The O2 Sibs, with Angie and Dino, AND with Jap and Patti

Taken 31 August 2015
on special leave from the hospital

US

Monte Vista at Sariaya, Quezon

A 3-day weekend trip.  21-23 August 2015.  There were three cars, my car - which our eldest drove.  our youngest crv which she drove, and my sister-in-law's van which our nephew drove.

We occupied two adjoining cottages, enjoying the shared back veranda that overlooked what we laughingly called a moat.  There was a small romantic hut (well, we were a family group - but a honeymooning couple might enjoy it) and there was a swing - like the ones we had at College of the Holy Spirit (Mendiola) back in my grade school days.

We went to Sariaya, Quezon for a spot of the beach.  It was short walk - about 10 steps - to the beach.

Very nice place, i definitely recommend it. Twas a windy and rainy weekend (Ineng was battering Luzon), and i enjoyed the sound of the waves crashing against the shoreline.  As usual, it reminded me of the poem of John Masefield ...." I must go down to the seas again....", and in fact, i recited it as the waves lapped against the shore.

The rooms were clean, the decor Filipino, and there was cable. The a/c was in excellent condition and there is only one thing i have to suggest - and that is that they equip the cottage with faucets near the stairs so that the sand does not track into the cottage.

The food was delish, and very Filipino. The veggies were fresh, in fact - they were freshly picked from their gardens.  You could taste the freshness - simply cooked food was great!

You ought to go, and enjoy the beach, the sun, and the local sites, and local delicacies - and if you were into cooking, you could play at cooking.

My brothers and nephews played poker several nights, with the winnings changing each night.

I caught up with prayers and meditations, and generally rested.

We were able to visit 2 churches.  The cathedral and a local church.

We bought lukban sausages, of course!

And though there was breakfast, we also bought delicious tapa. yummy.

and i didnt know how sick i really was ............

pics to follow......

Corregidor: A Trip to the Past

I encourage you to visit Corregidor.  It is an unspoilt beauty, very rough edges - with weapons of war.  Nature and men. Juxtapositions.

Battery. Huge guns.  Heavy artillery.  Caves of the Dead.  Forests.  Monkeys.  Lizards.
Skittering animals.

Memorials.  Honors.  Agonies Remembered.

The white altar was the only one i remembered from the past.  It seemed I had visited that place with my Dad, who was a WWII veteran.  The white dome, the shaft of sunlight.  that stung my memory.

Visit.
Remember the past. Remember the price of freedom.

Enjoy the beach.  Have a barbeque.  Enjoy the pool, too.
and if you are into it, there's a zip line.

the only thing i have to suggest - make it more friendly to individuals who are disabled.
soldiers may want to visit, and see the weapons of war then....

Pictures to follow.  (i have to download from my cameras).

Amadeo, Cavite: 1 August

Amadeo, Cavite.

a place of childhood memories.

My cousins have a place there where Ama (Dr. Bibiano Angkaw, MD (+)) had his practice.

In the days of my youth, there was a loom, where Aling Isay did her weaving - and where i learnt to do a bit.  It was an experience - there was a method, and the tinny patch i was able to weave will remain in my memory.

We spent summers there when we were small, and the Church seemed miles away .... and there was a bakery right beside the house,. i remember Sundays (we had to wake up early to go to church) and the smell of baking would waft though our noses as we walked past it to go to church - making us doubly eager to finish the mass and mess with the baking.  And yes, we were allowed to bake a few loaves.

The Church now is just a few steps away.  Truly, a child's perspective is quire different from an adult's view.

my cousins had a farm and summers came with the fruits - supsupins, or small delish mangoes would come in bushes or kaengs, as we call it.  And each of us would get one kaeng each (which i suppose would contain about 100 small mangoes) and we would commence to have an eating contest - first one to finish the kaeng's contents.  Not a single one of us finished one bushelful, but it was not for the lack of trying.  those mangoes were delicious.  they still are.

i wanted the windows open (it was cold so some of us felt the windows should be closed) because i like the wind to blow in and freshen the room.

they had a pump and a water tower, so when the water flowed in, someone would have to pump the water into the tower.  i remember a particular warm day when my cousins and i thought we would do the duty.  we all got wet, but we did the job.  One of my cousins who did the duty now lives in Canada and the other cousin is a physician, like his father before him.  He practices here in MetroManila. 

more later....

