer's Day.

Send a text message to Secretary Yap of the
Department of Agriculture.

Type:  I LOVE MY RICE GMO-FREE.
REJECT BAYER'S LL62 APPLICATION

And send to Secretary Yap's number today
between 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm.

His number is:  0917 555 5229

Reporting for blogging

2006-11-27T04:12:00.000-08:00

I'm back.
But I'm dead.

I've been sleeping my life away for the past week. I just crossed more than 4 time zones during my whole trip and so my body clock is all f*cked up.

I will be back in a week.

ZZZzzzzzzzzzzz......

SAY NO TO LAFAYETTE MINING IN RAPU RAPU!

2006-08-04T03:07:00.000-07:00

"The Philippines is one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, particularly when it comes to marine life. The Bicol region is living proof of this.

The plankton-rich waters of the municipality of Donsol are known feeding grounds for whale sharks. These largest fish of the sea are celebrity animals. Time in 2004 called the Donsol whale shark experience the “Best Animal Encounter in Asia.” The thousands of tourists who flock to Donsol yearly seem to agree.

The epicenter of the whale sharks’ activity is undeniably Donsol. But come migration time, the neighboring municipalities of Bacon and Rapu Rapu find themselves visited by these gentle giants as well.

Threats

Fish in Bacon Marine Reserve.

Enlarge Image

Threats to the sea caused by the mining operations

cyanide

Cyanide, a highly toxic material, is widely used in gold mining, and the Lafayette mine in Rapu Rapu Island uses this chemical when it processes its ores.

The mine has dams to contain the chemicals they used for processing. But the mine itself, as well as its dams, is located in a typhoon-prone area, and rests on top of an island where geologic hazards exist. The dams failed in October and November last year, promting the mine to release cyanide into the pristine sea.

To get 750 kg of gold, you need 125 tons of natrium cyanide.

Animals can ingest cyanide, inhale it, or absorb it through the skin. Short-term high-level contamination can harm their nervous, respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Further contamination can permanently damage the swimming ability of some species, or in cases even result in death.

For humans, long-term exposure to sublethal doses causes irritation of the eyes, loss of appetite, headaches and dizziness, and damage to the nervous system and thyroid gland.

acid mine drainage (AMD)

Mining operations produce acid mine drainage or AMD. AMD is a “perpetual pollution machine” because of its long term devastating effect on bodies of water and aquatic life. When iron sulfide rock, the main mineral used in mining, is exposed to oxygen and air, a natural chemical reaction occurs that releases toxic materials. Such toxic materials are carried by the wind, taken up by organisms and transferred to other organisms through the food chain.

It is highly probable that AMD has possibly already seeped into Rapu Rapu’s streams and rivers, before spilling into the sea.

siltation

Siltation is the settling of fine mineral particles (also known as silt or sediment). These particles settle from muddied water, which is generally the result of land run-off. This muddied water can reach for miles down the ocean.

The problem of siltation is very much evident in Rapu Rapu Island which lacks flat coastlines that would help delay the run-off. The corals around Rapu Rapu Island are already suffocated by heavy siltation and this poses serious problems.

The presence of silt blocks a certain amount of light that generally penetrates the water, decreasing photosynthesis in plants and corals. A drop in the energy of the undersea system’s main producer has a ripple effect all across the food chain. Siltation also suffocates coral reefs and estuaries. A drop in the number and diversity of animals and plants in the ecosystem is imminent.

70% of commercial marine species spend at least some part of their life cycle in shallow saguaros which are highly vulnerable to siltation.

The consequently endangered marine ecosystems and fishing grounds seriously affect coastal communities like those around the coasts of the Bicol region who rely on the sea as a primary source of livelihood.

To read more please visit:
http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/en/save-our-seas/know-more

This is me doing a picture protest, saying NO against the mining in Rapu Rapu.

"People who destroy the environment count on people who do nothing"

What would you do?

2006-07-30T19:00:00.000-07:00

People who destroy the environment count on people who do nothing.

Salsa has taken a bath

2006-07-29T23:52:00.000-07:00

SALSA HAS TAKEN A BATH!

Malapit na ata magunaw ang mundo! (THE END IS NEAR!)

I had to because I wont be able to give them a bath again for the next two months as I wouldnt be at home...kawawa naman.

Alas no picture while he was taking a bath...no digicam yet dear folks (unless you want to donate, hehehe ).

I had to tie him up again. But this time I had to hug the bugger and baby talk while soaping him.
And the inevitable happened, he tried to bite me again while I was rinsing him. But after that he was happy hehehee.
Sarah the other dog also had her bath. This one was tamer and didnt even flinch. Very very mabait na dog. Just stood there and shivered while I thoroughly soaped her.

Now they smell like peaches...bango, bango na!

Toxic Free House Tip No. 3- Toilet declogger

2006-07-28T04:20:00.000-07:00

For those times that you need to clear that dear old toilet from all that drain clogging oil ridden food you ate over the Christmas, New Years, you b-day, pista, summer party, school opening etc. that got deposited and enver made it to the Poso Negro...

Kadiri ba?

What you will need:

Boiled water
White vinegar
Baking Soda

1. Boil water

2. while boiling the water pour Datu Puti Suka. Use as much suka as you want, depends on the severity of the clog. I usually use almost the whole bottle.

3. Then pour the baking soda, it will bubble (magic!). Let it sit, the more baking soda and suka sits in the john, the better.

4. Lastly, pour the boiling hot water. Let it sit again for a minute or so then flush.

If this doesnt work, use more suka, baking powder and boiling water and let it sit for a longer period of time. Then use the plunger.

If this STILL doesnt work. Call the The Justice League in the US and ask for help with the next available super hero with your toilet problems.

Kaladkarin na naman

2006-07-25T18:56:00.000-07:00

A travelling I will go!
WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Lalarga na naman ako! (translation: I will be an international sailor again baby!)
By next weekend I will be in Singapore and will be boarding a ship to sail again.
So I won't be here for awhile. But I will still post updates on what will be happening to me onboard depending on the internet access that would be available.

I have started pre-packing my bags last weekend as I need to pre-plan the clothes that I will be using. I learned my lesson from the last trip. I had to lug around 35 kilos worth of pasalubong and excess clothes around Khao San road in Bangkok and made my legs and knees hurt for a month afterwards!

Nothing better than sailing...more mornings like this again:

Stay tuned!

And now a word from my friend Ala from Down Under

2006-07-18T06:18:00.001-07:00

Would you all like to make a difference together? Would you like to take a leap of faith on me, believe that together we can make things happen?

I have just said yes to a very special challenge, together with a friend. I invite you to walk alongside us on it.

Here is the lowdown of this project:

Who? Lucy and Ala!

What? http://www.charitychallenge.com.au/gpchina/
The Greenpeace Great Wall of China Challenge

The primary goal? To raise 5,500 AUD each (11,000 AUD), half of which is due by August 25, 2006, for Greenpeace's climate change campaign activity.

The secondary goal? To trek the Great Wall of China, the only man-made structure visible from outer space, with Greenpeace China!

Read on http://buildthiswall.livejournal.com/profile here!!!

In the months to come, I will be blogging very actively at http://buildthiswall.livejournal.com. Please bookmark it, or if you have a livejournal, please add me as a friend.

Cheers to all of you, and have a good day!

Much love,

Ala

Salsa the canine schizophrenic

2006-07-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

Salsa, my small, cute, smelly, foot pissing, tail less dog is schizophrenic.

He is all sugar and sweetness when I go out in the garden and pet him and Sarah.
Pero wag ka.

Come dinner time.

Ayan na, here comes the grub, rub a dub dub.
He changes into something else.

This is how sounds like when eating:

nyam nyam NYAM NYAM NGYARARARAANGYARANGARYNGYARY GGRRRRR KAW KAW KAW!! (bites and barks at non-existent enemy dog)

nguya nguya nguya, ngasab ngasap nyam nyam KAW KAW KAW!! BARK BARK BARK! NGYAR NGYAR NYAMNYAMNGYAR!!BARK BARK BARK(bites and barks again)

susme.

Tapos may I chase my own non-existent tail.

And thats how he sounds like till he finishes all his food.

Then he is all sweet again :-)

Another time he is schizophrenic is when its bath time.
I have to time him up because he nips me when I give him a bath!
THE BASTID!

