Lucky 9 Movies

Our week together turned out to be quite good despite not going farther than Festival Mall Alabang or Tagaytay. To make up with the cancelled road trip I played some make believe situation by considering our own home as a hotel as if being out of town and staying in a comfy hotel room. To make it a bit more realistic I let the air-conditioning turned on every night, woke up late, ate without counting calories and going out of the “hotel” any time we like.

After celebrating our exact wedding date with the rest of my wife’s team members, the other days of the week were spent mall hopping, window shopping and of course watching movies. And since we’re celebrating our 9^th year, I will do a brief review of the 9 movies we’ve seen recently - not necessarily within the anniversary week. By the way, I’ll rate the movie from 1(poor) to 5(great) stars just like my wife and I do in our individual diaries (which reminds me that I haven’t updated mine for a long time).

9.  Forbidden Kingdom (Jet Li. Jackie Chan). I’m not so sure if I enjoyed this movie or not. It may have something to do with too much exposure to MMA especially UFC on TV that I’m not buying the flying kung fu stunts anymore. What I like about it is seeing both actors back in business and being together in one film I think is a good way to do just that. 3 Stars.

 

8. Kung Fu Panda (Jack Black. Jackie Chan. Lucy Liu. Angelina Jolie). Being a fan of cartoons, I can immerse myself into it in no time every time I see one. Frankly speaking, I find this Kung Fu movie better than Forbidden Kingdom due to the fact that I have no reason to question once I see the characters, like the bulky panda, float in the air to do gravity defying stunts. It’s not impossible. Why? Because it’s cartoons. Duh. Po rules!  4 Stars.

 

7. Get Smart (Steve Carell. Anne Hathaway). There’s always anxiousness inside me whenever I get to watch a film that is closely similar to previous movie. I have some reservations that this stupid-field agent-comedy movie will be a letdown. Thankfully, it wasn’t the case. The casts (and characters) and story of this film are a great combination. The comic scenes are so hilarious that I was either laughing or giggling from the start until the end of the film. Jim Carey beware. 5 Stars.

 

6. Evan Almighty (Steve Carell). We caught this one on TV while lazily channel surfing one afternoon. It was just a couple of days after we watched Get Smart and my interest to see another version of the famous ark story grew with the fact that Steve Carell is portraying as Noah.  I was fascinated with the idea of mixing a biblical story to a modern setting but I don’t know if my mother would have been laughing as I find some of the exchanges blasphemous. Anyway, I did have a good laugh from majority of the scenes and more importantly I think that the same moral of the story is conveyed as intended in the bible. I’m becoming a Steve Carell fan. 4 Stars.

 

5. Letters from Iwo Jima (Ken Watanabe). This one was from the DVD - another Clint Eastwood film to complement his Flags of Our Fathers movie. I always wonder if there are good people on both sides of the war and this movie helped prove that. The Iwo Jima story reminds me that most soldiers fight with what they believe is right regardless what side they’re in.  In a sense, one you consider a foe is actually a hero of the other side. Comparing the two war films, Letters from Iwo Jima is better than Flags of Our Fathers.  Additionally, dubbing the film in Japanese with English subtitles created a more genuine experience to it.  5 Stars.

 

4. The Happening (Mark Wahlberg).  This film is like some of the dreams I had. It starts with something so interesting that no matter how frightening it was, I forced myself to stay in it in order to find out how it will end.  It’s like a nightmare that you have no control over what you’d see next and every scene makes you curse and jump out of your bed and find yourself sweating from the excitement and/or fear.  At the end of this movie my wife and I were staring at each other still with lots of unanswered questions but being an M. Night Shyamalan flick the end is no surprise – and I love it. 4 Stars.

 

3. Wanted (Angelina Jolie. Morgan Freeman).  Have you ever had a time when you felt like they cast a well known celebrity to compensate with the movie’s poor story? In my opinion, this movie is one of those. Angeline Jolie was like an a wriggling bait so irresistible to an unsuspecting fish like me that despite having seen the trailers with bullets circling its way to find its intended target I still got to watch it in the end. I could have give in to the idea of the intelligent bullets but I called it enough when the story came to be about killing individuals as dictated by a loom supposedly started by weavers from long time ago. To me that’s just crap (pardon the word). 4 Stars – for casting Angelina. 2 Stars for the whole story.