Weekend of June 20-22

I had an activity-filled this particular weekend 20-22 June 2014

Friday night - twas Winnie Avila's birthday blowout at 106 Maginhawa.
Ricci and Sipen brought out 2 bottles of red wine.  i didnt get to read the label.

So i got home a little later than usual.

Saturday - i woke up late as i usually do on weekends.
i got myself out of the house by 3 past in the afternoon to go the NKTI - i have laboratory exams on the 28th so i made advanced payments.  i was done before 3:30

My friends the Lims picked me up - Yes, they are very nice people - and we went to the wake of Dale Amor Villamor's parents. Her mom Maria L. Villamor and Atty. Alfredo Villamor died 14 June and her Dad followed on her birthday, 17 June..  we attended the Sunday Eucharist and left a little pass 8 pm

Wake of Dale's Mom - 17 June 2014, Jerry and I sitting, Kay, Vee, Manny, Pegs, Amihan, Boboy, Alice

We went to the wake also to greet Dale "Happy Birthday".   Her Dad died the morning of her birthday. Her mom the Sat before

The Lims then drove to Lito Sibayan's home at La Vista - and promised me that i wouldnt have to negotiate the slope down (it is a sharp incline from their main door to the street).

and whoa -
David Pomeranz - Lito Sibayan's Surprise Saturday Guest
I remember David Pomeranz has having written some of the songs that Barry Manilow sang.
i have a complete set of BM discs

This included "Tryin to Get the Feeling Again", "The Old Songs",

and he gave a short impromtu concert..

that sked tired me out terribly

Happy Weekend Folks

Ah May is almost at an end so happy weekend to all of you

what shall you be doing this weekend
if you are like me
a typical weekend is - i try to sleep in as much as i can except when i have laboratory exams,
and i do - this weekend.

then i wash clothes - well, yes, through the washing machine
i have one of those that finish the cycle and when finished, the clothes (or whatever) is drip dry
they i have to hang them on the clothesline, which is inside the roofed patio, terrazo, or whatever you call it
they dry very fast in this heat

then i cook, clean the ref (sometimes i have to defrost!!! i have the kind that needs defrosting because science and practicality taught me this is the better option

weekends i change the bed linens so i always have fresh linen when i start the week, i feel you have to stack the upcoming week with whatever niceties you can

if i have time this weekend, i shall cook callos, if not, well, i'll probly have nilagang beef
:)

i read Care posts - here's one and have a good weekend!

click here for a small joke

have a good weekend!

Back to work this Thursday morning and what a weekend

That was some rainy weekend ...... there was no flooding at home          
but some of my friends had to pass through heavily flooded areas                                                                                                

Saturday we were at Amihan's birthday bash at ECPAT - which stands for End Child Prostitution And Trafficking.  The kids and the adults were wearing Filipiniana, because it was dubbed Proud to be Pinoy
i will share my picture in my Pinay outfit, taken by our friend Jerry, the MD who is a serious photo hobbyist

ALICE, BENITA, ME, LIZA, AMIHAN

LIZ, ME, ALICE, BENITA, TITA (AMIHAN'S MOM), AMIHAN

LIZ, ME, ALICE, BENITA, TITA, AMIHAN, MANNY

the rest of the weekend was rain, rain, and more rain
pictures taken by my friend .. this is SM Marikina, by the river bank

 




***** WILL POST THIS LATER **************

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and a quote for this week 

what matters most is how well you walk through the fire 

Charles Bukowski
August 16, 1920: Before he was able to make a living as a writer, Charles Bukowski worked in the post office as a clerk—a job that fueled both his writing and his despair. Bukowski was born in Germany, 93 years ago today.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

have a good weekend everyone and Happy Birthday to Ofie Templo tomorrow

i am going to relax Spock's way and hopefully get over this feeling like my body wants to get sick....