Me: Salsa you have to take a bath na, AMOY PATIS KA NA! (YOU SMELL LIKE FISH SAUCE!)

Salsa: by this time he tries to run away but I catch him anyway

Me: ties him up and starts wetting salsa.

Salsa: grrr (ayan na yung tabo, nabasa na) grrrrrrrr (by this time he is thoroughly wet)
(I start to soap him) up growwlllllllrooowwwlll, with dagger looks to match, if this dog had wanted to kill me with his look, I bet he would have done that by now.

GRRRGGGRRRRR BARK BARK BARK!!!
(trying to nip me now)

Me: holding him close to my face GRRRRRRRRR SALSA!! YOU BEHAVE!AAAYYY!! (I do the same to show him who is master)

Salsa: BARK BARK BARK!! GGRRRRRRROOOWWWLLL BITE BITE!!

Me: BARK BARK BARK BARK GRRRR GGRRRR!! GROOWWWLL

Patulan ba yung aso......

I tried to splash water on his face in an attempt to stop him from barking and nipping

Salsa: with water splashing on his face GRWOOWLWLLW NYAMNYAMMM GRYOLLGNGYOORWWL (growling with water on his face) withc matching nips and bites

Luckily he didn't really bite me.

By this time, he is finished with his bath. I let him go and towel dry.

Afterwhich he gives me a dirty look.

That was two months ago.
He smells like patis ten times over now.

When life throws you into a loop

2006-07-17T12:24:00.000-07:00

Unexpected things happen and when the going gets tough,

there's just two things that you can do
either you accept it or you fight it

if you fight it, there are two things that can happen
either you get results or you get exhausted

if you get results, there are only two things that can happen
either you get what you want or you don't

BUT...Big but (malaking pwet)! What if it doesnt go your way?

when you accept it there are two things you can do
either you pray about it or mope about it

when you pray about it there are two things that can happen
either you offer if up or you rage against heaven for not granting your wish

I accepted that the situation was already what it was.
I prayed about it.
That was two days ago.

Now I got an email that answered my prayer.

Prayer works.

Toxic Free House Tip No. 2-Honeybee Cosmetic Products

2006-07-14T17:03:00.000-07:00

My friend Ala had shared that she uses Ilog Maria beauty products.
I went to their website:

http://www.ilogmaria.com/index.asp

and I went crazy over their products! They use honeybee products such as propolis, beeswax, pollen, honey, royal jelly and bee venom for thirty years already.

They have a wide variety of products including soaps, shampoos, oils, and beeswax.

There are very good alternatives to the commercial products that we buy in the supermarkets.

P.S. You would have to register and log in to buy their products online. They do not have outlets so you would have to order through their website OR go to Tagaytay to their bee farm as walk in.
Then by email, they will inform you of how to pay through the bank of by Gcash.

Toxic Free House Tip No. 1-Metal ware cleaner

2006-07-13T23:57:00.000-07:00

I love silver jewelry. And we also have lots of antique metal house decor that tarnishes a lot.
I used to use the commercial metal polishers but I had to rub the surface as if my life depended on it.
Then I discovered (drum rolls please) WHITE TOOTHPASTE with BAKING SODA!

It cleans my jewelry and metal stuff way way much faster than the commercial polishes.

First you buy:

Any toothpaste thats white
baking soda

Rub the white toothpaste over the part which you want to clean. Moderate amount is best to put on, just enough to cover the surface but not too thin that there are parts that are not coated.

Then rub, rub, rub...then put on the baking soda...then rub rub rub rub. Damp it a little bit with water, use a little stiff toothbrush to scrub it a little bit further.

Rinse with water. Super shiny na!

Repeat as necessary until the desired polish is obtained.

Works with gold too.

Beauty is more than just skin deep

2006-07-10T10:37:00.000-07:00

I am very vain when it comes to hair and skin care. At any given time I would be using 2 or 3 brands of lotion, 1-2 kinds of facial moisturizer, various conditioners, hair spas and shampoos not to mention soaps that I fancy. (maarte talaga!)

LOL! When I was around 11 or 12 I remember my Tita Chibi (thats aunt for you in english) said that I was too dark. So I bought the then popular and only cheap alternative that I could find to lighten my skin: C.Y. Gabriel WonderSoap!

HALA! SIGE! Babad sa banyo, to dry the soap on my skin. I had delusions of being fair skinned after 12 days. NGEK...wala pala. Wa epek. (Believe me Likas Papaya soap made my skin lighter after just 3 days! Di lang pang tinola pang skin pa!)

When I got into the environmental movement and I worked for the organization Health Care Without Harm (HCWH), I was made aware of the possible and proven carcinogenic ingredients of most of the popular brands of shampoos, lotions, perfume, hairspray, deodorants, make-up and the whole lot out on the market. This included Jergens, Clairol, L'Oreal, Hugo Boss, St. Ives to name a few.

For those of you who would like to check out the whole listing please go to this link:

http://www.nottoopretty.org

This website lists US, European, China, India and Korean products that would have phthalates (thats the toxic ingredient that they put thats carcinogenic)

Also this website explains how the chemicals got to your body:

http://www.chemicalbodyburden.org/

So what to do? There are alternatives to us vain people!

Virgin Coconut Oil-rub it at night and use as an all over body and facial lotion and when you wake up WOW your skin is very very soft. No need to put on moisturizer in the morning!

Oat meal-great oil absorber... mix 1/4 cup oatmeal with water till its a little like pasty, something that you can spread on your face. Then put on your face and let it dry complately. Works really well with oily complexions. Tightens your skin afterwards

Yoghurt and honey-another great moisturizer. mix the two together and rub on your face.

Cucumber-cool cucumber slices on your eyes to get rid of the eyebags in the morning.

Okra-great intestine cleaner. If youre having a hard time doing no. 2 (like I do sometimes), this is a great bowel mover.

Apple-mashed apple works great on burns. First degree burns tho. I tried this when I was scalded with hot water on my hands.

Well, here are just some stuff that I remember.
I will try to remember the other alternatives that I use.

So guys, if you still want to look good and be environmentally conscious and health conscious at the same time, try these "kitchen cosmetics".

In dying you give life to others

2006-07-03T21:56:00.000-07:00

I am finally free of my past.

If seeing him this happy is worth my decision then I am at peace.

Nevertheles I wish you well in your newly married life.

But the big paradox is...why am I crying now?

Marko: My most favorite cook in the world, A tribute

2006-07-01T01:03:00.000-07:00

I was given the opportunity to ride a ship for 3 months as an assistant cook on the Rainbow Warrior. Initially I had applied as a volunteer deckhand but instead I got the AC (Ass Cook) position. I thought what the heck, just as long as I got to sail!
I embarked in Palawan and I was sooo excited that I was all smiles when I got on. I felt very eager to plunge into ship work ASAP. And boy did I!

I went right to the galley and I found the cook. I introduced myself and said “Hi I’m the new cook assistant!”. He didn’t even turn his head as he said “Hi.” I thought, weird. “My name is Maan!” “Maan right?” and he turned his head and smiled.

My ‘boss’ (he doesn’t want to be called boss, he said we were equals) was a cute Finnish guy named Marko. He has been heating up the galleys of GP for 10 years already. Remarkable guy as I discovered through out the time I was his assistant, but to many he came across as an unapproachable, unsmiling, silent guy. That was my first impression as well but I believed that first impressions are usually just…first impressions. I got to know and like people better by being patient and digging a little bit deeper.

Silent was an understatement!
We would start preparing food at 10:30 a.m. for lunch and 4:30 p.m. for dinner. And we didn’t talk the whole time! Hell yeah he would answer my questions… only when I would ask, otherwise he was very, very silent.
How silent? The first time I had asked him how he wanted me to cut up the veggies, he showed it to me.
After a while he, got pen and paper and proceeded to draw 8 different cuts and told me
"I will just tell you the number and you would have to cut it like its illustrated in that number"

The unsmiling part…ahhh I had tricks up my sleeve (which I will not divulge, trade secret hehehehe). After some time of talking and drinking he was smiling at me already. And we were actually having a conversation. HALLELUJAH!

