Past Perfect

I feel a rush of longing as I sit alone in my room writing this entry for my blog.  In a few weeks, it’s going to be our high school homecoming and reunion.  Sad to say, I could not make it this time.

High school reunion.  Every single word evokes memories of the past.  I had the chance to attend a few before, but the last one five years ago was by far the grandest I had been to.   

There is a mixed feeling of excitement and reluctance as we eagerly wait for the coming day to meet once again former schoolmates and mentors who were once part of our lives.  It’s a time when we journey back to the best times of our days when life was young, awkward and free. 

Memories of puppy love, crush, heartaches, disappointments and genuine achievements we hold so dear and some we try to get rid of deep into oblivion swiftly come rushing back like a parade on review each scene breathtaking as the next.  On this day, the timeworn and the pristine shake hands, the spiritual and the emotional become one.  One family.  Every face echoes a memory.  We gaze at them with eyes half close and let emotions wander into the inner space of our mind.  Then we smile, smirk, laugh and get sentimental.  It’s total recall!

I may not be there to attend this once in a lifetime event.  But my heart has wings and I will be with all of you guys to celebrate the old times.  Happy homecoming!

Sidelights: Infallible No More

Pope Benedict XVI

My Six Scents

Fragrance defines our personality.  I am a perfume fanatic and never leave home without wearing one.  But sometimes wearing one can be a bit tricky.  There are some that smell so good if you wear them during the daytime but a total turn off when you wear them at a dinner date.  Others smell good on the first opening but leave an unpleasant smell as it gradually “blends” with the body’s natural scent that would likely drive people away.  You see, perfumes are not created equal and choosing the ones you think suit you best take a lot of testing and sniffing.  Here are some of my top favorites:

Musk Oil.  A small drop spread across the chest with a gentle massage penetrates the skin and exudes a clean, refreshing smell the whole day.  Since musk is a natural aromatic, it blends nicely with sweat.  The oil form is quite expensive.

Kouros by YSL.  A very potent cologne that requires very careful application.  Smells like a cross between goat’s urine, detergent, musk and citrus.  But as it wears off, the smell tones down to a mysterious blend of leather and woody undertones, that women describe as the sweet smell of sperm.  Sexy.

La Nuit De L'Homme by YSL.  Got my first bottle as a birthday present from by best friend.  My only after sundown cologne.  Long lasting provocative and sensual smell.

Chrome by Azzaro.  Fresh and spicy.  I love the citrus note that makes it smell sporty too.

Boss Bottled by Hugo Boss.  My business perfume.

Diesel Fuel For Life by Diesel.  Rugged!

If God is going to grant you one supernatural power, what kind of power would you like to have?  Why?

Housekeeping

Two years of suspended animation! Glad to be back blogging again.  Lots of things to polish and some mopping up, fix some broken links and do a little house painting.

Ailing Filipino Worker Learns Employer Has Heart Of Gold

By SIRAJ WAHAB ARAB NEWS
Published: Jul 18, 2010 23:14 Updated: Jul 19, 2010 03:17

ALKHOBAR: Although there have been many cases of housemaid abuse reported over the years, a vast number of household helpers across the Kingdom are treated like family members.

Such is the case of Marilou Lorenzo Ramirez who likely will lead a longer life thanks to the generosity and concern of her Saudi employer.

The 41-year-old housemaid was hired in the Philippines two years ago by Khaled A. Abdul Qader, a senior planner at Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) in Jubail. Ramirez worked in the household for a year and won the hearts of Abdul Qader’s family with her dedication and hard work.

Five months ago, a brain hemorrhage paralyzed Ramirez. Abdul Qader first took her to Al-Mouwasat Hospital where he bore the complete costs of her treatment. Realizing the gravity of her illness, Abdul Qader requested the Ministry of Health to get her treated at a government-run hospital.

Ramirez was then shifted to King Fahd Hospital in Hofuf where doctors felt there was an immediate need to operate upon her, but they needed the permission from Ramirez’ relatives in the Philippines. Abdul Qader contacted her daughter, Saramy Amando, in Antipolo City near the capital Manila. She gave her consent, and the doctors, consulting neurosurgeon Abdul Mohsen Nasser Al-Mulhim and neurosurgeons Ahmed Zaitoni and Essam Mohammed, performed the operation with incredible success.