am going on another spate of reading.... :)


happy birthday Ofie Martin Templo

TGIF

i know this feeling well, and everyone i know celebrates it
have a good weekend

for me the weekend looms very quietly, a time to rest (the way Spock would, not the way Kirk would, in classic Trek), hopefully a time to cook -

i was planning on sinigang na something - bangus (milkfish) or baboy (pork)

i have kangkong, sili, and will get labanos (radish), and maybe some gabi (i dont quite remember the English term for this)

i know my doc would prefer it were boneless bangus instead of pork, bangus belly would be good but my cardio told me it isnt all that good, being omega-3 NOT omega-6 unlike wild salmon, which is omega-6.

 yes, i get these gems everytime i have my checkup.

i am also planning on shrimp omelets

this is just an egg omelet with garlic (i love garlic, freshly pound into bits), patola, onions (i prefer the red ones), and shrimps, which i prefer to cut up into pieces so one can taste the shrimp all over the omelet.

yum. so i hope i dont feel too tired ,,,, and that someone comes over to assist me

i have to do the usual, wash clothes (throw them into the washer, yep, even the expensive ones), and i segregate as one should. and i change the bed linens, and clean my room and bath.  *sigh*

then i have to shop and buy some water pipes for my PT ... this is to relax the muscles

and if i am lucky, i get to eat tapadera.  lovely beef- which i really really love, with potatoes and onion rings.

and my fave activity. read.  i am re-reading my clancy books, at least the Jack Ryan ones.

happy weekend again folks

May i request readers to pray to your God, Whoever you may conceive Him to be

for the following:

those who have died, been injured, or who have lost someone they love in the disaster - in the Boston Marathon disaster, the Texas plant disaster

and also for peace in this world

Keep smiling.

Have a good weekend everyone

There was a time indeed when payday fell on a Monday when employers would advance payday to Friday... time indeed.  Not in vogue anymore it seems, unless .... maybe for Chinese employers who do not want monies out on a Monday, or as it is called, first day of the new week.

For some employers, they advance it a day early to give their employers the chance to do some weekend shopping in places like Divisoria or Quiapo, places that may be too far for weekday shopping.  Shopping is usually for house needs ... food on the table, things needed by kids, meds, all must things.

Those were the days .... my friend

Happy Weekend just the same

New Bedroom Look

in blues...........
religious icons and images, a tiny picture of me,  and my pooh blanket, and my calvin & hobbes book 1 on the bed, my tablet, my cps, and my tens stuff

Last working day before the Christmas month

just want to wish everyone a good 3-day weekend.

it will be the first Sunday of Advent this Sunday, so if you are hip into Christmas, there are 4 candles in the wreath, one for each Sunday of Advent, 3 of them are violet,1 pink (for Gaudete, or Joy, the 3rd Sunday), and a white candle that is lit on Christmas day, the white candle is also called the Christ candle.

i dont have any Christmas decor, except for one Parol, but i hope to catch up this weekend.
i use foil to "light" the candle on the wreath.

happy 3-day weekend, and decorating too!

Saturday Socializing

our group, Sakonit, met last Saturday at the home of the MD of the group, Jerry.  he lives in Philinvest 2, and has a wonderful home, and like all homes when December nears, a little crowded because all the Christmas decors are out...

we played mahjong.  i havent played in the .... maybe last 10 years, and was a trifle rusty, but i broke even.

i was thinking if i could parley my jedi sense (you know, when you sense things beyond the normal ken) into winnings.  i guess my jedi sense isnt for financial gain, more for danger - and that's good enough for me.

i discovered that everyone in the group knew how to play, if not prodigiously, then at least adequately.  i was never one with jokers except when playing poker with family members - and then we'd have all kinds, queen-low, one-eyed jacks, bigotes wild. we played one mahjong game with a joker and it was interesting - and fast!

in an aside, 

my dad taught his children to play contract bridge, poker, and mahjong just in case a group of people needed a fourth, and he felt all his children should be able to play.   not really into bridge, but i know someone who used to be into it.  dont know if he is still playing.......