As I said dig a little deeper…

People were afraid to approach him but his silence never bothered me. I was a pretty talkative person but I am also used to long stretches of silence, being alone at the house most of the time. He was a gruff looking bear but he was actually a softie at heart. And when he would smile wow! It really lightened up his face. On the few occasions that we would talk he told me about his life and what he went through (very personal I cant divulge it here), his life in Finland. Not only could he cook, but he also does welding, builds houses assembles cars and motorbikes when he is on land.

He also taught me a lot of things, thus I learned how to make veggie burgers, assemble a salad, boil the veggies right, make a mean vegetarian lasagna, different simple pasta sauces that would blow you right out of your socks, distinguish and buy the best cuts of meats and fish, etc. this to the music of Iron Maiden, To Die For, Johnny Cash and Metallica.
At Christmas and New Years we had a feast whipped up by Marko and everyone couldn’t resist filling their plates up a second time.

In the end I considered him my brother and I was over protective of him. He grew on me so to speak. I made sure that everything he needed in the galley was there without him asking, cleaned the cooking mess and utensils right away, and making sure he had his juice in stock all the time.
I heard from the other crew as well as from the captain that Marko considered me his best assistant ever in his ten years of being a cook. Of course I was flattered but it was small compared to the privilege of knowing and working with this person.
I was transferred to being a deckhand after the tour and I was sorry to leave the galley. I was loathe to leave the comfortable silence and the occasional beer after we had finished galley duty. I was truly going to miss working with him.

UPDATE:

I still get to talk to Marko in chat.
He is doing well.
I gave him my DVD of “Equilibrium” (one of my collectors items DVD, pirated of course) which I left on the ship.
He still drinks juice.

Plastic Bag Part 2

2006-06-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

I was at Eunilaine, grocery near our house. I was doing the grocery (obviously what else would I do in a grocery store) and I had my usual cloth bags with me.

I was at the cash register again and I told the girl manning it that I dont want it put in a plastic bag and she said "ok po , Ma'am!". That pleased me to no end, because as I was waiting for my turn, I was cringing inwardly because I was anticipating a battle with the plastic bag brigade again.

Anyway, she told that to the bagger and I gave my bags to the bagger. The bagger then proceeded to put my groceries INSIDE A PLASTIC BAG then put it in my bag!

SUSMARYOSEP!

I had to explain why I didnt want it in a plastic bag and the bagger said "Eh ma'am naka bag naman po sa plastic eh!"

huh?

Another one was when I was in Koh Samui, Thailand doing the shopping for the ship. We had like 20 packs of groceries and we asked for cartons instead of plastic bags.

Looked like they haven't encountered such a request before and they all looked at me quizically. I had to do some explaining. They finally understood but I had to explain. The woman said they had no cartons. In a grocery?! C'mon. My friend Ashby and I said "we dont believe you, youre a grocery store you must have some somewhere?"

And magically some appeared enough to pack everything. But the weird thing? We had to buy OUR OWN tape to seal the cartons.

HAAYYYYYYYY.......

Being an environmentalist is not easy

2006-06-25T00:01:00.000-07:00

There is no denying the state of the environment we are in now.
It’s right in our faces: increasing typhoons, intolerable heat, coral bleaching, diminishing forests and fish catch, genetic manipulation of food that’s being forced down our throats, mountains of garbage, increasing floods in places that has never had it before, toxic waste in our air, water and land (Bhopal Tragedy), not to mention the extinction of species and the legacy of the nuclear age (read: Chernobyl).

Being an environmentalist is not easy. Friends make fun of you, people look at you like you’re crazy and the teaching the folks at home to do waste segregation is not an easy task either.

Take for example, when I buy at National. I ask the cashier not to bag it as I have my own. She says

Cashier: “Ma’am, it’s our policy to have our items in plastic bags.”
Me: “Ok lang yon, I understand but I don’t want the plastic as I have my own bag.”
Cashier: “Pero Ma’am kailangan po naka plastic bag!”
Me: with a steely glint in my eye pero still smiling
“I will just show the receipt to the guard if he asks me”
Cashier: “Wait lang po Ma’am I will ask the manager if that’s allowed”

After 5 minutes, Cashier returns with the Manager in tow. Cashier explains the situation. People behind me are looking at me and the other cashier behind me is casting glances as well.

Manager: “Ma’am kailangan po kasi naka plastic” (has to be put in plastic)

Me: “No I don’t want the plastic as I have my own bag. Tipid na rin sa inyo yan kasi bawas ng plastic sa inyo.” (It will save you plastic)

By then the steely glint in my eye is replaced by a hard look behind a fake smile.

Manager: After seeing my look, with an annoyed glance to the cashier says, “Sige, pwede na nga (go ahead, its ok)”

to me she says
“Ma’am please just keep the receipt and show it to the guard”

Cashier puts the stuff in my bag with a bitchy face.

I really don’t care if they get annoyed or not. I mean this plastic bag will only be used once and thrown away. And I always, ALWAYS, have the choice not to put it in a plastic bag.

Another example was when I was still working in the call center. We had just come out of a convenience store and my co-worker had just parked her half-eaten siopao on the sidewalk. I asked her why she put it there. She said “ Eh kasi, Mommy Maan nakakatamad magtapon ng basura eh!” (I feel too lazy to put it in the trash can)

GRRRRRRRR!
I told her. “Kaya dumadami ang basura eh! Don’t you know that contributes to climate change?!”
Her: “Sobra ka naman Mommy Maan! Environmentalist ka talaga!”

I went back and put HER trash in the bin.

I absolutely have no patience with people like her.
But of course one MUST HAVE patience to teach or else it will be a lost cause.
We have to teach people to be more responsible about how they consume and why they must choose such options. We have to teach the value of :

not choosing plastic bags (it’s not reusable, it’s not recyclable, and it’s only downgradeable. Contributes to the already gigantic waste problem),

not choosing to eat in fast food restaurants that do not use reusable food containers (Styrofoam is not re-usable, plastic straws and cups are not recyclable. Contributes to the already gigantic waste problem)

not choosing to eat food that are produced by companies that have GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) in their food products as a policy (Nestle, GMC, Monsanto, Kraft, among others. Common sense: Precautionary principle, we don’t know the effect GMO’s have in our body so why eat something that we don’t know about?)

not choosing make-up and body cosmetics that have toxic chemicals in them. It’s like putting on industrial paint on your body (to name a few St. Ives, Jergens, Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, for more information go to www.nottoopretty.org)

not choosing PVC (poly vinyl chloride) in building houses and buildings
(studies have proved that PVC leaches toxic chemicals that are carcinogenic or cancer causing)
not to burn trash (it contributes to the greenhouse gases)

Being an environmentalist was and still is viewed by many as being only a fad, hippie stuff, radical etc. Sometimes it hurts to hear comments even from close friends when they call me “YOU environmentalists”, uttered in such a way as would make you feel one is akin to being a leper or having a psychological problem.

With the state of the environment being what it is now, I don’t think we can afford NOT TO CARE. After all, if you only had one ship and you trashed it and it was the only place that you can live in,

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

So please help save our planet.
It’s the only one we have.

Legacy

2006-06-23T17:49:00.000-07:00

Even though Austin died, I think he left a legacy behind.
Sarah one of my dogs is pregnant!
She's been digging a big hole and hiding and whining to me.
Her boobs are swollen and her tummy is taut and tight.

Not sure if she gave birth already or is about to...
I'm going to find out soon...

dismal

2006-06-22T04:25:00.000-07:00

this blog has been really
really
really
dismal for some time already.

sorry guys.

but hey..theres still more stuff to read here... like this:

During one of our seminars, a woman asked a
common question. She said, "How do I know if I
married the right person?"
I noticed that there was a large man sitting next to
her so I said, "It depends. Is that your husband?"
In all seriousness, she answered "how do you
know?"
Let me answer this question because the chances
are good that it's weighing on your mind.
Here's the answer.

EVERY relationship has a cycle. In the beginning,
you fell in love with your spouse. You anticipated
their call, wanted their touch, and like their
idiosyncrasies.

Falling in love with your spouse wasn't hard. In
fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous
experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's
why it's called "falling" in love... because it's
happening TO YOU.

People in love sometimes say, "I was swept off my
feet." Think about hte imagery of that expression.
it implies that you were just standing there, doing
nothing, and then something came along and
happened TO YOU.

