Happy New Year

The world has gone crazy

This is a repost of the BLOG of Bambee dela Paz, 18, after she watched helplessly as her father and 14 year old brother were beaten by the son and goons of Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman at the Valley Golf and Country Club in Antipolo City.

Shameless!

Inquirer: Bloggers whip up a storm for Bambee

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Friday, December 26, 2008

The world has gone crazy by Bambee dela Paz

So, I just had the worst day of my life.

At around 1:30 PM today, at Valley Golf and Country Club, Antipolo City, Mayor Nasser Pangandaman, Jr., Mayor of Masiu City, Lanao del Sur, his father, Secretary Nasser Pangandaman of the Department of Agrarian Reform, and company, beat my defenseless 56-year-old dad and my 14-year-old brother to a pulp because of some stupid misunderstanding on the golf course.

This is a golf course. I have been a golfer all my life, and I have never seen anything like this. NOTHING. This is hard to comprehend. And it happened to my own father and my own brother too. Right in front of my eyes.

My brother and I were playing golf at the South Course of Valley. We were on the 3rd hole, and we see two golf carts going past us, overtaking our flight, and setting up to tee off on the next hole. My dad goes up to them and asks them why they would do that, why they would overtake us without even asking for our permission. Golf etiquette 101. One of the guys says that they're with the flight in front of us. (So what? That doesn't give them the right to just pass us WITHOUT asking.) So, we go to the 5th hole. The flight behind us catches up with us, and asks us what caused the hold up. We said that this flight just slipped in front of our flight. So we complained to the marshall. We play the 5th hole and walk towards the next hole, where there is a teehouse, and both the flights in front of us were there, talking with the marshall. The mayor of Masiu City, Lanao del Sur talks with my dad. Things get heated up. Voices were raised. But never, in my wildest dreams, did I ever imagine that someone would pull out a punch. Apparently not. He attacks my father. His flightmates, maybe 2 or 3 of them, rush to his aid and beat up my father. My 56-year-old father. My younger brother and I could not just watch. We rushed to break the fight. My younger brother pleads to the mayor to please stop it. To not hurt my dad. To just stop. His words still ring through my head..."Sorry na po, sorry na po...tama na...tama na po..." With his hands in front of his chest in a praying position. PLEADING. The mayor socks him in the face. My brother defended himself. My dad is still on the ground getting clobbered. My brother is the same way. I try to stop the fight, but all I can do is stop one person. There were 4 or 5 of them attacking now.

Someone breaks up the fight. I thought it was all over. The mayor shouts to his caddy: "Hindi nila kami kilala! Sabihin mo nga sa kanila kung sino ako!" And believe me, I had no idea who this person was. But now I know. He's the person who, with 4 other men, beat up my 56-year-old father and my 14-year-old brother. He's the person who sacks a pleading 14-year-old kid in the face. He's a person who, I am sure, is gonna rot in hell.

I lash out, but my dad held me back. I was screaming my lungs out, shouting to this mayor, telling him about what he had done. I said: "Nakakahiya kayo. Singkwenta'y sais anyos ang tatay ko. And kapatid ko kakatorse anyos. Anong ilalaban nila sayo?"

The mayor looks at my brother, point to his face, and says, "Tatandaan kita!" And he tells me that my brother has a bad attitude and that I need to watch him. WHAT THE HELL?! So, my brother's bad for defending his father?!

We leave. We walk to the clubhouse to file a complaint. My brother asks for a doctor. My dad could barely walk. Their group comes to the clubhouse, sees my brother. Once again my brother pleads, says sorry, and is crying. He was CRYING, for crissakes. But no. The relentless mayor still punches him in the face, and then sees my dad and goes after my dad again. Him and his friend pull my dad to the ground, pulls at his feet, and steps on him like he's dirt. I run to him and try to hold him back, holding him back by his shirt, while this other guy and this girl tries to stop me. She tells me to just stop it. I scream in her face "they're beating my father up and you want me to stop?!" I pull at his shirt--I don't let go. All I can see was my dad being trampled on. I didn't even see my brother getting beat up.