Jerry, Li-Ann, Dale, Liz ... i'm taking the pic

Alice and Paeng.  Manny and I have no pics

Long Weekend up ahead. odds-and-ends

wishing everyone a safe and relaxing weekend.

i shall spend mine cleaning up after the storms, habagats (monsoon rains), and what-have-you

also, i need to donate clothes.  just a matter of where (or to whom).

i have a choice of church, the office, the chapel at work. or simply people i know who might need them.

those of you who work in the government sector, check your office if you are allowed 5 days off to handle monsoon damages to home and "family".  This 5 day leave will not be charged to your vacation leave.

those of you going out of town - and if you take maintenance pharmaceutical drugs, remember your cache of medications. some medications are out-of-stock so take inventory.  

my friend Jerry Obaldo - he is a nuclear med specialist/physician - discuss drug inventory levels.  

the more, the better?  not necessarily.  i think at least week supply - before one buys again is a good idea.

of course if the medication is for "testing", then a few days will suffice.  but this is something that patients have to think of......

A Sayans get-together, last weekend of July

Twas a rainy Sunday.  and i woke up to late to catch Sunday mass on TV - because despite 2 alarms, i woke up 7:15 am.  Time to take medications, you see but the Eucharist is at 6am.

i was also too late to catch the Tai Chi exercises at the University of the Philippines - behind the Adm building, or as i like to call it, behind the Oblation.  Also, since it was raining a bit, they would probably relocate.  but see, they start at 7 and end about 9 and there i was past 7, just waking up.  so, i texted my classmate and doctor to tell her i couldnt possibly make it.

then i see this text from Alice - i am sure you know her by now - about lunch at Lito's since Jimmy was in town.  I missed Jimmy the last time he was here and i hadnt seen him for the longest time.

so Alice says she and Manny can give me a ride, and that was great, because i no longer want to drive except for an emergency.  Near lunch, Tylette Moreno texts me and says Alice has asked her to swing by for me, which she does, because she is a lovely woman.  So i ride with Tylette.

here we are - 

the ladies standing: me, peggy, alice, beth : the guys: jimmy, manny, lito, rosel, paeng

Min. our beautiful and gracious hostess.

Lito:  our poging classmate and host, Min is behind

and me with a huge Amorsolo painting of the Santos family

we had a wonderful time.  The Sibayans are the greatest hosts.  i am waiting for my other pics. Tylette will be there.

the larger group

 Standing: Lito (our host), Marianne (Paeng's daughter), Li-Anne (Paeng's wife), Tylette, Alice, me, Peggy, Beth, Tess (wife of Rosel), Min (our hostess with the most-est)
Sitting:  Charlie (Peggy's husband), Jimmy, Paeng, Rosel, Manny

The Elephants - last weekend of July

i have been mentioning my elephants so i thought i'd give you a peek at my collection.  i started collecting in grade school and am still collecting to this day. 

ELEPHANTS

pink elephant wooden pencil holder, salt-&-pepper elephants, & perpetual thai elephant calendar

lockets, pendants, necklaces, buttons, pins, clips - all elephants

a candle holder gilded pink elephant, a tall blue elephant, a papemelroti elephant glassholder, odds-and-ends

 the elephants in the grey frame is new.  found it in ebay.  the tall blue elephant was given to me by Juancho, we were officemates at STI.

elephants galore

the gray elephant in the white box - beside the blue rhino and elephant - was made especially for me by an etsy vendor from Korea.  Sui?  will check my etsy.

Horace Templo gave me that elephant behind the white elephants.  it is crystal and has yellow ears. 

Jerry O. gave me the wooden elephant with the shocking pink "matt" on his back just this July.
Dale gave me the elephant on the saucer-with-depth.  and i got the elephant beside it from papelmeroti - probably a long time ago. the PE in papemelroti stands for Peggy,  who is from Sayans, and my classmate.

my elder brother left his Beta Epsilon sticker in the glass. So no, it isnt an elephant but it is difficult to remove so i will let attrition take care of it. 

my 2 elephant pillows, my thai elephant bag - given by Alice, my elephant cd carrier in my elephant decorated box

do you see my brass elephant bell?  i dont remember where i bought it. the grey flat like elephant is actually a soap dish and the oldest elephant is the one that my lola Petra owned - the large right-most elephant on the first tier.  the collection is valuable only for me.

A Rainy Friday Night

it was rainy.  but we had reservations at Barbara's so we proceeded there.