Falling in love is easy. It's a passive and
spontaneous experience. But after a few years of
marriage, the euphoria of love fades. It's the natural
cycle of EVERY relationship. Slowly but surely,
phone calls become a bother (if they come at all),
touch is not always welcome (when it happens),
and your spouse's idiosyncrasies, instead of being
cute, drive you nuts.

The symptoms of this stage vary with every
relationship, but if you think about your marriage,
you will notice a dramatic difference between the
initial stage when you were in love and a much
duller or even angry subsequent stage. At htis
point, you and/or your spouse might start
asking, "Did I marry the right person?" And as you
and your spouse reflect on the euphoria of the love
you once had, you may begin to desire that
experience with someone else. This is when
marriages breakdown. People blame their spouse
for their unhappiness and look outside their
marriage for fulfillment.

Extramarital fulfillment comes in all shapes and
sizes. Infidelity is the most obvious. But
sometimes people trun to work, a hobby, a
friendship, excessive TV, or abusive substances.

But the answer to this dilemma does NOT lie
outside your marriage. It lies within it.

I'm not saying that you couldn't fall in love with
someone else. You could. And TEMPORARILY
you'd feel better. But you'd be in the same
situation a few years later.
Because (listen carefully to this):

THE KEY TO SUCCEEDING IN MARRIAGE IS
NOT FINDING THE RIGHT PERSON;
IT'S LEARNING TO LOVE THE PERSON YOU
FOUND.

SUSTAINING love is not a passive or spontaneous
experience. It'll NEVER just happened to you. You
can't "find" LASTING love. you have to "make" it
day in and day out. That's why we have the
expression "the labor of love." Because it takes
time, effort, and energy. And most importantly, it
takes WISDOM. You have to know WHAT TO DO
to make your marriage work.

Make no mistake about it. Love is NOT a mystery.
there are specific things you can do (with or
without your spouse) to succeed with your
marriage.

Just as there are physical laws of the universe
(such as gravity), there are also laws for
relationships. Just as the right diet and exercise
program makes you physically stronger, certain
habits in your relationship WILL make your
marriage stronger. It's a direct cause and effect. If
you know and apply the laws, the results are
predictable...you can "make" love.

Love in marriage is indeed a "decision"...not just a
feeling.

-Anonymous

I got this off one of the forums I go to. Made me more depressed....

And now for some comic relief

2006-06-22T04:22:00.000-07:00

I found this on the dribbleglass.com website

Dreams vs. Love

2006-06-21T06:15:00.000-07:00

Are your dreams worth to lose the one you love?

damn right

2006-06-21T06:08:00.000-07:00

I vented to my friend today about my feelings because I was feeling really miserable.
Then my other friend called and VENTED TO ME.

Funny how other people's problems can make you forget your own for a little while.
And funny how your own advice to your friends seems to flow so much easier from you than for you to solve your own.

Easier to heal other people's wounds other than your own.

I remember one text I received.

WE HAVE TO BE BROKEN IN ORDER TO BE WHOLE.

The Bottom Line

2006-06-19T04:00:00.000-07:00

Today I 'peel' depressed.

Its not easy letting love go even after 2 years of parting ways.
Moreso when we almost got married.
Its not easy,
even after you know you havent been good to each other
even after all the fighting,
even after the tears,
even after the heartache,
even after all the misunderstandings,
even after all the 'even afters'....

Sometimes you have to let the other person go and find for himself where his happiness lies, and accept the fact that youre not meant for each other.

Even if your heart is screaming to take him back.

Masyado bang misteryoso?
I don't want to go into details. All I know is something is wrenching my heart to bits and I can't cry. The flood is all dammed up inside.

Para pang palubag loob, I call this my 'character building period'. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger di ba.

Pero alam mo, I'd rather take the pain that I feel when I have LBM than this pain in my heart. At least yon nawawala pagkatapos ng 3 araw....

Ignore

2006-06-14T06:10:00.000-07:00

I've been ignoring my blog for quite some time now. It's due to work.
After this week, I will be posting something quite new (I hope).
My cough finally went away after a week of antibiotics. and Fiona the Lab chewed her leash, chewed the water plant, chewed a hole in two towels both owned by my friend Paeng, chewed, her harness and chewed my two-piece (which survived thank God! It was a new one pa!).
she is definitely teething alright.
and I think because people were busy, she was being ignored and she wanted attention.
Poor baby.

Anyway, bad ol me I forgot to tell my Nanay where I was for 5 days. Wala kasing charger yung fone ko, tapos wala pa kaming landline. Olats.

Austin

2006-06-07T22:07:00.000-07:00

My dog died yesterday. When I woke up he wasn't moving anymore.
We don't know why he died.
He will be sorely missed.
Now I'm only left with Sarah and Salsa.

Grabe na to

2006-06-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

I think I'm dying.
I have this really really REALLY nasty cough. It's keeping me awake nights because before I go to sleep I need to really hack it up for 10-15 minutes before my throat stops tickling. Apat na rolls of tissue paper ang consumed ko. Shareholder na ata ako sa Joy. Kadiri..yakity doodle...

Macho na nga boses ko eh. Bingi pa!

I had to relent to my nanay's request to take antibiotics. I didn't want to because I wanted my body to heal this cough on its own. Well with a little help with lagundi, the chinese tablets and cough syrup that my friend Steven gave me....and the three bottles of cough expectorant and mucosilvant that I just went through. HAHAHAHA!
I also went through half a kilo of Kalamansi ( a type of citrus) to no avail.

This was the second time that this happened to me this year. The first lasted all of 3 weeks.

Times like these...hinde juicy fruit gum ang kailangan ko...antibiotics!

Health is wealth talaga.

Seriously

2006-05-31T03:40:00.000-07:00

My blog template needs to be revamped..seriously. Nagsasawa na ako sa itsura nya...bleeehhhh

Start em young

2006-05-30T20:15:00.000-07:00

My friends had organized a 2 day youth environmental workshop in Cavite. They had 40 participants and their ages ranged from the youngest being 14 yrs old and the oldest being a priest representative of their environmental organization from their province.

I was looking at them during dinner time and it reminded me of the time when I was still young and unsure of what I wanted to do in my life at that age. I was an 'uhugin' (snot nosed) youngster confused as to what I was going to take in college:

major in voice (no money in that),
tourism (less money),
management (managing money but not mine) or
choose a college that had an environmental course (absolutely no money whatsoever!)

Well ok I guess I had an *inkling* of what I wanted, as I was active in the only environmental club back in high school (I was one of the founding members).
I think God had a hand in this because I missed out on the testing date in UST and I only applied to one other school. To make a long story short, I passed (thankfully) and enrolled in their only environmental program. Did I use it after I graduated?
NO, absolutely not. It was not even what I thought it was going to be. What saved me was the on-job-training that I had with Greenpeace.

Thats when I knew where my calling was. I was 17 then I am 28 now. Ten years to the day and I am still a volunteer with Greenpeace and have been an environmentalist ever since.

Looking at these young people eating their dinner and laughing, I told my friend that they are the FUTURE, the people who would make a difference and continue on with the environmental work that we had only continued in our generation. I wondered silently to my self if they were even aware of the immensity of the burden that their generation had to face and work with to save our world. More like an ant standing on top of a 6x6 tire, unaware of the size of the wheel it was standing on.

It may sound so "up in the air" thinking but if other people had seen what I have seen with the destruction and environmental problems we are facing, you would rather choose not to know. Ignorance is bliss is what they say.

Sometimes looking at reports regarding climate change and its effects, the predicted temperature change, agro-chemical companies tinkering with our food, toxic chemicals being dumped down our waters, whales, sharks, dolphins being hunted and killed as by catch to our dwindling fish supply, a shiver goes down my spine and I would just feel like dying and pleading to be ignorant and dumb,and just NOT KNOW about these things. It makes me want NOT to have children anymore.
If I can just go on and earn money, have a good life, dance my life away every night, worry about clothes and make up, worry about boys and just be a beach bum. It sounds so much more convenient and carefree.
But the 'problem' is *I* do care.
And so I do what I do. Year after year, day after day.

And there isn't any money in this I tell you.

What keeps me going are the rewards of seeing small and big victories, companies cleaning up their toxic mess, giant agro-chemical factories halting their GE experiments, countries saying no to GMOs, communities having their own marine sanctuaries and reporting that there are more fish to catch, making industries accountable, communities segregating their wastes and earning money from it.