People pull them away. I get my dad, and I saw my brother. His right ear was bleeding. I freaked out. I told the receptionists to bring my brother to the clinic. I pull my dad away. People were separating us.

My mom and my older brother come. I tell her Bino's right ear is bleeding. They both look like they could kill. My dad holds my brother off, I hold off my mom. When I finally got my mom under control, my older brother gets away and I hold him off. Two of the mayor's bodyguards pull out guns. I embraced my brother from the back, just holding him back, crying. The receptionists came to us, crying, hugging me, my dad, and my mom, whispering to us to just leave. "Maam, umalis na po kayo, may mga baril sila...Maam...umalis na po kayo please..."

I am pretty sure the Secretary of DAR did not take part in the fight, but he just watched all this happen. He watched two of his sons, as we figured out, the other guy was his son, too, beat up my father and my 14-year-old brother. He didn't do anything to stop it. And this person is what now? A cabinet member. A politician.

Sounds like something out of a movie, doesn't it? But this is what happened. TODAY. The day after Christmas. To my family. And all I ask for is JUSTICE. The people at Valley Golf did not seem to want to help us. None of the security guards even tried to stop the fight. Right in the clubhouse. I came back after the fight was over and talked to the receptionists. They say they did not see anything. The general manager of Valley Golf would not give us the names of the men who made my brother's ear bleed. It took him an hour. Maybe even more than that. He seemed to not want to help us. Because, we were against the SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRARIAN REFORM and the MAYOR OF MASIU CITY, LANAO DEL SUR. They were all scared.

The world has gone crazy. Two politicians beat up a defenseless 56-year-old father and his 14-year-old son. At a golf course. I swear to God, I thought golfers were decent people. You would think politicians were decent people. I guess not. I guess they gang up on 56-year-old men and beat up pleading 14-year-old kids.

Please pray for my dad, my brother and for my whole family. Please pray that we get JUSTICE. Oh God, please, give these people what they deserve.

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Abante: Mag-ama binugbug

Inquirer: Barbarians on the green

GMA News: DAR Chief's son and 5 bodyguards maul 2 golfers

Our Flight to Zamboanga

We were halfway on our 50 minutes - Cebu Pacific flight to Zamboanga City when the pilot announced they could not communicate with Zamboanga airport. He added that should communications be restored, we will still be arriving on time. We left Davao at around 6:00 AM.

The tone of the pilot's voice seem to indicate, at least to me, that this was not an out-of-the ordinary situation so I found it odd that he had to include this in a routine announcement.

And, as announced, we did arrive on time. But by Cebu Pacific standards, this means, we were already late. Cebu Pacific always brags: ladies and gentlemen, we arrived ten minutes ahead of schedule. Not this time.

However, with no communications from Zamboanga Airport, three flights ahead of us were forced to linger in the air for 30 to 40 minutes before landing. The respective pilots had to decide among themselves who would land first. The Cebu Pacific plane from Cebu, which had been circling for 40 minutes and already consuming more than 1,200 kilograms of fuel, was forced to land first. This was a dangerous landing because the pilot had no idea if there were any obstacles on the runway. The PAL flight from Manila came in next and was followed by the Cebu Pacific flight, also, from Manila.

The reason for this forced landings: the five air traffic controllers (supposed to be) on duty were either ABSENT or LATE.

I read somewhere that this is almost unheard of in the airline industry.

The air traffic controllers had received their bonuses the previous day, december 25th, and, probably, spent it celebrating with their families. I read somewhere, too, that the average salaries of the controllers were just P13,500. It's pitiful. They are responsible for so many valuable lives everyday, and, ironically, get paid so little.