Manny, Alice, and I were together in their car but the rest of our party went straight there.  Our party got a tad lost, but only because we couldnt stick to my directions since we had paused in the wrong lane and Alice said that Manny had once gotten a ticket for not following....  so 

the food, as Jerry O puts it, was regular. it was okay, and was nothing spectacular. although it seemed the food was tons better when my sister had her wedding reception there. i enjoyed 2 desserts - salad greens and the coffee-sago-and-gulaman-concoction.

Musing

but their entertainment was very good.  we enjoyed the Filipiniana dance, the muslim dance, the pandango sa ilaw, and the tiniklang to just name three. the dancers were graceful and agile, and those who tried were great sports.  i was surprised not to find more foreigners.

and here is the party:  Alice and I are sitting down, then Dale, Manny, Rey?, Hans at Barbara's

The restaurant closed early and i was hankering for coffee, so Adel, not in photo - said we could try some other shop.  We went to three cafes before we hit Starbucks, who was still open for business.

they ate again, but i just had a huge cup of coffee,  probably one of the reasons i stayed up til 3am when i got home.  the other reason was i had to finish my prayers for the day.  twas a little late, but i finished them

me and Dale, and the Elephant

just me and the elephant

Weekend 20-22 Thoughts

I had a chance to chat with the wife of a friend last week.

Her husband is Beta Epsilon frat brother Junette Cruz.  i do not remember his batch.  If you are a Betan aged 50 and above, you have probably been to the house - where i live - as i live in ye olde homestead in Kamias.  Junette (Juanito is his real name) remembers the house and has pointed out the same to his wife, Marlyn.

Junette is currently undergoing dialysis.  Dialysis costs about 4K plus per session, and he has 2 sessions per week.  Diabetes caused his ESRD (End Stage Renal Disease).   Hemo-Dialysis is NOT easy, and it is expensive.  Money doesnt flow the way it used to flow....

Did you guys know that Junette has a special child?  Well, now you know.  

If there are any Betans or other friends out there with money to burn, you might want to say hello, or better yet, send him some special loving through a deposit to his bank account.  Every bit helps. Do you know that 300 will pay for transportation costs?  I have his cell phone and his wife's cell phone number.... so if you want to know, just comment or send email through this post. 

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When one is sick, and boy do i know this well, one feels things a lot more deeply.  Hurts are deeper,  Pains are sharper, but a bonus, Joys are .... more ebullient and ecstatic.  And one feels lonelier.  A little kind word to say hello goes a long way.  Do you have a sibling who is sick?  Have you asked if he or she is still alive and well?  No?  Ah, then at least you have shown your true colors.

Or are you envious and jealous because this sibling seems to have money you dont have so you dont care?  Do you wish the person dead so you might inherit?  Hahaha.  Fret not, you are probably not in the will anyway. 

******************

In a strange way, there was communication with Edgar H. Sarte last weekend.  i found several letters that he wrote to me while i was at STI.  Some of them, if you will believe it, discussed/talked about STI policy.  i always did ask him when there were things i didnt agree with;  i would tell him why i and he would return the favor.  Such were the letters.  I did found 2 pictures of Angelo, he would send them sometimes as Angelo is my godson. My, he was so very young then.  Now, from Vilma's FB, he is grown into a handsome young man.  i wonder what Ed wants to say .....  i have seen him several times in my dreams so maybe one of these nights he will make an appearance.

*******************

i did go and visit the Pharisees.  And although i know i am healed, i fear i must visit the Pharisees some more.

my brilliant nephro, my Sayans high school classmate, Dr. Benita S. Padilla - who still heads the NGO Kidney Friends - she is connected with NKTI (National Kidney and Transplant Institute), has changed my meds again.. If she had been my doc from the beginning, i may not have needed the transplant in 2008.

Still, God has a plan and i abide by His Will.

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and oh, i re-arranged my elephant collection.  havent taken the pics yet ...
just to fascinate you, i have elephant buttons, elephant hair clips, an elephant push pin, an elephant pair of salt-and-pepper containers, an elephant shaped pillow, an elephant candle holder, an elephant eraser,  elephant paper clips, an elephant picture frame, and elephant odds-and-ends.  :-)