Sometimes its like a walk in the park, but most of the time its like running up a hill of peanut butter. Even at home it can get frustrating, (teaching my folks at home to segregate is a pain in the you know what, so I have to be vigilant now and then).

So back to these youngsters. As I said, at that age I didn't know or only had an inkling of what I was going to do with my life back then. I'm glad THEY know at this stage what they want. I say start em young, give the correct values formation, equip them with the knowledge and skills and they have what most old folks don't have or are in danger of losing: HOPE.

I was 17 when I started, I am 28 now. Looking at them, I am confident that the work we started will not be in vain.

I still have hope .

My days as a professional zombie

2006-05-30T05:42:00.000-07:00

I tried working in a call center and I lasted all of 1 ½ years. It was my first time to work in an office environment, and it was in Makati of all places. My job was a customer service agent for an online travel agency and I was part of the first batch for that account.

And Ohhh the growing pains we had to go through! We disliked our account manager because she was a snob and standoffish, our team supervisor lacked in social skills and the client wanted unreasonable (at that time) demands. Groans all around everyday and things came to a head one day that we even had to have a general meeting for the whole account to air out our grievances. But the pay was good and I needed the money, so I had to square my shoulders, and to grin and bear it. I called that experience, my character building period.

I had met a lot of quite interesting people and learned a few things from them as well. And some of them I would like to share with you:

Despite the big pay, not everyone was happy with their jobs.
But then again SOME were happy at what they were doing.
You have to love what you do.
DON’T work for money. But if you do find yourself doing it for that reason make sure, you at least LIKE your job.
For people who work for the money, they have to work twice as hard because they have to force themselves EVERYDAY to go to work to earn for their family to survive
The top honchos that I have had the opportunity to talk to confessed to me that it wasn’t their dream job or they didn’t really want their job. They were in that position because they wanted to be and do their best. Funny, our account manager was in her position for 5 years and she still didn’t like her job.
Sometimes if you can’t do anything about a problem (stubborn airlines, or stupid customers) changing your attitude helps. After that everything seems easier and is a breeze doing it.

On a lighter note here are some other things that I discovered while being a slave to the grind that is the call center business:

· Don’t drink too much coffee before going home from a graveyard shift. I did that once and I was still up till noon (my shift had ended at 6 am that morning).

· It’s sooooo nice to ride the MRT at 6 am. There are hardly any commuters for the northbound train.

· You lose weight so much from working the graveyard shift that your clothes fall off you.

· FREE FOOD AT CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEARS!

· Go to work early so you can choose your seat. Being under the aircon vent is no picnic. My hands were literally stiff several times from the cold.

· I met several great people who until now are my friends.

· And meeting all the cute boys!

· My typing skills from being a chat addict were put into good use.

· I used to work at the 21^st floor. And I had a spectacular view of the sunrise and sunset EVERYDAY over the bay.

· The Makati skyline never looked so good this close.

So where am I now? I have long since resigned from my call center work and have fulfilled one of my lifelong dreams, to work on a ship. But that’s a story for another day...

Best things in life are free: things to be thankful for

2006-05-30T05:41:00.000-07:00

· A good family who loves you

· Friends who have been with me for 10 years they are like family already

· Friends with cars who take you anywhere...HAHAHAHA!

· We can afford to eat whenever and whatever we want

· The freedom to do what we want

· Good books that inspire

· Fantastic music to dance to

· Soothing music to wind down

· The power to make your dreams come true

· Meeting great people during my travels

· THE INTERNET!

· Isaw, squidball, pancit canton, saging at hotdog!

· Freedom to do anything you want

· Warm hugs and sincere kisses

· Back rubs!

· Watching the sun set on the deck of a ship beside one of the best people that I have met in my life

· Good pounding music to dance to

· GOOD BEER AND GIN! (Guinness must have been made by God)

· Swimming with complete and utter freedom in the water

· Getting an encouraging letter from my niece, congratulating me about my work

· The feeling of Fiona snuggling beside me while I’m sleeping on the floor (Fiona is a dog, you dirty sick minded bastids)

· GOOD HEALTH!

· And a God who watches over me.

I think that’s it for now. I am sure over the years I have had a lot of things to be thankful for that I have already forgotten. But for now, these are enough. I am sure my dear readers you also have a lot of things to be thankful for that doesn’t have to be bought with money…

Good memories

2006-05-25T06:25:00.000-07:00

I was just looking at my pictures tonite and saw my pictures on the ship. God how I miss being onboard. And these are the reasons why I miss being there badly...

Canan and friend jumping off the bulkhead

On the way to Tubbataha Ranger station. Looks like the Chief engineer found his mustache...

Kitchen wenches doing galley work (Ala, Sarah and me)

With the deck boys after work relaxing on deck

Canan, Paul and I relaxing on a sunday afternoon on the monkey island...1st class hehehe

Dani flipping his world during a swim stop

Dani and the first mate as the before and after for a toothpaste commercial

Ikaw ba'y nalolongkot? Walang magawa? Pumunta sa....

2006-05-23T04:03:00.000-07:00

Ikaw ba'y nalolongkot? Walang magawa? Pumunta sa:

www.engrish.com

www.ebaumsworld.com

www.redmeat.com

www.bored.com

www.snopes.com

www.ghoststudy.com

www.allbrucelee.com/videos/kung_fu_fighter.htm

www.rathergood.com

NO TIME TO WASTE

2006-05-19T02:22:00.001-07:00

Its been really weird weather lately. Rain out of nowhere and out of season. Really scorching summer heat. Definitely biting cold spells. More frequent occurences of el niño and la niña.
And this is all brought on by climate change.

I remember when were in Anilao and it was time to sleep, we had the AC on full blast but we had to turn on the electric fan as well just to keep cool (even the dog Fiona was already positioned in front of the electric fan, aba at inagawan pa ako ng higaan!). It used to be that the aircon on low was enough to make me use 2 blankets but now no effect. Mainit na talaga!

Kulang na lang mag prito ng itlog sa sidewalk.

Its really different this time. Before, summer used to be such a breeze to tolerate, but now no more breeze to tolerate the summer heat! (o ha nag rhyme at yon....). Its cloying and it makes you feel difficult to breathe.

And I know for a fact that it will never get cooler in the following years. It will get hotter and hotter and more and more people will get sick, the environment will suffer and we will witness an environmental destruction the likes that nature has never had. All this because of climate change.

According to the Greenpeace website, www.greenpeace.org

"Today, our world is hotter than it has been in two thousand years. By the end of the century, if current trends continue, the global temperature will likely climb higher than at any time in the past two million years. While the end of the 20th century may not necessarily be the warmest time in Earth's history, what is unique is that the warmth is global and cannot be explained by the natural mechanisms that explain previous warm periods. There is a broad scientific consensus that humanity is in large part responsible for this change, and that choices we make today will decide the climate of the future."

This is absolutely no laughing matter. Because once we reach that point where the temperature can never go down, that would be the beginning of our end. A lot of scientists and industrialists are trying to debunk the blatantly obvious evidences documenting and proving that climate change IS happening and it is happening at a more accelerated pace than it was anticipated.
Already the incidence of diseases like malaria and dengue in countries that didn't normally have it has been documented, the lowering of temperatures enables the mosquitoes that spread these diseases to survive in such climate now in the northern hemisphere. Or take for example, the erratic and violent super typhoons that has been ravaging North America and Europe, Hurricane Andrew and Katrina damaging Florida and New Orleans, and the destructive floods

" Heavy rains across central and eastern Europe have created flooding conditions not seen for centuries, killing more than 100 people, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of others, and devastating historic city centres in Germany and the Czech Republic. Flooding also has hit communities in Austria, Slovakia, Russia and Romania."

http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2002/europe.floods/

The climate IS GETTING HOTTER AND HOTTER. We have also HAVE to curb our use of fossil fuels as this is one of the major contributors of greenhouses gases that causes climate change.

