A New Year's Eve post - A goodreads quote from one of my fave authors

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes...you're Doing Something.


Neil Gaiman

A Colossal Thought

Are you a reader? I am.  I read lots of stuff, i think i have mentioned before, from the sublime to the ridiculous, all of them interesting.

i  read for the fun of it, and i come by this love of reading from both sides of the family.  My Mom's family are readers and they have tons of books.  Unfortunately though, the floods in the Sampaloc area during those times have destroyed some of them.  From my Dad's side are all prodigious readers, and all the family have libraries.  Some of those books have been given away.

i must have read over a 1000 books, and i havent included the romance books i read in High School, or numerous Peanuts, and my collection of Calvin and Hobbes.

i try and read all of Neil Gaiman's, and i have a favorite one.

i have books on Socrates, Plato, St. Augustine, and Descartes. I also have books on Lemony Snicket ... and whodunnits galore (Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, Ruth Rendell, The Cat Who series by Lilian Braun..... and more).

i tend to love fantasy and sci-fi so I have Tolkien, Asimov, StarTrek (TOS, of course), Ray Bradbury, Clarke, and one of the books i love is by Madeleine L'Engle. She wrote A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet .... as a cover of one of those books is supposedly a seraphim.  Yes, and the art work -- see the link --- depicted reminds me of that.

you do remember what seraphims are, right?

Click here for an interesting peek at surreal-wildlife-paintings-by-tiffany-bozic/?src=footer

a 3d pen - for all you who love to doodle

would you want to own a 3d doodle pen?

click on the link below for details.  

if i remember right,  Neil Gaiman also mentioned the kickstarter campaign, for an artist who wanted to animate his short story "The Price".  i think. if memory serves.  i have had 3 full-on unconscious surgeries, which i am told ... affect memories...  whatever.  you can check Neil's blog.

i wasnt able to contribute then, but the project was a success!

here's a chance to help kickstart a project.  who knows ... maybe one day you will have a project to kickstart..  the Colossal page also brings you to the Kickstart site.  it doesnt have to a big amount, but it does have to be in $$$$$$$

Click here all ye doodlers Colossal.com/2013/02/the-worlds-first-3d-printing-pen-that-lets-you-draw-sculptures-in-real-time/?src=footer

How many books have you read?

If you were asked how many books have you read, would you be able to answer?  with what degree of accuracy?

would you be able to list them down?  books should be differentiated from magazines or newspapers because their format and content differ, and particularly, the reasons for reading them.

i tend to read by authors, once i have discovered that i like an author's certain style.
for example, in grade school, i read all the fairy tales i could find, even if some of them were grim.  The Little Mermaid of Hans Christian Andersen fame is not a sweet or cute story.  The Little Mermaid dies, only to be born as one of the Daughters of the Air ... or the Little Match Girl, she too dies in the end.  The Disney story of the little mermaid is, of course, very upbeat, but not true to the book.  For example, i've read almost all of Neil Gaiman's books (that i can find, even his graphic novels) .... even philosophy books (St. Augustine, Descartes....)

whether good or bad, i can sometimes be a purist as i tend to prefer the original versions than revised ones.
you can read my post entitled "on a diet of books".

at any rate, when i tried listing the books i've read ... it is about a 1000 now although it is badly understated.  it doesnt cover the manuals i have read, textbooks i've read, or simply books whose titles i cant remember. i dont even remember the titles of some of the children's books i've read lately.

no adult should stop reading children's books because these books have a flavor all their own.

at any rate, see how 30,000 books look like ....

Click here to see Colossal's tower-of-babel-built-with-30000-books/

To lose a dog

Only someone who has lost a beloved dog will understand what Neil Gaiman had to say in his 12 January 2013 post about Cabal, his big white dog.  In this particular blog post, he remembers the day he picked up Cabal in his mini, and til his death last Saturday.  Read about this blog in the link below

 The post ends this way and i quote:

I'm so glad I knew him. I'm so glad we found each other. I don't imagine I'll ever have another bond like that in my life. I wish dogs lived longer.

Kipling said it best :

THERE is sorrow enough in the natural way
From men and women to fill our day; 
And when we are certain of sorrow in store, 
Why do we always arrange for more? 
Brothers and sisters, I bid you beware
Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.

