33!

Okay, that's enough Garfield for today. No nightmares for me tonight, too tired to have one.

Cheers to another year. ^^

Thank you to my neighbors here for the greetings:

Cez, that text greeting of yours was right on the dot... 12:02 AM! Galing!

Dyoonet, for that friendster note.

and Raindir, for the offline ym greetings.

Thank you, thank you!

Wear blue, will lose

I was hoping the Beijing Olympics will erase the Onyok Velasco stigma some years ago, and restore my faith in boxing as an Olympic event.

But unlike swimming, judo, and weightlifting, which kept me wide-eyed in awe, concentration, and admiration, watching boxing got me so frustrated and had me shouting "WTF!" more than I usually do during the daily morning rush drive to work.

I've caught portions of two boxing matches (I couldn't bring myself to watch till the end), where Canada and Australia (?) suffered the worst kind of defeat: "outclassed", 20++-to-zero, "one-way-street", "what-the-hell-am-I-doing-here" kind of defeat.

Both losers have something in common: they wore blue, and their scores simply refused to move up despite delivering visibly solid hits.

Since then, I refused to watch the boxing events.

Just now RP's Harry Tanamor lost to Ghana. "Outboxed", says the commentator.

And the color he's wearing?

Blue.

I wonder if the judges around the boxing ring had their eyes checked.

The overall color of the ring -- its canvass, ropes, etc. -- is shades of blue.

Thus the fighter wearing blue uniform and blue gloves would tend to melt in the background, while the one in red would stand out, majestic and powerful -- so powerful that a simple swing could look like a freakin' Mike Tyson punch.

That's just a theory. Maybe the Olympics Committee should consider this, as well as the rules they use.

Past a certain threshold

While it's true that electronic gaming is close to my heart -- the grade I had for my undergraduate thesis on that topic would be some proof to that -- I was not, am not, nor will ever be, good at it.

I would classify myself somewhere in the "casual gamer" or "play-when-it's-free-during- absolutely-free-time" category, opposite the "hardcore gamers" and "hobbyists" at the other end of the scale.

In my recent visits to the online world, I think I crossed another threshold that may be worth noting (more for my own benefit).

My first mention of Perfect World (PW) in this blog was six months ago. Back then I was already feeling the first signs of boredom due to the somewhat repetitive scenarios and increasingly slow development at higher stages typical of MMORPGs.

Until my online character passed a certain level when something in the game’s system kicks in.

PW has a certain scheme that assures players, after reaching a certain level, a daily supply of that precious experience and soul points, thus allowing us to level-up with minimal effort.

Gain points without breaking a sweat? And with every level comes new scenarios, new stories, better things to do?

It was a sweet deal for casual players like myself who sorely lack internet connection speed and the time to go online.

And so... the game stayed in my hard disk.

This scheme proved to be beneficial. After several months, during occasional insomnia attacks, my online character managed to reach level 60.

Reaching 60 in PW opened up a lot of things. Most significant of which, in my opinion, would be getting invitations from relatively more established and more organized Clans.

It was a refreshing change. Such Clans have recruiting officers who usually know how to politely reply to my typical response, "Thanks, but sorry I'm not very active," when my character gets invited. And they usually do so in correct English or Filipino, and (thank goodness) with correct spelling.

Over three months ago, I had an invitation from a clan officer who was more earnest and persuasive than anyone before.

And so I joined, and became the Clan's resident "lurker/AFK (away from keyboard)" member (I'm such a useless member, I know). Being a healer class, when time allows it, I try to do support and "ambulance" duties.

But certain pressures stirred within (I was afraid of this): I want to keep up with everyone. I wish I could be as good as the rest, if not better. Most of all, I wish I could do more for the clan (I can't help it -- they're such a helpful and jolly crowd. Though tuning in to their chats sometimes drive me nuts).

Someday, maybe...

After passing another threshold.

I don't think I'd be moving anywhere in the gamers' scale soon.

***

The Beijing Olympics on TV...

I was left in awe by the deluge of ads celebrating the Olympic spirit -- images of human power, pain, joy, fun, and victory.

Simply inspiring.

Tick-tock...

The President's 8th State of the Nation Address was applauded 102 or 104 times, according to reports, of which the loudest was allegedly on the President's statement, "Texting is a way of life. I asked the telecoms to cut the cost of messages between networks. They responded. It is now down to 50 centavos."

But reports later on pointed out that this price cut in text messaging is only up to October 2008.

A promo? In the SONA?

See poster and print ads for details?

Oh well, just text away, then, and hope it becomes permanent.

