It is always good to have a time wherein your entire family gathers together even for at least a single day. Christmas, birthdays, reunions, holy week and the coming all saints day are just some of the special occasions long-time cousins, aunties, uncles will be seen. All saints day was special because even the family member who passed away or the unseen grandparents, who were born in early 90’s, are part of the event.
Days leading to November 1, there are a lot of Halloween specials, documentary, movies etc. shown in local and cable television. Before the advent of pay-per-view and internet- surfing, I’m glued to programs like Magandang Gabi Bayan who yearly presents horror stories. Our country is known to possess haunted places that makes this kind of presentation very effective and entertaining as well.
The Diplomat Hotel in Baguio City is believed to have ghosts of beheaded nuns and priests. Malinta Tunnel in Corregidor became the haunting ground of unknown spirits in the area. UP Los Banos was a scary place on one reason alone, it was situated at the foot of Mt. Makiling. There are bridges in this place that seem to take forever when crossed at night. The famous Balete Drive in Quezon City, though despite lack of evidence, brings thrill among the motorists because of the belief that a white lady will cross the street and worse, will joyride with you.
The night of All Saints Day was not just a night of remembering lost love ones but also a night of sight- seeing and girl-haunting. Different kinds of women pass by in front of our tomb. Head-turners, mini-skirt dressers and even unpleasant-looking girls were everywhere. We also have this contest wherein we count every person we know passing by. It will be counted once he replied.
During my teenage years, I also collect used candles by circling around the cemetery. There was also an instance where I clean and paint the mausoleum of a girl I’m courting. Unluckily, still not enough to impress her.
The sight of colorful food stalls is also a joy to behold. We stroll around them and food-trip with my friends. Burgers, fish balls, squid balls, hotdog sandwich, donuts were some of the most sought after foodstuffs. We also hear the mass at night since the church is just beside the cemetery.
In my younger years, we normally go home at 12:00 a.m. but because you're thinking of the work the following day we had to pack-up as early as 8:00 p.m.
Happy Halloween!
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Biyernes, Oktubre 30, 2009
Linggo, Agosto 2, 2009
Cory Legacy, Philippine Democracy
I was barely 9 yrs. old when the historic People Power happened in February of 1986. I was not fully aware of what was transpiring but the picture of army tanks, priests and nuns carrying rosaries and people marching to Malacanang palace were still very vivid on my mind. Several days after, Corazon Cojuangco Aquino took her oath and became the 11th President of the Republic of the Philippines and in the process became also the first lady President in Asia.
I can describe Cory Aquino as an ordinary person facing an extra ordinary challenge. Without any political background so to speak, how can she handle the country still fresh from the authoritarian leadership of Ferdinand Marcos? From Times Street to Presidential seat. From Ninoy’s shadow to executing the law. From being just a plain house wife to the highest position in the nation. Corazon Aquino defies all odds.
Her six year reign had its share of ups & downs. From 1986- 1989, Aquino faced 7 failed coup d’ etat aimed to overthrow her administration. Disasters like the MV Dona Paz sinking, 1990 Luzon Earthquake, 1991 Pinatubo eruption and Ormoc tragedy which kills 6, 000 people marred her last two years in the office. It was also during her term that brown-outs became sporadic. Despite all of these problems President Aquino faced, she received widespread recognition from all over the world. She became TIME magazines Woman of the Year in 1986. She also delivered a speech before a joint session in United States Congress which was interrupted by applause several times. She also suspended the 1973 Constitution that paved the way to the “Freedom Constitution” & the “1987 Constitution”. She also promulgated two legal codes, the Family Code of 1987 and the Administrative Code of 1987. She also signed to law the Local Government Code in 1991. CARP was also enacted to law during the 8th Congress.
Despite being unconscious of the Edsa Revolution I’m still fortunate to witness the legacy of the mother of democracy. Her husband, Ninoy Aquino once said that “Filipinos are worth dying for” Cory replied by saying” Filipinos are worth living for”.
Thank You Cory Aquino. You'll forever be remembered!