 

2. Incredible Hulk (Edward Norton). Other than fearing lightning, I fear that I might see another lousy Incredible Hulk movie once again. I wisely skipped the first version of this marvel comic character but unfortunately watched it either on a pirated copy of the public buses or from friends’ houses (also pirated, I suspect). But having watched almost all film being shown this week, I hesitatingly agreed to see the new Hulk movie with my wife. Good thing this new version erased all my doubts as the movie progresses. I was awed by the actions scenes, I find the CGIs are not exaggerated and the actors are convincingly good. Lastly, having an unexpected twist in the end makes it more interesting. See for yourself. 4 Stars.

 

1. Made of Honor (Patrick Dempsey. Michelle Monaghan). What better way to cap a week of wedding anniversary celebration, than to end it by watching what else? A wedding movie of course! The movie is about a platonic (or more aptly, hypothetical) relationship which led to a crazy love story. What sets this movie apart from other romantic movies is the idea of having one man being tagged and eventually agreeing to be the bride’s maid of honor.  Although come to think of it, IF I were in the shoes of the male character, I can’t imagine myself to last that long as just being a friend with a lady as lovely as Hannah.  4 Stars.

 

Don’t get me wrong, but whether I enjoyed the movies we’ve watched or not, it doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy the company of my dearest (wink!) wife. We’ve been in the movies 11 years ago (wink again) and hopefully we’d still be together to see more of it even if we’re as wrinkled as English bulldogs.

 

Wedding Anniversary

This week is our week…as husband and wife, that is. Initially planned to be celebrated as a road trip going farther north of the country but due to unforeseen factors from work and the weather, I welcomed the cancellation with less resistance. So goodbye SCTEX drive-by. Goodbye Cagayan.  Goodbye Ilocos. Goodbye Pagudpud. Welcome Dasmarinas – just where we actually live.

The series of events at work added with the fact that majority of us are trying to make every bit of last celebration worthwhile made me finally give in to my wife’s request to allow her to have their area’s summer outing fall on the exact date of our wedding anniversary. And so instead of driving hundreds of kilometers north I find myself driving just around ten kilometers south from our home to the resort of their choice.

By 8 AM, June 26, we were both already at Qubo Qabana resort which is a just few minutes’ drive.  We actually scouted this place just a couple of days prior and it was a bit of surprise finding it better than expected. The area has good facilities. There’s a pool for both kids and adult. There’s an activity area readily available for large group of people and event. More importantly their rate is affordable. So it’s no wonder that it immediately got everyone’s approval just by looking at the pictures I took. Besides, it is just halfway along the way to work and settled strategically near Magdaragat (sea foods restaurants) and Quinta Court motel.  It’s so easy to spot that one won’t need Google Earth to find it.

Most of the group arrived later but by then those who came earlier were already very busy preparing the food which seems to be overwhelming the grilling area and the people in it. Being a bad cook, I was helping out in keeping the charcoal aglow and it kept me occupied for hours. There were enormous squids, tahong (sea shells), fishes, chickens and hot dogs queuing to be cooked that even Bobby Flay could have been busy with it.

Thankfully by noon most of her team had arrived already and all foods have been prepared. Other than the grilled meats, there were also a variety of menu contributed by the rest of the group which made lunch time a feast. On the table are chicken curry, shanghai rolls, salads and one of my favorites – bicol express. Too bad the alcoholic drinks came later in the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the heavy meal, everyone picked their own activity. Some played cards. Some played bingo. Others opted to check the pool out – I was one of them.

The pool’s design is good but at first glance the flooring appears to be a disappointment because it was made only of white concrete. Surprisingly, upon closer inspection it is not mossy, it is not slippery, and it is clean. An improvement on safety may be needed though by posting a depth guide as it has deep part at the center that could have caught novice swimmers unguarded.

Before 6 PM came, some of the attendees had already left and those who remained - – both sober and drunk - were already starting to pack up.  From the looks of it, everyone seems to have enjoyed the picnic. And obviously at the end of the day my wife and I were neither in a resort in Ilocos nor in a nice beach somewhere in Pagudgud; nevertheless, we both enjoyed our 9^th anniversary by celebrating it somewhere near together  with friends and colleagues – next year, I’m sure it will just be us or probably with another set of colleagues.

 

 

 

 

Something Looks Familiar

This afternoon I was once again in the waves of ennui and surfing the internet trying to figure out what to do with the rest of my Sunday while feeling guilty of having to skip mass again and while also waiting for my wife to come home.