There are much, much more crucial matters than this.

***

A silent countdown has begun in my head. It's again that time of the year.

This alarm goes off around a month before I turn a year older, and I tend to start seeing and doing things a little differently.

The changes are too small to notice. Nevertheless, I feel that a month from now, these small changes will be my very own birthday surprise for myself.

***

Yet another item in my list of never-to-do-again in driving.

I know it's foolish to think our eight-year old AUV is some sort of an amphibious vehicle capable of going through the flooded streets of Manila last July 16, at the height of Typhoon Helen.

But somehow I did (blame it on that very important deadline at work), and I'm still thanking my lucky stars I didn't get stuck at España Avenue that morning. I don't know if I could ever get over the shame if that happened.

I have to admit, though, it was satisfying to see the disappointment in the faces of the Tulak Boys following me through the flood, waiting for my ride to stall, drown, or something.

Not today, guys.

Then again, maybe it's a matter of time before my luck runs out.

*Knock on wood*

***

Very soon my friends will find out if legends can be broken.

Ohoho! This will be fun!

Goodluck!


Tick-tock... ^^

Cheers and praise

While over a month has passed since Typhoon Frank and public attention to news has shifted to other matters, relief and rehabilitation of Aklan would take much, much longer.

Aklan still needs help more than ever. Please visit BULIG AKLAN, BANGON AKLAN! and "An Open Letter for Help" from Gov. Carlito Marquez for the ways how we could help and the things needed, such as:
1. Safe drinking water
2. Food/Canned goods
3. Rice
4. Noodles
5. Medicines
6. Clothes
7. Shoes/Slippers
8. Sleeping Mats
9. Blankets
10. Towels
11. Katol or insect repellant
12. Candles and matches
13. Soap, shampoo, tooth paste & tooth brush
14. Old toys
15. Books

In the meantime, it’s never too early to say thanks to the good things that came our way.

Cheers to all who generously gave their time and resources to help rebuild the lives affected by Typhoon Frank.

Praise to the many online residents who reached out and helped bring attention and aid to Aklan, among them, to name a few, fellow Aklanons Cheryl Joy (American Living, Filipina Thinking), who carried on with what she started despite almost giving up blogging, Joanne Tupas-Parsons of Kids Ahoy and the people behind Akeanon ag Proud, who’re up and running and organizing from the very start, and our friend Cez (Vanilla Caramel), who's got a longer list of those who helped (plus a good serving of happy, happy news).

Again, there are many others who made every post, every forwarded email, every bulletin, etc, count. Cheers to you all!

***

Speaking of cheers and praise, it’s been a while since I’ve watched a movie that had people standing and clapping in the end (I can’t even remember what movie it was).

Two of the last three movies I’ve seen this month had that effect on people.

The first one even had some people quietly singing and dancing in their seats from the start.

Mamma Mia! the film is a real treat for my generation (ubo-ubo). It's good ole’ ABBA music wrapped in a feel-good comedy about restless hearts, finding peace with yourself and the one you love, and that elusive fountain of Aphrodite.

Thanks to this movie, I'm adding ABBA songs to my list of driving music. Heehee!

The second movie is as dark and gloomy as Mamma Mia! is light and bubbly -- and the applause from moviegoers was just as loud and long.

Maybe the sheer complexity of his thought-provoking script, coupled by the fact that he's played by a late actor that has been showered with much accolades by his peers, made the Joker of The Dark Knight one of the most cerebral characters I've watched (mababaw lang ako eh).


One thing is for sure: at the end of the movie, people are applauding and talking more about Joker than Batman.

***

A few hours from now, the President will deliver her 8th State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Let's see how many times her audience at Batasang Pambansa will applaud this year.

Let's listen up...

Searching the bad for something good

Still tuned in to post-Typhoon Frank updates in Aklan at Cheryl's blog.

Venues and mechanics for sending help to Aklan are compiled and updated here: http://akeanonagproud.multiply.com/journal/item/2/WHATS_NEXT_BULIG_AKLAN_BANGON_AKLAN

Thank you for all the help, and here's hoping more find their way to Aklan soon.

***

When I spoke to my mother yesterday morning, Sunday, she was all set to travel and visit the rest of the Aklan to document the extent of Typhoon Frank's damage. Whatever she finds will be added to the report DepEd and the rest of the concerned agencies are preparing.

To release more funds for Aklan, I hope.

Been gathering photos of the damages left by the typhoon, and found a lot from municipalities that apparently suffered more.

For the rest of the 17 municipalities where news and photos are somewhat scarce, I really hope that no news is good news..