I can describe Cory Aquino as an ordinary person facing an extra ordinary challenge. Without any political background so to speak, how can she handle the country still fresh from the authoritarian leadership of Ferdinand Marcos? From Times Street to Presidential seat. From Ninoy’s shadow to executing the law. From being just a plain house wife to the highest position in the nation. Corazon Aquino defies all odds.
Her six year reign had its share of ups & downs. From 1986- 1989, Aquino faced 7 failed coup d’ etat aimed to overthrow her administration. Disasters like the MV Dona Paz sinking, 1990 Luzon Earthquake, 1991 Pinatubo eruption and Ormoc tragedy which kills 6, 000 people marred her last two years in the office. It was also during her term that brown-outs became sporadic. Despite all of these problems President Aquino faced, she received widespread recognition from all over the world. She became TIME magazines Woman of the Year in 1986. She also delivered a speech before a joint session in United States Congress which was interrupted by applause several times. She also suspended the 1973 Constitution that paved the way to the “Freedom Constitution” & the “1987 Constitution”. She also promulgated two legal codes, the Family Code of 1987 and the Administrative Code of 1987. She also signed to law the Local Government Code in 1991. CARP was also enacted to law during the 8th Congress.
Despite being unconscious of the Edsa Revolution I’m still fortunate to witness the legacy of the mother of democracy. Her husband, Ninoy Aquino once said that “Filipinos are worth dying for” Cory replied by saying” Filipinos are worth living for”.
Thank You Cory Aquino. You'll forever be remembered!
Lunes, Hunyo 1, 2009
Beware, Thunderstorm in the Horizon
Looks like we had to throw our shades, bikinis & sun blocks away and prepare our umbrellas, caps and jackets. Summer seems to be over and we had to welcome rainy season whether we like it or not. It’s good news for some of our fellow countrymen particularly to those in the provinces. It’s the time of the year where our crops need water. Several of our dams with decrease in water level during the hot season will be replenish. But for most of us, this is the time of the year that we had to prepare more. As a resident of Malabon for 30 years, seeing floods left and right is just part of our life. But floods accompanied by heavy rains means total disaster for lowly areas like us.
Today, I’ll just share several facts about typhoons that have hit our country and peep into the most notable tropical cyclones to enter the Philippine area of responsibility.
According to PAGASA, storms were categorized into four types based on their wind speed. First is the Tropical Depression with maximum sustained winds between 55 kms. per hour to 64 kms. per hour near it’s centre. Tropical Storms range from 65 to 119 kms. per hour. Typhoons achieve a maximum of 120 to 185 kms. per hour. The strongest is Super Typhoon with winds exceeding 185.
Based on Wikipedia, the most destructive typhoon ever to hit Philippines is Thelma in November of 1991. Death toll was estimated at 5,000- 8,000 people and damages amounting to P 1.045 B. In terms of damages and loss of property, typhoon Ruping had a resounding P10.846B recorded in just 5 days. Typhoon Amy stayed in the country for almost half month from December 6-19, 1951 killing the lives of 991 people, 2nd highest after Thelma.
Aside from typhoon strength, amount of rainfalls were also measured. The wettest tropical cyclone was the July 1911 cyclone which dropped over 1,168 millimetres of rainfall within a 24 hour period at Baguio City. Curiously, 5 of the top 10 wettest recorded tropical cyclones occurred in Benguet.
Some of the latest typhoons to devastate the archipelago were Milenyo and Durian. The latter triggered mudslides that killed at least 388 people. River of muds and volcanic ashes from Mayon volcano swamped houses in the region. Milenyo on the other hand, killed many people not only here in our country but also in Vietnam. 24 hours after Milenyo left the Philippines, only 18% of the whole nation had their water and electricity returned. Large numbers of offices and establishments have been forced to close down. Uprooted trees, fallen cable wires and billboards can be seen in the usual busy streets.
When I was young, I always wait for this time of the year. No classes, cold weather, good time to eat and watch television. But imagine those people living in depressed areas. Where spare tires replaced nails in their roofs. Where people sleep surrounded by flood water. Where children were sick after so much exposure to rain. That opened my eyes to the reality that not everybody is happy during this kind of calamity. In every family living comfortably in exclusive villages during this time, there are thousands of families suffering and even threatened to lose their houses. Fear, worry and anxiety are written all over their faces.