Emails checked. Multiply.com updates checked. Friendster.com scanned – not much friends in friendster (isn’t that an irony?). Favorites list scanned back and forth. Lurked forums done. Emails rechecked again for the nth time in just a couple of hours. Thankfully I’m free from mouse to keyboard ratio recording or I could be sending red signals to the ergonomics guru of our company.

Not really knowing how to bail out of my PC’s chair which is getting claustrophobic and butt-hot while I move the mouse aimlessly, I suddenly realized I was looking at Formula1.com’s interview with the recent winner of the Canadian grand prix, Robert Kubica. Having watched this last race’s replay (I was at work when it was shown live), I must admit that it was one of the most exciting I’ve seen so far this year. It was one for the books of fame and for the books of unfortunate events, which by the way F1 races will always be – even the famous Michael Schumacher has its own share of fame and shame.  This is the race wherein Lewis Hamilton rear-ended Kimi while on their way out of the pit lane - which brings the conspiracy theorists like me raise an eyebrow out of suspicion.  Hmmm.

Robert Kubica of course wasn’t one hypocrite not to accept the fact that he felt more hope when these two leading drivers crashed. It was not only his day to win but it was his day to lead the drivers’ championship with 42 points. After all, his consistency during the past races eventually paid off and June 08, 2008 became the day for him to be in the middle of the two drivers in the podium for the first time. It was the day BMW claimed the most coveted win of every races. It’s the day their sponsors have been waiting for…and wait, something looks familiar in the picture. Ahhhh…our company’s logo.

I’ve got used to seeing Mclarens and Ferraris (Renault, of course included) exchanging top positions for years that it took me until now to realize that right beside BMW’s logo is Intel’s. It may have something to do with the fact that Intel’s Philippine site is closing this year that I forgot to cheer my heart out when the whole BMW team was cheering and savoring the huge champagne during the awarding ceremony.

BMW and Intel’s win may have been late to be fully relished especially for us working for the latter, but as they always say, “A win is a win”. Now I don’t know if I’d be celebrating next time if BMW takes the 1-2 position once again. Hopefully yes.

Go BMW. Go Intel. Greetings coming from a Ferrari fan.

***

Frankly speaking, i never thought the BMW guys behind have any chances of winning a 1-2. Now, I stand corrected. Taken on April 2007 in Suria KLCC.

F*** You

Be calm.No need to censor. But I’m trying not to say this dreaded F word – FATS; because right now I’m facing a tough problem. Tougher than the impending unemployment and tougher than facing an unending oil price hike. It has something to do with my weight. And the horrifying number is Seventy pounds. That’s how heavy I am right now. And that’s seven pounds more than my required weight.

In gym lingo I’ve reached the hated plateau. It’s no matter how much I do the tread mills, do weight training and perform hopeless crunch and abs work out, my body just got bored with these routines. And like an employer running out of manpower, my body has posted a vacancy sign outside its doorstep. It’s accepting fats and calories like Vietnam is accepting all the multinational companies.

I know I can’t do anything about Vietnam but I’m sure I can do something about this weight. A battle must take place though to achieve once again my ideal weight as I don’t find it amusing anymore seeing our bathroom scale displaying a value higher than the last time I stepped on it. So instead of crying over spilled beer…I mean milk, I’d like to write about this new weight goal so I can get back to it soon and feel good about losing – weight, that is.

For me to be back on track, a re-assessment has to be done like anything that has gone awry or in this case what I’d call SNAFU – Situation Normal All Fat’s Up. Got to go back to monitoring what I eat and when I eat. I have to say goodbye to Jollibee breakfast, goodbye to Burger King Whopper, goodbye to heavy dinner, goodbye to beer…ooopps, let me recall the latter.

As part of my reflection, I’m wondering what I have done recently that made me accumulate such weight. So let me focus at least on this past week’s activity.

Monday. As scheduled, I played badminton with a couple of colleagues. Although known as the fastest game and tagged by some as a good cardiovascular workout, I find this game as a false sense of exercise to complement a diet.  Why? Normally, the heart-pounding and blood-pumping game for the whole day will bring us to a fast food restaurant to recover what we skipped during lunch. This last game, we found ourselves eating spaghetti and having a couple of beer in The Old Spaghetti House.