“The doctors said it was a very difficult and delicate operation, and its success was nothing short of a miracle,” said the head nurse at the hospital.

“We are very grateful for the support of Ramirez’ sponsor and the good doctors for not giving up on her case,” said Labor Attaché David Des T. Dicang, head of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in the Eastern Region.

“The sponsor called Ramirez’ daughter several times to get the consent of the family to operate on her,” he told Arab News. “The Filipino medical staff at King Fahd Hospital has nothing but praise for the hospital management, doctors and her employer for not giving up. It is our prayer that Ramirez will get closer to her full recovery with each day that goes by.”

Ramirez left for the Philippines from Dammam on Saturday night via Saudi Arabian Airlines with two nurse escorts.

Abdul Qader, the sponsor, paid for the plane fare — business class, no less. He also paid for medicines and a wheelchair.

“As per our office request, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) in Manila coordinated with the family of Ramirez to provide her special airport assistance upon arrival in the Philippines and also to see how she can be covered with disability and medical benefits back home,” added Dicang, who saw Ramirez off at Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport.

“I am happy to see her smile. She will take some time to recover. Whatever we did, we saw it as our duty to help her in her difficult times,” Abdul Qader told Arab News at the airport.

“She is a wonderful person. I have three children. They are all grown and are abroad. My wife and I were the ones she was helping. We felt bad when she fell ill,” said Abdul Qader.

“I have tried my best to provide all possible help. As per her daughter’s advice I will send her dues to her daughter. I wish her well. The doctors at the hospital did a wonderful job. Alhamdulillah. She survived, and we wish her complete recovery,” he said.

Note:

I am proud to say I personally know Khalid Abdulkhader, the man with a heart of gold. We used to work together in SABIC under the same business unit. May your tribe increase ya Abu Abdullah!

Time Away

December – lost my job
January – jobless, jobless, jobless
February – on a job hunt, interviews, restless nights, insecure, empty pockets, finally knew who my real friends are
March – yes, finally got one…! confident! back on track
April – evicted from my pad, but found a better one
May – God is good… life must go on

So, where were we…

Little Things

How they really affect us...

A phone call. A text message. A sticky note.
A high five. A handshake. A gentle punch.
A smile. A furtive glance. A naughty wink. A whisper.
A gaze. A heartache. A sigh. A teardrop.
A “sorry”. A “ok”. A “thank you”.
A gentle touch. A tender kiss. A hug.
A little prayer.

How they really mean a lot...

Dubai-based Filipina Vilified for Calling Typhoon ‘Well-Deserved Punishment’

Khaleej Times Online
By Lily Libo-on
29 September 2009

DUBAI — A Dubai-based Filipina, who called the devastating flash floods in the Philippines “a well-deserved punishment for the sins of the Filipino people”, is facing harassment from her compatriots across the globe through social networking websites “Facebook” and “Starfishbuang.multiply”.

Several hours after the flash floods washed away houses and killed people in Metro Manila and in 25 provinces in eastern Luzon, the woman commented, “Buti n lng am hir in dubai! maybe so many sinners bak der! so yeah deserving wat hapend” referring to what happened back in Manila at the height of Typhoon Ondoy’s onslaught. (Good that I am here in Dubai! Maybe so many sinners back there! So yeah they deserve of what happened).

This comment earned the anger and outburst of Filipinos worldwide who started vilifying her in social networking websites where the blog appeared. Facebook members even claimed in their press statement that they were able to unmask her identity, her workplace, and contact number. They also contacted her employer pushing for her sacking from the company.

An irate blogger started Monday a group website in Facebook titled “JB Be Gone, We Sinners Don’t Want You Here”. Filipino bloggers have flocked to dish out grievances against the said Filipina calling her Facebook blog “so insensitive”.

Another blogger identified her as working in an HR Department of a property firm in Dubai and many others called on her to apologise. However, efforts to reach out for her comments have failed. “You so insensitive! People are dying out there and you say they deserve it!”
Apologise before it’s too late,” one comment reads in Starfishbuang.multiply. Countless comments are posted every minute on Facebook.