***

And for something really good.

Mabuhay ka, Manny Pacquiao!

This country could use every bit of good news these days, and Pacquiao's victory is just the sort that could soothe our tired and weary soul as a people.

Now if only the politicians surrounding him could just stay hidden from the cameras long enough for me to enjoy that genuine, feel good moment.

Let's have that moment, shall we?

...

Ok, moment's gone. On with life.

Cheers!

Some Typhoon Frank updates from Aklan

*edit (re-posting)...

Re-posting from http://kidsahoy.multiply.com/journal/item/89/:

Here's AN ONGOING RELIEF OPERATIONS ORGANIZED BY A GROUP OF CONCERNED AKLANONS & PRIVATE CITIZENS headed by Michelle Martelino Yu.

KEEP YOUR DONATIONS COMING EVERYONE!

You may send bulk contributions in kind directly to

Villamor Airbase Base Operation
c/o Maj. Pascua tel. 8546701

The parcels properly packed and addressed as follows:
c/o Cong. Allen S. Quimpo , Kalibo, Aklan

and labeled according to classification (Food, Medicines, Clothing etc.) with their declared weight and intended recipient (ex. Kalibo, Aklan).

If necessary we can also arrange for pick up at designated collection points for delivery to Villamor Air Base; in this case please advise the team beforehand.

Michelle Yu
Attorney-at- Law
Project Head, Relief Operations in Aklan
231 Langka Drive, Ayala Alabang Village ,
Muntinlupa City, Metro Manila 1700
Tel./Fax 8429225; Cellphone: 09177962310
email: michellemartelinoyu@yahoo.com
multiply: http://michellemartelinoyu.multiply.com/journal/item/27

***

It was a bit frustrating to not see much news coverage about Aklan at the height of Typhoon Frank. But after reading some detailed accounts from a fellow Aklanon, Cheryl Joy, in her blog, and from people who posted their comments there, I guess it was then logistically impossible for media to carry out sustained news about what's happening there. The local media themselves were rendered almost helpless as most facilities were severely damaged.

I only had one small experience, way back in the late part of 1990, of how the geography of Kalibo react to rain and flood: a few hours of heavy rain is enough to soak Kalibo with flood from nearby municipalities. Sometimes, the rain need not even be in Kalibo for it to get flooded.

Kalibo is a perfect catch-basin, and that small rain made me spend two days in my friend's house in Banga to wait for the flood to subside.

But with a typhoon like Typhoon Frank...

Yesterday I called my mother (thank goodness for car mobile charger!). It was disturbing to hear the same details as what Cheryl Joy has shared.

Right now, my mother has to travel to Roxas City in search of a photo processing shop so she could have the pictures developed, as well as coordinate with DepEd Capiz. She's been working closely with concerned agencies and they're putting together a situational report for an upcoming meeting with the President.

My in-laws, however, said the electricity in Roxas City is still too feeble and could only power lights -- not enough output yet to power an establishment. I hope the more-established shops there have their own generators. Otherwise my mother would have to go for Iloilo.

I dare not quote the figures yet, but whatever is in that report has, more or less, been slowly coming out in the news. There is little doubt, however, that this is one of the worst disasters that struck the province of Aklan.

If you wish to help, in addition to the details above, you can also contact Atty. Selwyn Ibarreta, Sangguniang Panlalawigan Board Member, Aklan, at 0919-8094588 (this is from Donna in one of her comments in Cheryl Joy's blog).

I'll add whatever info I could get. Take care everyone!

Sentimental?

When Joan showed me the newspaper ad about Circuit City's trade-in promo for old gaming consoles, I thought "finally, I can dispose of my old PSOne".

I've been drooling over PSP for quite some time now, and the trade-in would bring the price down by up to Php2.5K (or about $56 as of today's exchange rate).

Not a bad price for a 5++-year old PSOne, 'no?

It got better when I called up the shop, and learned that the trade-in will also accept just the console itself. Yes! I get to keep the controllers!

So I went through my boxes (most are still unpacked since we moved in last November) and got my dusty but still working PSOne, together with my stash of over 20 game titles, half of which I don't recall playing at all.

I was all set for the trade-in, and I was already imagining the feel of the sleek console in my hand (like I sometimes do when I see others playing in the train during rush hours).

But yesterday, as I was standing next to the Circuit City stall in Robinson's Place Malate, something snapped.

Joan and I went home with the old PSOne still in my bag.

Sentimental? Maybe. Blame it on Final Fantasy VIII.