Of course, it doesn't excuse them from being absent or tardy on that Dec 26 morning when many lives, including ours, depended on them showing up for work. Now, they are suspended and will, probably, be fired. There are even talks of a possible criminal liability with some jail time.

What a tragedy!

The Phil Star: Three flights unable to land in Zamboanga.
GMA News: Tardy air controllers delay landings.

Kumbinasyon

by Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao
07 Dec 2008, Las Vegas

Magandang, magandang araw po sa inyong lahat. Malamang sa oras na binabasa ninyo ang kolum na ito, ako po ay kasalukuyan nang lumalaban sa ibabaw ng ring, ang ring na pinapanood ng buong mundo.

Iniaalay ko sa Diyos at sa inyong lahat ang laban na ito at gagawin ko lahat ang aking makakaya upang gapiin ang kalaban na si Dela Hoya na nagsabing patutulugin daw niya ako. Isa lang ang aking masasabi. Ang aking kamao na lang ang magsasalita sa takdang araw dahil ang mahal na Panginoon lang ang s’yang tanging nakakaalam kung sino ang magwawagi sa aming dalawa.

Matagal at mahirap ang tinahak naming daan para paghandaan ang laban na ito. Dugo, pawis at pagod ang puhunan namin, kasama ang aking coach na si Freddie Roach. Tiniis naming lahat ang lamig, sakit ng katawan, pagkauhaw at mga pagsubok upang marating ang kundisyon ng pangangatawan, pag-iisip at ispiritwal na kabuuan upang masasabi namin na handing-handa na ang lahat.

This is the fight of my life, this is the biggest challenge in my boxing career, and I know that if I emerge victorious in this battle, all of us will reap the blessings and we will share all the glory.

Kaunting oras na lang at bakbakan na. Sana po, ipagpatuloy ninyo ang pananalangin upang lahat tayo ay tatanghaling KAMPEON NG BUONG MUNDO.

Hanggang sa muling Kumbinasyon. God Bless Us All!

http://philboxing.com/news/columns.php?aid=1130&id=20727


Pacquiao - de la Hoya fight. HBO PPV version.
http://www.biliranisland.com/video/pacquiao-delahoya-dsl.html


















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It's an early October afternoon in San Francisco, and in Pacquiao's suite on the seventh floor of the Ritz-Carlton, fire ordinances are on the verge of being violated. In town as part of a press tour, Pacquiao steps over one of his Filipino drivers, who has been sleeping on the floor next to the TV; meanwhile, another man is passed out near the doorway, one arm slung over his face.

Who are these folks? "It's a lot of people without titles," Roach says. "I once went around the room and kept asking, 'What does he do?' Nobody could tell me." In Gen San about 30 guys hang out at Pacquiao's mansion every day, playing darts and eating. One friend calls it "social welfare."

----------

Joaquin Hagedorn Jr., the boyfriend of Pacquiao's sister-in-law, recalls walking into the champ's hotel room in Las Vegas this summer and finding him lying on a blanket. Pacquiao, Hagedorn says, "just didn't think to call for a roll-away bed." Out of the filipino "hospitality" instinct, Pacquiao has been known to take a turn sleeping on the floor.

----------

Amid revelry in his suite at the Ritz, he started to gather empty beer cans. He says he had nothing to do.

----------

Flying on a private Falcon 900 jet, he used the bathroom faucet to fill an empty water bottle . He needed a drink.

Wheel Power

They both reach their destinations.

One sweats it out.
The other has it easy.

One rides his bike.

The other, ah well, his bike rides on top of him.

Working all day in the banana plantations of Madaum, Davao del Norte, is exhausting for him; he longs for the comfort of home. The P8 motorcycle ride is the fastest and easiest way of getting there. But he has one, big problem: what the hell is he going to do with his bike? ...

With only one leg, he has accepted his fate. He finds it hard to enjoy a stroll on the beach or a walk in the park. With his wheelchair, he is used to the pitiful stares from strangers; it no longer bothers him. In the silence of people's minds, he knows, he will always be labeled as incapacitated.