Huge comments have left ill-wishing remarks, and hundreds are more rapidly launching online campaigns to bring what they called tasteless and insensitive remarks to the awareness of the masses.

“Heartless! It would have been better if it were you who drowned. You do not know how many people are affected in the disaster!,” a comment stated.

Reads another blog in Tagalog, “If you know that a member of your family died, maybe you will eat your words. And if tsunami hits Dubai, your name will be the first to come out in the dead list. It’s better to be nobody than to be somebody but the entire Philippines is angry at you. Let us see if the Immigration will still allow you to come back.”

Her brother came to her rescue saying that her Facebook and Friendster accounts are hacked, which conveniently lead to the conclusion that the latter may have been a victim of identity fraud all along.

“My sister is educated, a graduate of the University of the Philippines, and does not speak English as crudely as is evident in the infamous Facebook comment. We come from a known political family and my sister would never do anything to tarnish the reputation of the family name,” her brother explained.

A sympathiser to this Filipino also wrote to the Filipino reporters saying she did not conform to the barrage of ill-wishing remarks.

From the Facebook, a lady blogger said, “I totally agree to walwyn, her brain is not sharp enough to compensate the results of her actions. So, let’s just forgive her as much as we can forgive our pets whenever they break something in the house…(and that’s to be serious). I was also irritated last night, but hey, I pity the girl now.”

A Journey To Remember

I have been on a “seclusion” mode during the last few days of Ramadan. No work, no blogs, no night outs, no play, no anything. Only days of fasting, prayers, meditation and spiritual renewal far far away in the beautiful city of Madinah. This trip was a precious gift from a friend who even went to the extent of using his own car and offering himself as the all-enduring driver on our 1,400 kilometer journey heading west.

May Allah bless you my friend for your humble and pure intentions. This pilgrimage will always be one of the strong pillars of our lasting friendship.

9-9-9

One gift
Two cups of ice cream shared with my best friend
At two in the morning
Three slices of cheesecake
Music, laughter, sentiments, stories to tell
Boundless happiness
A warm hug
A new promise
A golden life

A perfect party for two...

Ramadan Kareem!

"O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become pious."

Thank You Very Much Tita Cory

August 1, 2009

And They Will Become Wings

There is a fable about the way birds first got their wings. The story goes that initially they were made without them. Then God made the wings, set them down before the wingless birds, and said to them, "Take up these burdens and carry them."

The birds had sweet voices for singing, and lovely feathers that glistened in the sunshine, but they could not soar in the air. When asked to pick up the burdens that lay at their feet, they hesitated at first. Yet soon they obeyed, picked up the wings with their beaks, and set them on their shoulders to carry them.

For a short time the load seemed heavy and difficult to bear, but soon, as they continued to carry the burden and to fold the wings over their hearts, the wings grew attached to their little bodies. They quickly discovered how to use them and were lifted by the wings high into the air. The weights had become wings.

This is a parable for us. We are the wingless birds, and our duties and tasks are the wings God uses to lift us up and carry us heavenward. We look at our burdens and heavy loads, and try to run from them, but if we will carry them and tie them to our hearts, they will become wings. And on them we can then rise and soar toward God.

There is no burden so heavy that when lifted cheerfully with love in our hearts will not become a blessing to us. God intends for our tasks to be our helpers; to refuse to bend our shoulders to carry a load is to miss the new opportunity for growth.

No matter how overwhelming, any burden God has lovingly placed with His own hands on our shoulders is a blessing.

FriendsReflections

Shared by Joe Gatuslao

Bacolod City, Philippines

jgat777@gmail.com

The Season To Be Merry

Up close, they look like bloated, buck-toothed, doe-eyed miniature dolphins. Known to be very lethal, ingesting a drop of its neurotoxin assures anyone a rapid, violent death. Yet, this unattractive, life-threatening fish is available for non-toxic consumption during certain time of the year. Call it a game of Russian Roulette or reality TV Fear Factor. Taking a bite of this exotic food will make you come back begging for more.