Just think of how lucky we are compared to these people. For many of us, there's no amount of rain fall can prevent us from window shopping and bar hopping. But for them, there's no amount of rain fall can duplicate the tears lost during this time of depression.
Today, I’ll just share several facts about typhoons that have hit our country and peep into the most notable tropical cyclones to enter the Philippine area of responsibility.
According to PAGASA, storms were categorized into four types based on their wind speed. First is the Tropical Depression with maximum sustained winds between 55 kms. per hour to 64 kms. per hour near it’s centre. Tropical Storms range from 65 to 119 kms. per hour. Typhoons achieve a maximum of 120 to 185 kms. per hour. The strongest is Super Typhoon with winds exceeding 185.
Based on Wikipedia, the most destructive typhoon ever to hit Philippines is Thelma in November of 1991. Death toll was estimated at 5,000- 8,000 people and damages amounting to P 1.045 B. In terms of damages and loss of property, typhoon Ruping had a resounding P10.846B recorded in just 5 days. Typhoon Amy stayed in the country for almost half month from December 6-19, 1951 killing the lives of 991 people, 2nd highest after Thelma.
Aside from typhoon strength, amount of rainfalls were also measured. The wettest tropical cyclone was the July 1911 cyclone which dropped over 1,168 millimetres of rainfall within a 24 hour period at Baguio City. Curiously, 5 of the top 10 wettest recorded tropical cyclones occurred in Benguet.
Some of the latest typhoons to devastate the archipelago were Milenyo and Durian. The latter triggered mudslides that killed at least 388 people. River of muds and volcanic ashes from Mayon volcano swamped houses in the region. Milenyo on the other hand, killed many people not only here in our country but also in Vietnam. 24 hours after Milenyo left the Philippines, only 18% of the whole nation had their water and electricity returned. Large numbers of offices and establishments have been forced to close down. Uprooted trees, fallen cable wires and billboards can be seen in the usual busy streets.
When I was young, I always wait for this time of the year. No classes, cold weather, good time to eat and watch television. But imagine those people living in depressed areas. Where spare tires replaced nails in their roofs. Where people sleep surrounded by flood water. Where children were sick after so much exposure to rain. That opened my eyes to the reality that not everybody is happy during this kind of calamity. In every family living comfortably in exclusive villages during this time, there are thousands of families suffering and even threatened to lose their houses. Fear, worry and anxiety are written all over their faces.
Just think of how lucky we are compared to these people. For many of us, there's no amount of rain fall can prevent us from window shopping and bar hopping. But for them, there's no amount of rain fall can duplicate the tears lost during this time of depression.
Sabado, Abril 25, 2009
Hapi Kaarawan! You're Now 31!
April 23, 2009, an exciting day for me because of 2 things. First, I had the opportunity to shy away a bit to my accustomed work and second it’s the birthday of my lovely wife! Several weeks before this day, I had a problem not knowing what gift I could give her. First, she wants to have a digital camera. I painstakingly canvassed for the camera that will best suit her taste. After deciding on one brand, she then taught of having a LCD television, 32”, as her minimum requirement. That’s more than double (price) of the digital camera I planned to buy. Alright, I went around the mall again and I found one worth just, P23, 000+. Bingo! Now my problem has been solved! But upon returning home, she made another bold move. She now wants to put tiles on the flooring of our living room! So that’s it! So much for the headache, “the gift”, has given me.
At around 3:00 p.m. on the day of her b-day, we checked- in on a hotel, located in downtown Manila. We ate a lot and bought my wife a new design of Havaianas slippers. We also bought several stuffs for our kids. We headed back to the hotel and ate some snacks. We called it a day quite early, understandably, since all of us are tired of all the brouhaha we did the whole day. We woke up at around 7:30 in the morning. We had our breakfast, silogs, pancakes etc., and took our morning shower. We checked-out early because we still need to buy the tiles along Edsa. We consumed 3 hours picking the right color that will best describe our home motif. At night, my sexy wife Jerdie and I, drink 2 bottles of Red Horse mucho. Two beers plus home-made sisig and isaw is more than enough for us non-drinkers. We discussed a lot of things like our past, how we met, how we defied several odds along the way and how we slowly fulfill our dreams for our family. At 11:00 p.m. we decided to call it quits. The next scene is what I’ve been waiting for! I need to close the door now. It’s a private thing. Hope you understand.