Fats – 1. Diet – 0.

Sunday. I was in Batangas with wifey to attend a birthday and a farewell party. The Red Ribbon chocolate cake and the predictable spaghetti were there and were looking mouth-watering as ever. I must have blacked out in front of the table but I found my stomach bulging and my lips colored brown and red.

Fats – 2. Diet – 0.

Saturday.  Finally, I attended my first TUP-V summer outing after several postponed dates with my batch mates. So right after a hard day’s work (at least I believe so), I find myself worthy of rewarding myself with good food and good company.  Without wasting time, I excitedly drove my way from Cavite to Sta. Rosa Laguna; and a hundred wrong turns  and a couple of hours later (thanks to the perfect map), I eventually located Dictado Resort where most of the attendees also got lost which is probably the reason why the program started late. Despite the exhausting drive it was fulfilling to meet long lost friends, schoolmates and other new alumni. It was also nice seeing some of the faces behind the aliases in the Tup-Vian’s yahoogroups. It was a “tagalog-free” night and it was like being home in Bacolod with everyone around speaking Ilonggo.  The feeling of nostalgia is of course never complete without guess what? Beer. Lots of it. Ti abi.

Fats – 3. Diet 0.

Friday. Coming from work, I picked my wife at home and went back to SM to watch the most anticipated movie of this year – Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I don’t know if the peanuts we brought inside was responsible for my calorie pile up that night OR was it the film being the MOST boring (sorry, I can’t help but emphasize) Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg film I’ve ever seen – it was so boring, my metabolism almost stopped working.  If I haven’t seen any of their previous works, I could have included them in my “never-to-watch-films” list. Watching Indiana Jones is like watching a chopsuey of films such as X-files, Tomb Raider, Alien vs. Predator, Armageddon all rolled into one. And that’s not a compliment either.  Anyway, peanuts or this B-movie film, Fats – 4. Diet – 0.

Thursday. Failing to bring home something to eat after my shift ended, I asked my wife for a dinner at the nearby David’s Tea House. Meal was picked to have the least calorie content that we can think of. I ended consuming the dumplings that my wife did not eat. By the way, did I mention I had beer that night? Well, I did.

Fats – 5. Diet – 0.

As much as I’d like to add more days in this list, it’s becoming more obvious that my Diet is losing the battle. I can imagine a fictional referee raising the Fats’ hands after winning the unanimous decision for the 5-rounder battle. But the fight is not yet over, my Diet is calling for a rematch and I’m making sure we will win next time.

Beer and Gym

Earth Hour

Just an hour ago I was one of those who participated in the Earth Hour.  From 8pm to 9m, our house was in total darkness with only the light from the street post beaming through the window. I was hesitant at first to turn off the TV as I was watching the show Shocking Video: Deadly Force (it always fascinates me to see cops emptying their guns on hooligans. But that’s another story). Good thing it ended exactly by 8.  Seriously, I’d end watching it, finished or not finished – as our teachers used to say – just to do my share.

Since my wife was out, I was left out alone and was thinking what to do outside while killing time. So I tried sending an SMS to some of my friends reminding them to observe the lights out activity. Out of the 20 plus contacts, 5 actually replied that they too had their lights turned off.  Great. At least I’m not the only person looking up to the heavens and trying to appreciate its natural beauty (haven’t done that for a long time). I think I’m the only person in our neighborhood who observed this call for conservation and so I find it nice to know that somehow, out there some of my friends did just the same.

I wonder how many joined and how much energy was saved.

I love her, I love her Not…

Chill out wifey…this petal-picking cliché is not for you. Well sort off. It’s for one of man’s invention which until know I wonder if there was a necessity for it to be invented but since it’s already here, I have to deal with it.

If I could have been asked of a list of one of my hated things, the videoke will surely be there. But then again just like any other things on earth this will have to depend on when or where I encountered it.  In short I have a love-hate relationship with this…let me call it embarrassing machine.

For me the videoke is actually like the eye. For me it’s the window the one’s self. I’ve discovered a liking to some people when I learned and heard them sing.  And my wife can decently sing any of The Coors song. And of course, synonymous to appreciating others sing the lines - appearing as foreground to mostly naked women gyrating on the background which usually challenges myself whether I’d hate it or not – is the loathing that I usually felt once most people starts singing their selected piece.