Please take action in your own little way. Petition your governments to go for renewable energy like wind and solar. You can also:

1. Buy high efficiency models of home appliances.
2. Use energy efficient light bulbs
3. Hang your clothes to dry instead of using the dryer.
4. Use water efficiently, water your plants at night. Watering during the day makes it evaporate faster.
5. Car pool or
6. Ride that bike. Not only would that give you nicer legs it will help you tone your tush.
7. Don't burn your garbage. Segregate the biodegradables (to use as compost) from the non-biodegradables (to be sorted to recycbles and sent to recycling centers)
8. Minimize waste, bring a cloth bag with you wherever you go so you would have to minimize using that thin plastic bag you get from the market and groceries. I have gotten into arguments in malls because I didnt want my stuff wrapped in plastic. I know, I know its proof of purchase but whats the use fo the receipt?...
9. Turn off all unnecesary lights and or appliances when not in use.
10. Use rechargeable batteries whenever possible to minimize on toxic waste as well.
11. Use that dishwater to flush the toilet.
12. Last but not the least, encourare your friends to do the same. Never underestimate the power of a small group pf people working together for a common good.

Remember, there is NO TIME TO WASTE. The clock is ticking....

Engrish

2006-05-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

Engrish as is only speaking here:

www.engrish.com

Para matawa naman kayo!

2006-05-15T19:01:00.001-07:00

I got this in my email a looong time ago and it still never fails to make me laugh! Sa ating mga Pinoy, humor it the only thing that helps us through the harships in life. Eh kung hindi ka pa matawa ewan ko na lang...

PWEDENG MAGTANONG?

1. Kung papalitan ang balat mo sa buong katawan, ano ang mas gusto mong ipalit,
balat mo sa siko o  balat mo sa talampakan?

2. kung tatlo na lang ang buhok mo sa ulo,
gusto mo bang sama-sama ang mga ito o hiwa-hiwalay?

3. maliban sa buhok at kuko, anong parte ng iyong katawan
ang nais mong patuloy na humahaba?

4. bestfriend na may bad breath, o boyfriend na may BO?

5. kung ikaw ay magiging materyal na bagay,
ano ka, toilet paper o sanitary napkin?

6. meron kang six-inch na makapal na buhok sa kili-kili,
anong gagawin mo dito: rebond, dreadlocks o afro?

7. kung ikaw ay magkaka-girlfriend, ano ang mas gusto mo,
babaeng may chest hair o babaeng may goatee?

8. isa na lang ang kilay mo, saan mo ito ilalagay,
sa kanan o sa kaliwa?

9. kanino mo gustong makipag-makeout,
sa taong walang ngipin o taong walang dila?

10. pimple sa ilong o ilong sa pimple? (actually, slightly modified:
magkaroon ng isang malaking pimple sa ilong forever o kada
magka-pimple ka eh may ilong ito)

11. kung papalitan ang nipple mo,
anong ipapalit mo dito, mata, ilong o daliri?

links a lot

2006-05-15T18:57:00.000-07:00

YAY! I have finally added the links to my friends blogs...hehehehe.
Kailangan talag humanap ng oras para dito!
and for my next project? Changing the interface of my blog, although my current template is ok na rin pero I want it uniquely my own design....so my next next project is? learning HTML LOL!

Apologies

2006-05-11T05:30:00.000-07:00

Apologies for not being able to respond to the comments posted for my entries. How rude of me :-(
I plead guilty for not having enough time to even have the courtesy to acknowledge the comments I have been getting out of focus because of all that travelling and work.
But I do appreciate all the things that has been said no matter how short it was! It means that someone ACTUALLY! reads my blog! hahahahaha!

Anyway, more blog entries to come...

drat..I just remembered... I still havent linked my friend's blogs here....EEEP!

Budweiser

2006-05-11T04:53:00.000-07:00

I know I know, I havent posted my Donsol trip yet. Tamad pa talaga kong mag-post ng entry and I haven't really found the time to sit down and write about it. But in the mean time I have been practicing taking photos.
I also have an online photoalbum but at the moment its taking me ages to upload even just ONE compressed file and I dont know why. So I'm posting some here...take a look.

(Drat. I'm having a hard time putting in the captions beside the pics as they come out jumbled. Anyway, pics 3 and 4 are from Donsol, 5 and 6 from Naujan Mindoro. THose frogs are my Bud-wei-ser frogs.)

I love these pics. Taken during a plant show in UPLB.

Despedida

2006-05-08T08:40:00.000-07:00

Fran and her fiancee jack

I just got back from a despedida de soltera for a college mate. It's been such a long time since we last saw each other. It was actually more of a reunion than a despedida for her.
I can't believe she is going to get married but I have a very good feeling about her husband-to-be, he was very affectionate with her and she tells me he is very spiritual, which is a very good plus factor for her.
It made most of us think who would be next....hehehehe...sobering thought but funny all the same because most of us didn't have any boyfriends to say who would be married next!
And we also got to know that a beloved friend has separated from her husband. Another sobering thought, to think she sacrificed her future for this guy only to find out that he was philandering behind her back. Makes me think that marriage is fleeting sometimes and even in that, there is no permanence...
But, people still get married..and hope, dream and love.

Fran and Frank with Tinay. I have no idea what they are laughing about but it sure looks fun :P

Tara, Kat, Terteen, Iris, Fran, Jack, Tinay Jenny and Maning

Videoke

2006-05-01T13:56:00.000-07:00

(Here is something to read in the meantime while I am still making the entry for my Donsol trip. Apologies for the late late post. I hope you enjoy this for the mean time.)

I love to sing. Let’s admit it, we curse so much at neighbors that sing videoke till the wee hours of the night, but when faced with the machine it will take a crowbar to pry the mic off of you.

Aba, masarap ata kumanta!
There’s nothing like belting out those high notes, never mind if we sound like finger nails being scratched across a blackboard…or worse parang kinukuping na yero (galvanized sheet being twisted)!

There’s a bit of a devil in me whenever I listen to videoke singing from the neighbors. I turn into a song critic and wince at the flat and sharp notes being belted out…”Ummm! Buhay ka pa!”

I remember one time we were at Anilao, Friday night. Danny and the gang were having a drinking session while I was snoozing. I woke up to the singing of videoke. My friend Riezel said, “Tara Maan! Tapatan natin yung mga kumakanta, ang babastos eh gabi na kumakanta pa!” (lets show em! ) After all, it was 10 pm already and there were no signs of the singing flagging down.

So I said alright. Our repertoires consisted of “My Way”, “Welcome to the Jungle”, “Through the Fire” and other songs sung ear splittingly. Danny came down to join us and we cranked up the volume. Not to be outdone, they also turned it up and matched ours!

So there we were puking out our throats, at first we were having fun…till 2 hours later, Riezel and I were just sitting down and trying to finish the song while half asleep. “Di ko na kaya ate maaaannn…”

We decided to call it a night and went inside to catch some sleep.

The neighbors?

Danny said that when he woke up at 3 a.m., they were still singing.

There was this one girl that was dominating the mic that had a grating quality to her voice, thin and tremolous like she was on her last breath. If you can imagine a cockroach singing with a warbling voice, you’ll get what I mean.

We woke up at 6 a.m. and they were still at it. We went to the market, cooked food and had lunch and this girl was STILL singing, “Ang LAKE LAKE! ANG LAKE LAKI NG BOLAKLAK! ANG POLA POLA! ANG POLA POLA!”....on and on and on.

They finished at 2 pm.

In which case we promptly played house music at full volume, making the speakers covering bulge out.

Revenge fell on deaf ears. The adjoining resort was empty…

And I?

I found myself singing, ang lake lake, ang lake lake ng bolaklak….the whole day.

Of Filipino Street signs

2006-04-26T23:05:00.000-07:00

This mine is becoming a travelogue and a dog lovers chronicle. Maybe I should start changing this to masayangasotakbongtakbo…or kaladkaringtuta. Hehehee!

Anyway, I always travel a lot and have been doing that extensively for the whole year of this year and last year. I am always on the lookout for quirky and trippy signs to make the road trips less boring. Here are just some that I do remember and they are really funny!

ROAD CLOSE (This is a fairly common sign that I would see. It can also refer to closed shops and buildings. So you have to be close to the road....?)

We specialzED in (what did you specialize in before this one?)

Agri. Office in Batangas: “Sa A.I. Walang Aray!” (AI is artificial Insemination)

Hardware in Koh Samui: Supot Hardware Store (Filipino men wouldn’t be caught dead buying “hardware” there…get it? Hardware?...never mind. For my Caucasian friends supot in tagalog means ehrmm…uncircumcised)

Bawal nga magaehi nga detu! (in other words pissing here is not allowed, ang kulit mo eh!)