Again, Happy Birthday Mommy! Lv U so much!
At around 3:00 p.m. on the day of her b-day, we checked- in on a hotel, located in downtown Manila. We ate a lot and bought my wife a new design of Havaianas slippers. We also bought several stuffs for our kids. We headed back to the hotel and ate some snacks. We called it a day quite early, understandably, since all of us are tired of all the brouhaha we did the whole day. We woke up at around 7:30 in the morning. We had our breakfast, silogs, pancakes etc., and took our morning shower. We checked-out early because we still need to buy the tiles along Edsa. We consumed 3 hours picking the right color that will best describe our home motif. At night, my sexy wife Jerdie and I, drink 2 bottles of Red Horse mucho. Two beers plus home-made sisig and isaw is more than enough for us non-drinkers. We discussed a lot of things like our past, how we met, how we defied several odds along the way and how we slowly fulfill our dreams for our family. At 11:00 p.m. we decided to call it quits. The next scene is what I’ve been waiting for! I need to close the door now. It’s a private thing. Hope you understand.
Again, Happy Birthday Mommy! Lv U so much!
Martes, Marso 24, 2009
March Madness
Wheww! I don't know how will I start this. I'm still in the state of shock after all the happenings that transpired 3 days ago. Well, Saturday, March 21, was indeed a busy day not only for me but for the entire Pagcor family. BIDA March, a project of Chairman Genuino in cooperation with DepEd, was expected to post a new record for the most number of people participated on an Anti-drug campaign. This is definite but what we're gonna do is a big question mark. Days leading to the event, everybody were still in limbo as to what to do and where to go. It was then finalized that most of the girls will be assigned to take care of food distribution and others will be posted at the registration booths. Almost 80% of the boys composed the transport group.
Our group was tapped to dispatch vehicles from Valenzuela area. I woke up at around 5:30 a.m. since the site is closer to my homebase. AGA boys were divided into three. Notty, Jets, Dennis, Rick, Lito, Jeff, Jun & Tolits were assigned in one area. Sev, Doc and myself tooked care of another school (sorry, it's name slipped in my mind at the moment). Boyet was left all alone to supervise Wawang Pulo Elementary school. Cutting the story short, we dispatched a total of 75 buses and 18 jeepneys carrying an estimated 60 persons each (kids & adults) for bus and an average of 14 per jeepney. We have successfully done our part but what were not prepared for are the events that would follow.
The original plan is that the kids would be dropped at CCP Complex and marched towards Luneta Grandstand. The vehicles would then proceed to Dubai (site of Bagong Nayong Filipino) to wait. After the event, several buses would fetched the kids and returned them to Dubai where their assigned vehicles waited for them. But everything turned out just a plan. Confusion on where to get the drivers payment surfaced. Without food and drinks, do we expect them to politely conversed with us? As temper escalated, many of Pagcorians decided to change their shirt to protect themselves against eering drivers. A colleague who was assigned at Tondo Elementary School needed to run as angry drivers tried to put a hand on him. Another was held "hostage" as drivers wanted him to stay and will only be freed once they got their due. Navotas team, majority of whom are my close friends, can't get out of Dubai as drivers decided to park their jeepneys in front of our Dubai office. Our very own Boyet,who at passed 11:00 p.m., was still circling around MOA helping kids find their other companions. Were just thankful that we've already left Dubai before both parties clashed.
It was indeed a unique experienced for us. It may be tiring & exhausting day but the element of laughter will always be there. Take it from the words of Doc, moments after learning that his son is also missing. "San ka? Magkita tayo. Nakikita mo ba yung dyip?
He,he. Relaks Doc, relaks!
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