But not today. Not while he's on his bike.

Today he rides like the wind, and conquers a grueling, 35-kilometer climb towards Calinan, Davao City.


Who's incapacitated now?

(from my other blog. This story still inspires me!)

Midcourse Correction

It's 1:41 in the morning and I can't sleep.

I am on the verge of making one of the biggest decisions in my life. I haven't fully decided yet, but I'm ninety percent leaning towards making it. The ten percent is just about choosing the right timing and the appropriate way of doing it, which can give the best results for me.

It's like waking up, recharged and relaxed, after a deep sleep. Or as Wayne Dyer calls it, Zathura, an instant awakening. Yesterday afternoon, while wasting away on the couch with a fever -- with the TV on and with a meaningless book on my hands (Cosbyology by Bill Cosby) -- I just STOOD UP and decided to DO IT: to say goodbye to this companion of over 14 years; to fiercely shout my farewells to a journey nearing its end; to say yes, too, to the promise of another great adventure; and to bravely choose the road less traveled by. (Please be right, Robert Frost.)

Enough with the uncertainties.

Now, I can't sleep. I am so reinvigorated. Excited. Really optimistic.

I'm so alive!

I think Richard Bode's First You Have to Row a Little Boat triggered this surge of decisiveness. While cleaning the storage room yesterday, I saw this forgotten, old book, and scanned its pages. Across one page, I had drawn a big, yellow check mark. The highlighted page was about the necessity for ships to make midcourse corrections: it's a navigational correction made during the journey of ships. Without these corrections, sometimes in very small degrees, the ships may end up at the wrong ports, or, worst, arrive at the wrong countries, and, ultimately, fail to reach their planned destinations.

And would Titanic be so infamous now had her navigator turned her a few degrees to the right? (Or to the left) Damn. I will not end up like the Titanic.

A midcourse correction. This is what I need.

And Robert, for now, I'll walk with you.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Levi's ad

Her note

After months of procrastination, I'm starting to clean the storage room. It's all there: bills, important documents, books, hammer (there you are), notebooks, Christmas cards, birthday cards, expired meds, receipts, a slipper, a deodorant, etc.

I found this note given by Gem on August 28Th, 1995 -- tucked inside Richard Bode's First You Have to Row a Little Boat. It was written on a half-sheet, white bond paper.

Each of us
by Danielle Steel

Each of us, with our secret gifts,
lovely potions, lovely notions
Waiting to be aired, waiting to be shared.

Each of us, a half, a whole,
a mind, a soul, a heart,
And yet, a part of a better, richer, more.
Looking for the door, the key, the You, the We.

Growing day by day, looking for the way
To find what I’d always dreamed but never seen.
Always tried but never been.

Always thought but never knew.
Until at last,
I discovered
that the gift
I always sought
was YOU….

Gem
August 28th
1995

Astigggg

I once heard Aegis, live. I was totally mesmerized.

Powerful voices.
High notes.
Sentimental Tagalog lyrics.
Spirited.
And as they say: Performance level!


Like this song:

Basang basa sa ulan



Heto ako ngayon, nag-iisa
Naglalakbay sa gitna ng dilim
Lagi na lang akong nadarapa
Ngunit heto, bumabangon pa rin

Heto ako, basang-basa sa ulan
Walang masisilungan, walang malalapitan
Sana'y may luha pa, akong mailuluha
At ng mabawasan ang aking kalungkutan

Dumi at putik sa aking katawan
Ihip ng hangin at katahimikan
Bawat patak ng ulan at ang lamig
Waring nag-uutos, upang maglaho ang pag-ibig.


More Aegis:

Luha



Halik

I love the whole world

I like this ad:




I love the mountains
I love the clear blue skies
I love big bridges
I love when great whites fly.