Bell Gates’s Computer School (school in Sorsogon City)

Please Save our Trees, Our Children Love them! (Road sign in Quezon Province, I’m not sure if the children love to eat them…)

CRABS FOR SALE (sign near UPLB, hmmm so this is where you get crabs…never mind ive got a dirty mind hahahahah!)

Something mushy but its true

2006-04-24T17:08:00.000-07:00

I don't know who the author of this poem is but this really struck a chord in me

AFTER A WHILE...
After a while, you learn the subtle difference
between holding a hand and chaining a soul.
And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning and
company doesn't mean security.
And you begin to learn that kisses aren't
contracts and presents aren't promises.
And you begin to accept your defeats with your
head up and your eyes open, with the grace of an
adult not the grief of a child.
And you begin to build all your roads on today
for tomorrow's ground is too uncertain for plans.
After a while you learn that even sunshine burns
if you get too much.
So plant your own garden and decorate your own
soul instead of waiting for someone to give you
flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure...
That you really are strong.
And you really do have worth.
AFTER "AFTER A WHILE"
After 'after a while'
You want to hold a hand not to chain a soul but
to enjoy its company,
and you want someone's lips to kiss,
not because you are lonely but because you are
happy, and you want to give presents
and you want to make promises.
After 'after a while'
You begin to accept your defeats like an adult,
but like a child, will want someone to listen
and care,
and you want someone who will build roads with
you today so maybe you can pave the way for your
future together.
After 'after a while'
You want someone's sunshine and warmth,
but also accept the rain and the cold,
and you want to give flowers picked from your
own garden.
And when your garden is picture perfect,
you want it to be more than a picture
even if it means having to be imperfect
because you want someone in it to stay and to
live.
Then you'll see that there is
such a thing as love...
and that you were made to live in someone else's
garden...
and you'll know that there is more to life than
yourself.
AND NOW...
You realize! that no matter how tightly you hold,
if you're meant to let go, you can
And then you will understand that love
gives you reasons to understand
even the most complicated situations
And you will grow older believing that just
because you have convictions
doesn't mean you're always right
You will remember lips because of the smiles
that made your day,
the words that touched your soul, not only
because of the sweet kisses
And as you graciously accept defeat and absorb
the meaning of lessons
learned,
You feel that you are finally being the person
you never thought you'd be
So, armed with courage, strength and confidence,
you will face the world
head on...
With or without an army behind you
Because you know your worth and that alone is an
armor With more heartbreaks you will cry
But after every heartache, you will rise
Life is a garden ... it takes long to make it
beautiful.
But it's always worth the wait.

And might I add these as well:
Some good things and good people are worth the wait because after awhile you see and recognize them for what and who they really are.

We learn to enjoy the company of people because we appreciate and love them, without asking for anything in return, it is a wordless thanks for the happiness that we feel in their presence.

We give because we want to give joy and show that we care.

Good people are worth the time and effort, because in the end people are more important than things.

This is dedicated to my very good friend in Jever, Germany. May our friendship never grow old, and never fail to lift you up.

Entschuldigung!

2006-04-24T16:47:00.000-07:00

drat drat drat!
I cant post my blog entry that was supposed to be for yesterday!
ASAR!!!
grrrrrrrrrrrrr

(I just noticed now that my blog from yesterday just got posted =o) har har har!)

Beach Bum , my love for the sea will never end baby!

2006-04-24T00:09:00.000-07:00

(I would have to apologize for not being able to post about my Donsol trip, no pics yet! Sorry I wasn't using a digicam, only had an SLR. Anyway this post is still about the sea)
Pandan Island beach, Occidental Mindoro

It’s summer time once again and what better way to cool off than to head off to the beach and have an excuse to work on that tan. This year was no exception as I was at Anilao every weekend ever since I got home. I was only in Manila 3 weekends in the past 2 months!

It has always been that way yearly since more than 10 years
ago. It started with Puerto Galera, then Palawan, off to San Salvador Island (Zambales) for Christmas and New Years break, then Anilao. On and off it was some other beach or another. This year was mostly Anilao, just my luck Tubbataha (a dream come true) then to Sorsogon to do a reef survey, swimming with the whale sharks in Donsol was also a dream come true.

I really don’t know. There is something in the sea or pool that makes me salivate and want to jump in. It’s not just the coral reefs that I see that are beyond description, nor the white sands and azure waters. I think it’s in the way the wind blows across the water, or the spectacular sunrise and sunsets reflected on the sea, the feeling of complete freedom in the water, like moving through space.

I would rather live by the sea than live in the mountains. During my 3 months working in a ship, I was in heaven! I was in my element. Not once did I feel homesick while I was away, I was surrounded by water 24/7!

And what better choice than to have a job on a ship as well? I knew I had found my calling and I am currently working on my papers for my seaman’s book.

I can see it: 10-15 years from now, gazing out of a beach house, choosing between diving, swimming or just plain snoozing by the verandah.

Two more months to go before the summer ends!

And work on that tan ;-P.

tttiiirreeedddd....

2006-04-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

I am soooooo tired. I just spent almost half a day being on the road from Bicol going back here to Manila. But the trip was worth it because I was able to swim with WHALE SHARKS!!!
Anyway, just peeking in for now, I cant concentrate on typing a full entry as it is almost 4 am already.
Full entry will be this weekend...with pictures of course!

Dog Spleen

2006-04-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

My friend Paul from Germany called me dog spleen...strange combination of words until he explained that it means dog crazy in Germany. That much IS true. I have been dog crazy all my life and right now I have 3 dogs. I have never been without a dog in the house and even now even when Im at the beach there is the omnipresent dog by my side. Here are some of the dogs in my life right now...

Choco the Japanze spitz
riding high on Bantay

This is my most low maintenance dog. Never barks, never pees or poops anywhere. In fact he never eats! You can even sit on him! Here he isat his best...being a doorstop.

And this! This is Fiona. She is actually one of my best bud's dog but she is as much as my baby as she is to him. She usually sleeps with us at night. Here I am bugging the daylights out of her trying to get a good shot while she was trying to nap.

Austin looking so sad. He has this really booming voice when he barks that would scare the bejesus out of you but he really is a sweetheart.

The Bantay and Fiona taken two nights ago.

Holy Week for the irreverent

2006-04-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

I just got back from a week long vacation at the beach (again) for the Holy Week. You wouldn't believe the people that were streaming into the resort we went to. The whole place was packed to the rafters with vacationers and the adjoining resorts as well. And the ever present karaoke was there. Just this morning, the resort to our left, somebody was screeching on the mic AT 3 A.M.!!! Wala pang November nangangaluluwa na!
Anak ng...
And she didn't stop, even after we left.

Not to mention yesterday, somebody drowned, a young boy who was quickly revived by another bystander who pumped his chest for all he was worth. Then the mother (I think) fainted. While all this was happening, people were being drawn to them like iron fillings to a magnet. Some were even smiling as they were streaming to them, like this was some kind of trivial spectacle.
My friend and I stayed in the water, wanting to help but didn't know how to administer CPR. I did have an inkling how to do it but it was years ago and I was afraid I would do more harm than good.
Like most filipinos, we try to lighten up the situation by trying to inject a little levity to the situation..
My friend said.."Ayan kasi nasa beach, patay si Jesus!" (translation: Serves you right for gallivanting at the beach while Jesus is dead!)
After all it was Black Saturday. But of course she was only joking.

Then again...

Dolphins, LIVE!

2006-04-05T10:45:00.000-07:00

We were very busy on deck one time when Timo, our bosun shouted to us that there were dolphins riding the bow waves.

DOLPHINS! WOWOWOW!

All the deckhands, even the engineers and the boat mechanic very excitedly rushed to the bow and flattened ourselves on the floor and stuck our heads out as far as it would go over the rails.

There were SIX of them! They looked so graceful and sleek. They were swimming so effortlessly ahead of the waves that it all looked so easy.

There we were, with goofy smiles plastered on our faces, whooping it up!

Luckily I had managed to borrow a camera from the electrician and I managed to snap some shots.

Rose and Jack doing their balancing act but below the bow this time!

And two more on the other side

It wasn’t the first time that I had seen actual dolphins but each time I did I would be in awe of these magnificent creatures. That same day, later in the afternoon, we saw a whale breach twice beside the ship.