Last night I hooked up the PSOne, loaded a precious saved game file of the final battle (the dusty memory card works!), pulverized Ultimecia, and watched the movie ending that made me fall in love with RPG (role-playing game).

FF VIII can also be played in Windows, but I don't think I could ever make the characters as well-build and well-equipped as they are in my PSOne, saved in the memory card over five years ago.

Yup, that PSOne is going to stay in my shelf. The PSP can wait.

Stormstruck

I could hear the wind in the background as I spoke with my mother on the cellphone last Saturday.

Typhoon Frank (Fengshen) has just taken out a portion of the roof of our old family house in Aklan, and the flood water has reached the sacks of rice in the storage.

My mother and her kasambahays has taken refuge in the living room, the strongest part of the house.

"It's almost like Undang, anak..." she told me before we ended the call. She had to conserve her cellphone battery -- no one knows how long the blackout will last.

That had me worried.

The name Undang has become legendary among Aklanons and Capiznons old enough to remember the devastation it brought upon the island of Panay.

According to this, Typhoon Undang (Agnes), which occurred from Nov. 3 to 6, 1984, had a maximum recorded wind speed of 230 kph, with death toll reaching over 800 and damage estimated at P1.9B.

Before I came upon these figures, I only know Undang the way I remember it as a child.

It was one night and one day of strong wind, rain, and flood. The house was badly damaged at the first onslaught -- most of the windows broke, the kitchen roof collapsed, and the old mango tree in our backyard got uprooted and hit the side of the house, damaging the wall and one of the main pillars.

With the entire house at risk of collapsing, we had to open the rest of the windows and the main doors to let lessen the wind's impact.

And so for one night and one day, my brother, sister, and I, wearing helmets and thick jackets, watched the full fury of the storm through the open doors and windows.

And what a scene it was. We saw a person getting lifted off the ground and thrown back by the wind. Coconut trees were twisting themselves neatly onto each other like pilipit (a native delicacy). And the wind played on and on like a symphony.

It was surreal. Almost beautiful -- because we never felt scared at that time. Maybe because we were too young to care about just how grave the situation was. When Undang passed, for us kids back then, the whole town became a wonderful playground of fallen trees, and the air was so cold and had the crisp scent like that of freshly cut grass.

Yesterday my mother texted me some updates: a few old windows were broken, portions of the roof got ripped off, parts of the house are rain and flood-damaged, the old mango tree got uprooted (again), the town plaza and main streets are blocked by fallen trees.

The town of Kalibo suffered more because of the flooding.

News are still coming in, and apparently the destruction left by Typhoon Frank in Iloilo and Capiz are more severe. And many are still missing from the capsized Sulpicio Lines ferry near Romblon (related news here).

Here's praying that help reaches those who need it the soonest.

What's happening?

When Joan and I chose The Happening over The Incredible Hulk last week (she likes Mark Wahlberg more than Edward Norton), we knew we're in for another brain-rubbing rollercoaster ride typical of films by M. Night Shyamalan.

And true enough, halfway through the film till the end, we were wide-eyed in utter disbelief and silently asking "What the **** is happening?!"

It's not about the story, however. While it has the quality of creatively weaving common, everyday elements into bizaare, chilling scenarios, the movie pretty much revealed its plot early on and ushers the viewers almost gently into a grinding conclusion (there was no BAM! moment, unlike The Sixth Sense or, to some extent, The Village).

What caught us off-guard was that The Happening left a very petty detail hanging, literally.

What in the world is that microphone doing there?

Maybe 20th Century Fox Manila office got the unedited version of the movie. Otherwise, that microphone hanging over the actors' heads during some of the movie's conversation scenes was either a simple post-production mishap that their editors chose to ignore, or a cinematic ploy aimed at pulling a fast one to leave the viewers wondering.

I don't know.

***

Happy Fathers' Day! My father will also be celebrating his birthday this month.

So cheers to the man who taught me much of life's lesson by how he is living his.

Happy, happy birthday, Dad.

Everybody loves kung fu fighting!

My wife had to nudge me several times throughout this movie because I was laughing too hard and a bit too loudly.

I couldn't help it. Nacho Libre was still fresh in my memory, and the similarities between Po the panda and the luchador Nacho somehow doubled the laugh-factor of Kung Fu Panda (the brief shot of the clenched butt really did it for me).

***

One of my former martial arts orgmate, who I haven't heard from for quite some time, made his presence felt by sharing a video of his first arnis tournament held recently in his province.

I feel happy for him because he just had what he aptly described as his "second wind" for martial arts (Way to go, JC!) -- something I have been wanting too for myself.