I’ve almost despise friends once I learned they’ve been into videokes. Just this December while on vacation I had a drinking session with my high school best friend and I almost scrambled out of the bar when I saw him checking the song list. “Oh, my lord…he must be kidding!”  But he’s not. Well to give him the benefit of the doubt I anxiously waited while the waitress punches in the magic numbers. I think I heard drum rolls when the song on queue started.

U2’s Sunday Bloody Sunday was his selection. I secretly glance at my friend just to give a quick check if he’s somewhat similar to Bono. Hmmm. Obviously not. The song’s intro finally signaled the start of the song. And then it happened. I almost cursed in protest and have actually wondered if my friend can be sued by U2 for performing their song in a public place. It wasn’t Sunday, but I’m sure it was Bloody – as the Brits will surely say. I’m sure I was drunk that time but the alcohol didn’t give me a favorable opinion.

Now I’m being hounded again by the presence of this singing machine. Just outside and in front of our house is a party in progress. And the magic box with TV monitor , round colored keys and 15-inch speakers was  just delivered. “Uh oh, we’re in for a long night.” My only hope right now is that no drunken male visitor will sing a Celine Dion song while we’re trying to sleep tonight. That is if we can actually sleep. Whoever invented this machine, I hope you’re in the “hot” place right now.

By the way, possessed by the spirit of alcohol I’ve actually sung a couple of songs on a videoke. And my fave are The Righteous Brothers’ You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling and 500 by the Proclaimers. Ti abi. Sometimes the good guy will have to give his revenge.

 

Balloon Fest’s Last Day

 

While my wife and I lined up at the event’s entrance gate, I heard over the PA system that there would be some delay in the morning’s program. Ironically, the wind that was supposed to make everything fly was the same wind that forced almost everything that flies grounded, at least for a while. So true enough, as we entered the area people were anxiously looking around and up as they wait for the show to continue.  (I noticed that this year’s attendance is better than last year’s, sadly there were less exhibitions this year.)

Moments later a rewarding sight came – the static line jump went through. The view of rounded gray chutes dropping side by side from a military cargo plane was just awesome. Back in the days, I assume, this view either sent hope or fear depending whose eyesight receives it.

There were several pauses again to wait for a tolerable wind speed and once the signal was given, the view overhead was filled with colorful skydivers’ canopies.  A number of sorties were made that pleased the whole crowd. Most were clapping as each skydiver flaired and landed one by one. Actually, since last year’s event, these skydivers, especially from the military had my respect. It was my perception then that most (my 1^st and last skydive instructor is a Colonel) of the good ones are civilians due to budget constraints on the government side. They proved me wrong however when I learned and saw that they can actually execute long freefalls and some can even perform stacking. I’ve never been so proud of the Philippine military.

What followed next are the aircraft exhibitions.  Seeing a helicopter fly and a couple of small planes speeding past at low altitude and climbing at a dizzying rate in preparation for a nauseating roll is always fascinating. In spite of my basic knowledge of aerodynamics (howstuffworks.com, anyone?), I still can’t help but ask the questions, “What makes it fly? Why and how does it fly?” and “who is the lucky one who flies it?” I’m always green with envy when I shoot this “who” question.

As the shadows went shorter with the sun climbing higher, I went into multitasking. I acted as Air Traffic controller, Weatherman and Psychologist. I was reading the wind cone, checking the air temperature while reading my wife’s gestures. It seems like there’s a direct link between the first two factors and my wife. She was cowering into the remaining shades and faking a sleep - a tell-tale sign of irritation and boredom. I acted fast - just as any sane husband would, I asked her if she’d like a break from the event. Her answer was clear. Few minutes later we’re at SM Clark’s Cabalen restaurant, eating buffet lunch. Wifey at this point is now full and smiling. I didn’t regret doing so either. The tapang kalabaw is remarkably soft and tasted good.

Past 12 noon, we decided to check the hotel which I booked online. There I realized, that it seems like I have a knack of picking comfortable but nevertheless weird accommodations. This time I booked us in Swagman Resort Hotel for an overnight stay. Good thing we got an upgrade. Instead of the standard room, the hotel clerk gave us the deluxe family room still for Php 1400. Nice. High five.