I love the whole world
and all its sights and sounds

hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da

i love the ocean
i love the dirty things
i love to go fast
i love egyptian kings

i love the whole world
and all its craziness

hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da

i love tornados
i love arachanid
i love hot magma
i love the giant squids

i love the whole world
it’s such a brilliant place.

hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da
hoom-di-a-da

High School

Song: Cinderella
Singer: Stage crew
HCAS 88

Trapped

Thirsty

Friday is here.
Where's my beer?

Dash

Two years ago.















Two days ago.

.... Let me out please.

Planting Season

I bought two more Indian Trees for P100 at Makilala.
More planting jobs this weekend.
And I still have to weed out grass from the back lawn.
Tsk. Tsk.

Failed Expectations

A friend was angry over her hubby's disregard of a special occasion in their lives; "he did not forget, he just ignored our special day," she insisted.

I remember the times when I, too, failed to plan for an anniversary or for a special occasion:

One valentines day, about five years ago, I nearly forgot to give Gem a gift; I was busy giving Valentine day treats to my customers. When I finally had the time -- late in the afternoon-- to buy flowers for her, all I found, at any shop, were wilted and lifeless roses, surely not the one she likes. When I came to DBP near the evening with her roses, the relieved but defeated look on her face pierced painfully into my soul. It seemed that every breathing female in the bank got a special bouquet from their thoughtful partners, all delivered in the morning. What anguish she must have felt the entire day! Since then, every morning of valentines day, at least, three dozen, long-stemmed, baby-pink, fresh roses always find its way to DBP.

But nothing beats the way I totally ignored our first month anniversary (not yet married but still) as couples. Darn. A long story, and I'm sleepy. Well, after all, there are no mistakes, only lessons to be learned.

I wonder about the true measure of real love. Is it logical for the small, daily, loving gestures to be thrown out of the window once a major occasion is ignored? Or should we celebrate our individuality and understand our partner's unique way of expressing their love? Which, most of the time, are different from ours. For me, I guess, what is important to Gem, must be, genuinely, as important to me, too.

As for my friend, the day ended pretty well for her, after all.

A fleeting, nonsense thought: if one regularly forgets, then one must easily be forgiven the moment one forgets! Makes sense.

College Photos

School

Winifred C. Marshall

School bells are ringing, loud and clear;
Vacation's over, school is here.

We hunt our pencils and our books,
And say goodbye to fields and brooks,

To carefree days of sunny hours,
To birds and butterflies and flowers.

8th habit

Finally, after two days, I finished listening to the 8th habit... again. I will update my audio files when I get home.

“One word expresses the pathway to greatness: voice. Those on this path find their voice and inspire others to find theirs. The rest never do.” - Covey

The power to discover your voice lies in the potential that was bequeathed to you at birth. Latent and undeveloped, the seeds of greatness were planted. You were given magnificent “birth-gifts”-talents, capacities, privileges, intelligences, opportunities-that would remain largely unopened except through your own decision and effort. Open these gifts. Learn what taps your talents and fuels your passion-that rises out of a great need in the world that you feel drawn by conscience to meet-therein lies your voice, your calling, your soul’s code.

Friend's day out

At SM after watching HS Musical

Stop over

It's raining here.
But Davao is not near.
I'm driving now.
Oh I see a cow!

Handcrafted

I am amazed I can do these photo enhancements with a click of the mouse. Photofunia.com. What a great find!

Eagle Eye

We made it to the last full show of Eagle Eye last night at NCCC.

It has the same plot as I Robot. What I am intrigued: Can the current technology really track my every move?

Not a complete waste of time but I wasn't thrilled. I agree with Variety, "The picture's first 35 minutes sizzle until a Byzantine plot nudges the story toward near-parody in the final act." And with this one, "Good, manic fun plus a heavy dose of political intrigue adding up to two hours of clamorous, mind-numbing nonsense." Hahaha.

We saw the trailer for Nights in Rodanthe. We will not miss this one. I just hope I will like the changes they made to the movie version.