After that, everyone was all smiles and in high spirits that day. It was a perfect ending to another great sailing day onboard the Warrior.

Salsa, my pinoy tail-less mini-doberfake aso

2006-04-05T01:31:00.000-07:00

At the time that we had acquired Salsa, we already had four dogs: Austin (the mixed breed), Sarah, Hagar and Kooky (all with no breeding at all). It started out one day when I went home; I noticed that there were drops of fresh blood in the front lanai of my lola’s house. Turns out there was this tiny dog with his tail ending in a bloody stump hiding amongst the potted plants. This dog came from the neighbors next door and according to our house help, Jojo they tried to amputate his tail because he looked like a Doberman or another version was “Nasagasaan daw ng Tricycle ang buntot!” (His tail was ran over by a tricycle).

My tatay (father) took pity and adopted the dog. So, he was taken care of, brought in the house, had medical attention, enough food and in due time, his tail was healing beautifully. I was happy at the thought that the little dog was going to be ok.

NOT.

There were drops of blood on the floor. Again.

Salsa, (so named now) the little f*cker was biting his tail. The itchiness of the healing stump was driving him crazy. It wasn’t enough that he was rasping his mangled tail with his teeth, he was biting right through the bone!

Not only was he suffering WE were suffering as well! He was howling in pain the whole DAY AND NIGHT! I tried to soothe his pain by washing it and putting Betadine over it (I had to wrap the wee bastard in old basahan just to do this).

And he didn’t do this once; he bit it until he had NO MORE TAIL! Now I can’t imagine how a dog can bite his tail to nothingness but Salsa did.

There were times that we couldn’t sleep because he was crying in pain THROUGH the night, running around in circles, chasing and biting his ever diminishing tail. His cries sounded like a rasp going right through my ears.

Salsa sunning, parang ang bait ano?

Things came to a head one day when his whole rear end was swollen, bloodied, bursting with pus, a mass of bites and a small portion of his tail bone sticking out.
Gross. Away we went to the vet. I was scolding him the whole time on the way. He was mewling pathetically in pain while his tail was dripping with blood and discharge. At the vets, we had to give him THREE shots of general anesthesia and even then he didn’t go totally under. Salsa, the scandalous blighter, was still howling and gurgling each time the vet jabbed and stitched his butt.

I asked the vet to put a cone around his neck so he won’t bite it again. He wore that cone for a month, looking like a circus mascot.

Now, Salsa’s butt has healed completely. He looks like a small Doberman, never grew past his height of 1-1/2 ft tall.

But he still screams and chases his tail once in a while just for the heck of it.

Ubo Ubo

2006-04-04T01:45:00.000-07:00

Baaadd trip.
My cough has been raging for almost a week now and I havent had a full night's sleep because of it.
aarrrgghhh!
scheissendreck!
:-(

How to wash dishes while flying through space

2006-04-03T12:22:00.000-07:00

Picture this. It is after dinner and me and my friend Justin are trying to wash pots, pans and utensils and we are flying inside the galley (THE KITCHEN). We are jumping like grease on a hot pan!

Literally.

It’s like we are trying to do hiphop dance knee high while scrubbing down dirt and oil :-p

The ship is on its way to Koh Tao (south of Thailand) and the weather is just great (for me that is). Several people onboard are seasick because the ship is heaving real bad, but by some miracle I am not.

And the worst place to be in when the sea is making the ship pitch and roll like crazy is to be in the galley. Which is at the back of the ship. Where you can feel the rocking and rolling the worst because the galley is at the back, its like the last kick of a whiplash.

So there I was, scrub a dub dub and I am flying all over the place and whooping like crazy. WOW this must be how its like in the NASA space simulation capsule! Quite tricky if you ask me, holding on with soapy hands to the pots and pans while in the air. Well for 2-3 seconds at a time then back on the ground.

Sige na parang superman for 2 seconds lang :-P

Outside at the bridge, the wind was really whipping my hair and we were crashing against the waves. You can feel the spray on your cheeks and we were in full sails. Tapos, you are with people you like best!

What bliss. There is nothing more I could ask for.

Except to be airborne just a little more in the galley when I fly washing the dishes ;-)

Nein, no picture of me flying through the galley. Just kitchen wenches washing!

The Dive

2006-04-03T06:04:00.000-07:00

I was on a ship for 3 months (one day I will tell you of the other exploits I had on that ship) and one of the best moments that the crew and I had was the swim stops.

The captain would stop the ship between transits and the bosun (the boss of the deckhands) would inform us that we can have a swim.

But not so fast and easy for me. At that time I was an assistant cook and I had to do my job first. Usually the swim stops were 5:30 or 4:30 just as when I was my busiest in the galley….*SiGh* Sayang…Inggit ako to the max.

Oh well. All I saw was the telltale wet footprints in the hallway trailing after the erstwhile swimmers for the day. After we cooked, the others would tell me how good the water was…wwwwwaaaaaa!

Although I was able to swim in the last swim stop….hehehehe..much to my pleasure…all for 10 minutes. I was just warming up and the captain said ok ok in 5 minutes we need to leave because the chief engineer said we have to test the engine. DRAT!

Then right after he said that, the greywater (THE SEWAGE) started coming out of OUR side of the ship. Mmmmm yummy! Luckily the current was moving AWAY from us.

BUUUUTTT! I digress. Anyway.

We were anchored in Thailand for more than a month and after putting in 8 hours of hard work, we had swim o’clock at 5 pm! EVERYDAY.

Happy happy joy joy!

I was in my element! We had fun jumping off the boat and diving. I eyed the bulkhead (THE WALLof the ship). My friend Paul was diving HEADFIRST (btw, from that height, the distance from the top of the bulkhead and into the water was like 2 1/5-3 meters, which was too high for me to dive in headfirst)

AHA! Since I could dive headfirst now from FOUR ft hight maybe I could do it from that height….?

Paul encouraged me and he said “Ah its easy!Just dive in headfirst”

Sounded so easy.Piece of cake. Like taking that first bite of liver (which I hated eating until I was 25)

SO I jumped.Jaysus.susmaryosep scheissendreck!

ANG SAKIT!!! (translation for my non-english speaking friends IT HUUURTS!)

I smacked on the water. The minute my head cleared the surface, ang nasabi ko na lang…ooohhhh gggooooooddddd ang sakiiitttttt….

Everything smacked on the water. My thighs, my boobs, my arms…araaaayyyy.

After a day, I got my badge.

And here in glorious technicolor is the aftermath of my dive.

Hhehehehee..it was worth it. Nothing doing. Now I can dive headfirst from FIVE FEET!

The Blog

2006-04-02T01:49:00.000-08:00

Since I started this already, I might as well get on with this. As I have always told my friends: “Don’t start something you don’t intend to finish!”

I have always seen other people’s blogs when I would surf the net out of boredom.
And I thought ewww, yucky out of taste, why post your life for the entire world to see? These people are the kind who seek attention, are closet psychotics, has no life other than the net, or don’t have friends at all. The other blogs that I have seen were the cutesy-patootsie, cursor with chasing hearts and with “My Heart Will Go On” theme song to boot type that fairly dripped with saccharine sweetness that it made me have diabetes just looking at it.
Ugh.
But like an unrepentant voyeur, resisting what at first I was seeing, I got intrigued and finally got hooked after seeing my friend Ala’s blog. And I thought…hey this is cool, this is one blog that CAN be intelligent and also come across as light, hip, young and VERY Filipino. I discovered that I had other friends who I held in high regard who started doing their own blogs as well.
And I thought hey why not…It’s not like I have to post my WHOLE life there.
The beauty of it all is you can post anything you want edited and revised. What’s more, I can try out my writing skills without fear of ridicule (or so I think), something I have always tried to do but have always put off doing.

So here it is…my very own web log. It turns out I’m an attention seeker psychotic after all (but I draw the line with the no life and no friends type…after all I’m an unrepentant kaladkarin, getting dragged to the beach and God knows where else by who else, my friends!).

And a Big bleeeeeeehhh to you!

Hindi daw mag blo-blog

2006-02-27T23:28:00.000-08:00

I said I never would make a blog but here I am eating my own words.
It's supposed to be an online album for my fotos but http://www.photonski.com/ doesnt accept new resgistered users.
drat.
nga naman!

at heto ang aking 'pichur' taken at Pandan Island, Sablayan, Mindoro.