We can beware all we like. But the poem is called the Power of a Dog, and it is a very real power, and it is, as Kipling knew, a good thing.

He was the best dog in the universe and I'm going to miss him so much.

Neil Gaiman wrote about the Endless in his Sandman series - this would be Dream (also the Sandman), Death, Destruction,  Destiny, Desire, Delirium, and Despair); my favorite being Dream.  The Graveyard Book, Coraline, Neverwhere, Good Omens (with Pratchett), American Gods, Stardust, and a lot more.  Anansi Boys, for some reason, is slow reading for me.  But my favorite book remains about the cat - have the book in glorious illustration..... i digress again. I like his illustrated books.  they have a sense of wonder all their own....

Click here to go to Neil Gaiman's blog

I have lost 2 dogs that i have loved very much, one was Princess, a Peke who developed paralysis of the rear legs and was suddenly cured, then died in her sleep a few years after; she was about 15 years old.  The other one was Yoda, a toy terrier who slept in bed - my bed, and ate human foot (yes, he loved meat and he certainly looked like the Jedi Master) who died at age 17.  I no longer have any pets - also, i am now a KT person and i avoid stuff that may trigger allergies and the like.  My cats live outside the house (they frequent the terrazo and the garage), and i feed them cat food.  It was actually a sibling who encouraged the cats, they were ...... "dayo" and because we fed them, they - and their generations - stayed.

will post pictures after i have them scanned

Thoughts on Death - 1

i just found out that my friend's Dad passed away.   Condolences to Dode's Dad.

So, my thoughts have turned to this one sure thing in life...... death.

Death has traditionally been represented as a figure with a skull looking out from a hooded black cloak, carrying a huge sickle. i like to think of Death as a Brad Pitt Joe Black.  handsome, gorgeous, and clever.
here's a quick link to Brad Pitt as Joe Black.  you may not care about it, but i do.  *sigh*
pics of brad pitt as joe black 

my friends know my fascination with pitt

if you are male, you might want to consider Neil Gaiman's representative figure of Death.  One of the Endless, Death is represented as a goth girl.  She is sexy, gorgeous, and vivacious. You may want to click here for an image of Gaiman's Death

a better someone to accompany one would be Jesus Christ, our Lord.  but i am getting ahead of myself.

Death should be easy.  And i pray that everyone who reads this post would have an easy death.  a quick pass from physical existence to something else. 

So now, are you ready for Death?

Got your Will done?  For most of us regular people, a holographic will might suffice - a will written in the testator's hand, your hand, if you will, and must specifically establish the intent - to will the property. You have to date it and sign it properly and make sure all pages bear your siggy.

If your relatives arent greedy, or you can make sure they arent by having a copy of will to friends so they can watch your relatives squabble (believe me, money changes people).  Make sure your will can be found, and that a copy of the will with another. 

Are your insurances in order?   i suggest having an envelope and having your insurance policies in there.
i suggest that you include your SSS materials there.  Put your SSS-ID, the UMID one, if you have it, or the biometric one.  Or at least a copy of the SSS-ID.  This would ensure your beneficiaries would know your SSS No (number) at least.  A copy of your birth certificate would be a good idea too.  If you are married, you can include your marriage contract there.  You can ask NSO for a copy --> here's the click link again if you need it    NSO services

If you are a pensioner, i would suggest keeping a record of your bank account details.

Government offices, such as SSS, would always require proof of who and what.
So your beneficiaries (who else would be interested but them?) need a death certificate, and they need to prove who they are so NSO issued birth certificates are needed.  

You might want to include in this folder, any funeral preparations you made.  A plot or columbary, a casket or urn you have in storage somewhere, a funeral plan such as those offered by Loyola or other Funeral Agencies.

And make sure you make your wishes clear.  That is, you want to be cremated, not interred.  Your wishes may not always be followed so the will is important. Also, making plans ahead of time will ensure your wishes are carried.Also, you might want a copy of the Will in this folder/envelope.