Whispers of the wind

I feel like I'm with the poet on this walk. I, too, would like to hear the whispers of the wind!

My Paradise
by Kate

As I walk through the forest I can hear the trees
Using the winds to whisper to one another
I feel like if I listen hard enough
I can understand what they are saying
I strain my ears to listen to its words
But the meaning of their words are just out my reach
I listen to the winds rustling the leaves
As if it was some sort of music
When I realize I can also hear a brook
I scan my surrondings until I find it
Hidden behind a patch of trees
There is a small sandy beach
It is covered with rocks, a log, and raccoon tracks
I see rocks of all colors scattered across the bottom
They create this cornicopia of color
It fascinates me for minutes, then hours
And time becomes a past memory as I fade away into it all
Sometime later I snap out of my mesmerized state
I gather my things and ready to leave my secret paradise
As I whisper one last goodbye I swear I hear the wind whisper it back.

Contruction

I passed by an apartment being built today, and this word just popped-out of my mind: contruction.

When our house was being built, I heard "contruction" often loosely used by the workers.

"Pila ka na ka tuig nagtrabaho sa construction, Manong."

"Dugay nako nagtrabaho sa contruction, sir."

Being an O.C. in a lot of things -- spelling, grammar, overnight basura, chairs and tables with eneven legs, and others -- wonderfully keeps me on a steady state of imbalance. So when I first heard "contruction", I had to strain my ears to listen to the conversations, thinking I might have missed hearing the S somewhere. The Sssss were, sadly, always absent.

Another time, I was talking to a contractor friend, and he said he needed to get IDs for his workers for a contruction he was doing at a plush subdivision. I nearly hissed when I heard him say it.

Contruction: the filipino workers' contribution to the English language.

Worlds apart

I had lunch at Adelfas, in Matanao. I was served a big portion of paksiw na buntot ng bariles. After seing the bulge in my stomach, the tindera thought I could devour anything. Hahaha. I proved her wrong! I was already full, but a big, tasty chunk of the bariles was still left.

I noticed a small girl watching Wowowee, and holding the peanuts and chicharon she was selling. I told her to sit down, and, when I learned she didn't have lunch yet, I ordered a cup of rice for her and got her a glass of water. The girl is 11 years old and not in school. Her mother is dead and her father sells chicharon too.

She is as old as Althea but they are living entirely different worlds: My pamangkin downloads songs from the internet to copy into her mp3 player, uploads photos of her classmates (at Stella) into her friendster account, and excitedly waits for Highschool Musical, the Movie to be showned at SM. This kid, on the other hand, wonders if the man facing her now and giving her free lunch, will also buy some of the five-peso-per-pack peanuts she is selling -- so that her two younger sisters at home could have a decent meal.

I felt sad for the girl's plight. But I believe, no matter the circumstance, her future is still unwritten; and it's up to her to fill the pages of her life with whatever stories she desires.

I am glad of the huge portion of bariles served to me. I'm sure, had I been given just enough, I wouldn't have thought of giving anybody a free lunch.

As I left Adelfas, this thought, which I heard from Tony Robbins, crossed my mind: When you give love, it immediately comes back to you. I get what he meant, and it's just so true. Love is the only thing where I immediately get back, the moment I give it.

The warmth, kindness, and love I felt, as I watched the kid silently eat her meal, profoundly strengthened my commitment to help those who have less in life than me. Death is inevitable for all of us, the material things we accumulate on earth will simply vanish. Therefore, Wayne Dyer said, the purpose of life MUST be to GIVE what we accumulate.

Illusions

Just read (or reread, not sure) Illusions, The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah. What a waste of time! Sorry Mr. Richard Bach. After Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, all your other books, including A Bridge Across Forever, were dull and meaningless to me. It did not give me the emotional and spiritual high that Seagull once did -- when I was still in college.

My younger self might have read some portions of the book because the first few chapters seems vaguely familiar, but boring as it is, I might have dosed off after the first few pages.