Enter puffer fish, globefish or blowfish – buriring in local Visayan dialect in the Philippines. Its fishing season is now officially open!

Unlike most other species of fish that are readily available in the market all year round, buriring possesses a pattern of uncanny survival behavior. It is strictly seasonal. At times, it is so elusive it does not show up for years. Owing to this unique character, buriring commands a high price in the wet market. A kilo costs Php250.00 ($5.00) but if supply runs short and demand rises, it could run as high as Php300.00 ($6.00).

The adult fish like its equally deadly cousin butete normally does not forage in groups. During its mating and breeding season from December to June, buriring is at its deadliest. Eating the fish would mean flirtation with death. However, when the eggs hatch and rapidly mature in July to September, the young adults surprisingly group to school alongside other edible fishes at the bottom of the sea, thereby caught during the process by commercial fishing boats with the rest of the harvest. During this season, it loses its toxicity. When and how it becomes a sought after gastronomic delicacy is shrouded in history. Maybe it started as a prank. But after discovering its delicate chicken-like flavor, people start clamoring for more.

Fresh Catch
The best and freshest batch of the catch usually turns up in the wet market at the break of dawn. Spread over the long white tiled concrete stall, these wiggling, tiny fishes with big puffed up white bellies is a remarkable sight. As soon as the price is fixed, the buying frenzy begins. Trading lasts only for a few minutes. Latecomers will have to wait for the next delivery on the later part of the morning although this is no longer as fresh as the first and regarded as helada (iced).

Epicurean Delight
Buriring is best eaten when cooked ala paksiw style. Not like the ordinary paksiw though where we put the fish in the pan and just haphazardly dump in all the spices and ingredients together. Paksiw Nga Buriring is cooked with élan. Before anything else, the fish is rubbed with salt and young serguwelas leaves and washed until it is squeaky clean. This rinses off the slippery mucoid film covering the skin.

Preparation takes time using the best and right amount of spices and ingredients. A “bedding” of libas leaves is placed at the bottom of the pot and buriring is placed over it in layers of butter, red onions, ripe tomatoes, libas and cubes of peeled, semi-ripe santol fruit – the most favored souring agent. The entire mixture is then drizzled with soy sauce and cooked alangay (low simmering heat) to perfection without stirring to avoid squashing the delicate meat. It is already done when the skin of the fish starts to peel and crack, and the meat tender and white along with that distinct spicy, sweet mouth watering aroma that begins to hang in the air, firing up your feeding frenzy.

One On One
Paksiw Nga Buriring is eaten hot, sans trimmings, add-ons and embellishments except for a plate of heaping hot jasmine rice, a large sized bottle of your favorite drink and sheer guts that after the meal, you are going to live to tell the tale.

Bon appétit!

Michael Jackson 1958 - 2009

"This is it, this is really it, this is the final curtain call."

Michael Jackson

Cheers!

Non-Macho Things Men Hate To Do

They maybe simple creatures. But never simple minded.

Downsizing
Size matters. He knows it is the only way to economize on gas. But giving up the big bike or trading in the ego boosting 4x4 for a cost-effective car is a matter of life and death. Unless it is a sleek, compact sports car.

Bling Bling
A diamond ear stud, a pair of cufflinks and a wedding band is more than enough.

Dancing
Ask him and he immediately turns into solid block of wood. The brain and body coordination suddenly goes awry and the logic of left and right ceases to exist.

Waxing
The trendsetting metro sexual grooming market is hitting sales up to the millions. But male grooming for him is a good bath, nice smooth shaven face and a splash of musky aftershave cologne. He leaves the plucking and the waxing to the opposite sex.

Crying
Only if someone kicks him on the balls.

Self Indulgence
Letting him sit for hours in a spa wrapped in a pink fluffy bathrobe while having his feet and hands done, is tantamount to torture. All he needs is a pocketknife!

Colorful World
He may have style but has a wardrobe only a colorblind would love. Black suits, white shirts, black stripes, gray trousers, black tees, charcoal socks, and the ubiquitous blue jeans. Crimson necktie, lilac shirts, printed colored underwear, shimmers and glitters are absolutely way out of his fashion comfort zone.