A safety deposit box - so only your trusted executor(s) can open it - is a good place for jewelry - so someone cannot just find them and grab them (yes, people can be avaricious) and your will and other documentation.

i have personally implemented quite a few of these.  i am still looking for a "safe" bank, location-wise, for the safety deposit box.  i suppose i watch too much tv, like "Leverage".

and a last point,
enjoy each day, no matter what life throws at you.
find the blessing. find the joy. And the pain and sorrow?  well, just bite the bullet and it will passs

and oh.  i am not a lawyer, but i have lawyer friends, and necessity made me research things

Quick Art Rec

i love Art.  For those of you in the UK, i found this lady through the blog of one of my favorite word spinners,  Neil Gaiman.  Neil is the creator of the Dream King, the Sandman from Vertigo.


Sue Blackwell is the artist and here's the link to her site.  I got a card, which was the only thing i could afford to cross the seas (shipping took forever, but it arrived okay)

They are beautiful.  Click to visit her site ==>  Sue Blackwell art - her website

On a diet of books

i come from a family of readers - the side -  of my father AND my mother

when i was in grade school, i had my close male cousin borrow books from the San Beda Grade School Library.   he would borrow the Hardy Boys for me. i would borrow Dana Girls, and Nancy Drew, among others 

but i was reading about Greek and Roman mythos at the same time.  i would sit by the dining table, reading.  we ate at the table in the kitchen so the dining room table was available for me. I can still name all the gods and goddesses - and their relative powers.

the legends of Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite, and the like were very familiar to me.  i was grade what .... 3 or 4 maybe?

Lola Petra, my grandma, was a tad frustrated with me - no matter how near she was, i couldnt hear her when i was reading.  yes, i was that engrossed.  i love reading.  bookworm is an apt name for me.

in high school at PSHS-Diliman, i can remember reading Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Sherlock Holmes er Arthur Conan Doyle, and less i lie, i read all the romance books i could find.  Mills  & Boon was popular at the time. still is. 

Then my fantasy and sci-fi reading.  I read Asimov, Star Trek, Philip Dick, Ray Bradbury - who recently passed away and since i had very good lit teachers at Sayans - Agnes Vea and Helen Ladera immediately comes to mind i also read stuff like Anton Chekov,  Fyodor Dostoevsky, Voltaire, Socrates, Plato, St. Augustine, Shakespeare - his poetry and plays. And less you think Filipino was neglected - Ms Alfonso took care of that.  I happen to like Florante at Laura and i can still recite a few stanzas - the more relevant ones... for example:  Pag-ibig anaki's aking nakilala

and well, Jose Rizal's Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.  Although i read the Tagalog version, it really didnt register.  i had to read the English version to get the best appreciation.  So i did.  All exams were in Pilipino, but that was alright - the mind could handle the translation.

College reading was very different.  I was at scholar at the UP-Diliman, but i loved to read. I read everything i could lay my hands on - and i remember most is Marsh McLuhan's the medium is the message.  I had a good Enlish 4 teacher - i remember her face vividly, but i have to check my classcards (yes, i still have them) for her name

Rudyard Kipling - and my favorite - to this day - remains Rikki-tikki-tavi.

then i would read ... and recite poetry Shakespeare, Byron, Christopher Marlowe, 

Elizabeth Barrett-Browning - my favorite remains - How Do I love thee?

The years in between - my reading has not changed. I read almost anything, i think. and enjoy them. i love to read more than i love to watch. so maybe that is part of the reason i have read - and reread so many books. I love Tolkien. I love mysteries. I love sci-fi. i even read recipe books.

these days i read Neil Gaiman - the Sandman is a favorite but my favorite story remains an illustrated story about a black cat and the title is The Price. I do have his entire Sandman collection, and a few others. i think his illustrated books are lovely.

Graphic novels can be fun reading . I do have a lot of John Constantine - the blonde scruffy English bloke, not Keanu Reeves - though i like the actor. John Constantine novels are dark and hellish and scary. I am a member of a wonderful forum, but not really now. No longer active because circumstances drove me out. It was simpler to leave although i miss the guys and ladies there, except for one. She can have them all i suppose, like the ring.

i also read a lot of romance stuff. i rather like regency romance.  makes me wonder how they managed all the shenanigans in the various eras.  Well, women do love to read that stuff and besides, they make for excellent bedtime reading - nothing to think about.

But i love to read Calvin and Hobbes. I got the complete collection about 2 years ago and I have been reading them. One of my best birthday presents to myself. I read a few pages everyday. There are 3 volumes but i am still on the first volume.

Sigh.