But most of the quotes from the Messiah's Handbook (in Illusions) are profound:

Here is a test to find whether your mission on earth is finished: If you're alive, it isn't.

Imagine the universe beautiful and just and perfect.

You're always free to change your mind and choose a different future, or a different past.

Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself. Being true to anyone else or anything else is not only impossible, but the mark of a false messiah.

Your conscience is the measure of the honesty of your selfishness. Listen to it carefully.

The simplest questions are the most profound.
Where were you born?
Where is your home?
Where are you going?
What are you doing?

The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life.

There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts.

You are never given a wish without being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however.

Every person, all the events of your life, are there because you have drawn them there. What you choose to do with them is up to you.

In order to live free and happily, you must sacrifice boredom. It is not always an easy sacrifice.

DBP Floor Plan

This is DBP's floor plan, Althea's version. We brought Atet to DBP to witness the bank's fire drill day. She drew this floor plan in less than 3 minutes, I think.

Is she going to be an architect or an engineer someday? Hard to predict really. She says, when she grows up, she will help her Mama manage the laundry service store. I keep on convincing her to be a nurse; and tells her she will go to places she only sees at the internet. I don't think I'm getting to her though. Not yet.

olympic torch? sword?

balancing act

Dwarf Lanzones

I planted a dwarf lanzones tree at the right side of our front lawn. It's near the dining area so, I hope, it will provide some cool shades when we're dining during hot days. I bought it for P280 at a fair for farm products in Pigcauayan. Manong, the seller, showed me a picture of a grown tree: it's as tall as our fence, with a single trunk, and enough leaves to cover the area on that side of our lawn; and when I saw the lanzones fruits dotting all over its branches, I was convinced this is the tree for me, even though, Manong suggested indian trees offer better shades. (I bought two indian trees, too, for P100 each)

Uncle Roland haven't heard of a dwarf lanzones tree; he says it might have been grafted from a smaller tree. (Grafting? did I hear him right?)

Gem says it will invite ants and other insects, but she just let me be when I got the shovel and started making a small hole at the lawn to plant the tree.

It will be two years before it will bear any sweet, juicy fruit. In the meantime, one kilo for P30 at Bankerohan will help ease the long wait.

blake, dash, alto in the background

1 dwarf lanzones, two indian trees

Make me an instrument

I am receiving a lot of private messages for "Here I am Lord" video. This one, from RoseofMercy, touched me deeply.

To: januarysdawn
From: roseofmercy
Subject: Here I am lord
Date: Jul 30, 2008

I have been trying to find my way back to my faith after a serious illness during which my faith dissappeared; any way I just watched your very beautiful video of here I am Lord which really touched something inside of me. I cant begin to work out how you make something like that. The main reason for this email is could you please tell me who is singing the hymn. Thank you.

roseofmercy

My response:

The singer is John Michael Talbot. I made this as an invocation for one of our meetings.

Sadly, my faith in Him is weak still.

But I''m just amazed that this prayer crossed the globe and touched a lot of people, including you, and expressed their thanks.

Maybe, He really puts us in outrageous personal trials to make us realize how strong and powerful we can be, and that our potential, despite serious setbacks, is truly unlimited.

And sometimes, He uses random individuals, even those with weak faith in Him, to remind the world of His caring presence.

I guess my journey begins now. And I should be the one thanking you.

Every word tell

Timeless advice:

"Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all sentences short or avoid all detail and treat subjects only in outline, but that every word tell." - Elements of Style 4th edition


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Lechon Paksiw at Babista

I tasted the best lechon paksiw ever. Sabroso! It was cooked by one of my Babista boarding house-mates.

I was having oatmeal for dinner. Oatmeal with lechon paksiw! What a tragic combination. :-)

I got the ingredients, and I will prepare it for the Saturday dinner at home.

War and peace, we will be here.

Free coffee at Babista. (mornings only)