Going To Church
The hugging, holding hands and sitting in circles discussing each other's feelings drive him insane.

Shopping
Ever wonder why the men’s wear section is always on the ground floor just a few meters away from the entrance?

Dark Horse

Filipino Director Crowned The Best At Cannes

By Dino Maragay

MANILA, Philippines – Brillante Mendoza, director of the graphic crime shocker “Kinatay,” annexed the Best Director Award at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival.
“Kinatay” is the Philippines’ entry to the annual film festival.

A report from The Associated Press earlier described the Filipino film as something that “takes viewers on a nerve-rattling road trip from the bustling streets of Manila to an isolated house of horrors.”

"This is not just entertainment, these kinds of stories are real," Mendoza said of his film.

The Palme d'Or Award, the festival's top prize, went to Austrian film "The White Ribbon" by Michael Hanek.

-----------------------------------------------

Film Review: Kinatay (Slaughtered)

By Maggie Lee, May 17, 2009 10:39 ET

Bottom Line: A prurient and excruciating viewing experience that makes the audience partners in crimes of inhumanity.

CANNES -- Festival darling Brillante Mendoza's "Kinatay" is a long night's journey into the Philippine underworld of casual corruption and nauseating cruelty, seen through the eyes of a greenhorn police cadet. Featuring shooting violence, rape and mutilation extensively in real time, from camera angles that make the audience feel like they are watching a snuff film, this full-on experience of forced voyeurism is certain to incite strong (most probably offended) responses.

The deliberately rough-hewn art direction adds to the blunt force of Mendoza's moral outrage, but it won't help "Kinatay" (which means 'slaughter' in Tagalog) make a killing in theatrical business. Unlike such other Mendoza works as "Foster Child" or "Serbis," which capture with warmth or exotic social phenomena distinctive to the Philippines, "Kinatay's" sketchy slice of crime world nastiness can be found anywhere. This makes it a hard sell even to art houses, as their target audience often looks for stronger cultural flavor.

Newly married Peping, who attends the police academy, receives an offer via text message to make a fast buck with a shady friend. By nightfall, he is in a van with a group of vicious gangsters who have kidnapped a bar hostess to demand a loan repayment under orders from an elusive general. From then on, Mendoza switches from the 35mm used for daytime scenes to HD, wrapping all the action in a deliberately ugly, sooty hood of near darkness.

The real time pacing, feels like being stuck in a traffic jam, but the dramatic thrust is relentless as one hears through the muffled darkness, the woman being gagged and beaten mercilessly. The horror escalates to rape, murder and dismemberment. None of this is left to the imagination, with the men's verbal sexism being equally distasteful.

With the artistic choices he has made, Mendoza achieves a singularity of purpose in hammering home his message, and the experience compels one to watch even as one wishes to turn away. He deplores this human treachery with almost Old School, religious morality. He preaches it unequivocally -- at the climax of the slaughter, the subtitles "If you lose your integrity once, you lose it forever" appear.

Laying on the Christian symbolism, the woman is called Madonna, while the camera occasionally cuts away to a picture of Jesus on the wall. She keeps screaming she has a child, which new father Peping is supposed to sympathize with.

The irony that Peping has a vocation in law-enforcement cannot be missed.

The camera regularly pauses on some sideway or other odd-angled closeup of his anguished, conscience-stricken face, accompanied by a twangy score that sounds common to horror flicks, implying that these are turning points where he could have stood up to them, or at least walked away. Images of him standing in an empty carpark, brooding inside a public toilet or stranded in screeching traffic symbolize he is at a moral crossroads or labyrinth.

Festival de Cannes -- Competition

Sales: The Match Factory

Production company: Swift Prods.

Cast: Coco Martin, Julio Diaz, Maria Isabel Lopez, Mercedes Cabral

Director: Brillante Mendoza

Screenwriter: Armando Lao

Producer: Rodel Nacianesco

Executive producer: Didier Costet

Director of photography: Odyssey Flores

Production designer: Dante Mendoza

Music: Teresa Barrozo

Editor: Kats Serraon

No rating, 116 minutes

Butts Up!

I quit...