Waking up after a two-hour siesta in the hotel room, we hurriedly went back to the balloon fest site. As I approached the parking lot, I saw that the balloon bursting contest is on-going. Little did I know that by the time we got settled near at the shady hangar, I won’t be seeing any of it anymore. What I saw outside was to be the last leg of the contest. Grrr. The price I have to pay for a siesta. I also don’t know if we missed the synchronized kite flying & kite surfing too, but what I witnessed once again is Mr. Bill Wright’s aerobatics (not that I don’t like it) and several sets of skydiving exhibition. I’m hoping by the way, that next year, they’ll place a jumbo monitor for the crowd to witness videos of the freefalls.

 

Keeping the disappointment of missing (or expecting to see) some of the shows to myself, I continued shooting videos of what’s going around the exhibition ground. And then I heard an announcement that made me interested once more. An awarding ceremony is going to happen at the event’s control center. And the names that were paged sounded familiar, so I eagerly left my wife at her post to see the ceremony.

And there it was in front of me is Peter (PFSG founder) who won 3^rd place in the balloon bursting competition and Tonet (PFSG supremo). These are the guys I got to know and at least interact with online – Philskies.net (thanks of course to Mark, who by the way was with me last year. He gave me hangar access and I was able to see skydivers pack their canopies in front of us.) Surprisingly I was able to chat with Tonet (and his son, Carlo. Both of which are good pilots and bloggers), who in person is just as articulate as he is in his blog. Frankly speaking, I was star struck. Unknown to him, he is one of those who inspired me to have my own web log.

 

When I got back to my wife on her place in front of the hangar, I was actually thinking how I’m going to explain to her the lull in the exhibitions. No other reason I guess, but just to blame the windy condition. I tried convincing her to pose in front of the gun exhibits but to no avail. So we decided to stay still and entertain ourselves with whatever sight (met some colleagues in the process) is available around us. We can’t just go home yet, not until we see what I missed last year. And what we also missed this morning – the balloon flight and night glow.

Dusk came and the wind somewhat calmed down. One after the other, the hot air balloons inflated. Huge rounded canopies came into life. Around 20 different shapes and colors of balloons covered the horizon in front of us.  It was so massive that the last batch of skydivers and a lone Malaysian paraglider were dwarfed if not sidelined. And as if on cue everyone came near the fence to catch a glimpse of the spectacular sight. Every gadget that can capture pictures – from cell phone cameras to giant DSLRs – came out in unison to grab their own share of the scenic event.

With the feeling of accomplishing what we came here for, we headed back to our hotel together with the rest of the exiting crowd. It’s funny but I even find the sight of a hundred vehicles coming out of the parking lot on a very dusty trail a spectacle by itself.  The way going out of the area is so dusty that at some point there’s zero visibility and the only way to see the road again is to slow down in order to stay away from the vehicle in front of you until the dust settles down. Looking back, I saw a long trail of headlights waiting for their turn to reach the paved road.

Once we reached the hotel, we parked (worriedly) Mary in their weird parking lot and then tried the resort’s restaurant. And just as weird as the parking lot, we find ourselves having dinner in front of women who seemed to be practicing a dance routine. Deep in my mind, they’ll likely be wearing at least a swim suit come past 10 PM to the delight especially of the American customers. But fairly, we find the food great and of course needless to say, the beer is too. Cheers!

           

 

(note: pictures in this blog are either intentionally blurred or came out blurred from our point-and-shoot camera)

SNAFU to Clark’s Balloon Fest

“Very nice…High Five…” – Borat Sagdiyev

Having planned a road trip with wifey for quite some time even when we still have our trusty Kia Pride, the 12^th PIHABF (Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta) came as the perfect time and reason. I filed for a 2-day vacation leave from work a month ahead in anticipation of this event. And just like ants preparing for a rainy day, my wife and I went shopping for clothing, food and storage (buying a Coleman cooler justified) a day before we set off.

Feb 10. Past 3 AM. After filling Mary’s boot with the things we need, we excitedly started our trip. The early morning drive went well as expected. Traffic was light from Cavite to the NLEX entrance and in the back of my mind I was already imagining picking a good parking spot and a good vantage point for us to witness the balloon flight before dawn. I fought the urge to floor the pedal so as not to exceed the 100 KPH limit. But at some point I noticed the speedometer pointing at the 120 scale yet the Honda City stayed stable despite it. Realizing the car’s capability, the temptation to go faster became so strong but my sanity and the presence of the speed limit marks along the highway kept me from doing so.

By the middle of the trip we decided to stop by Total gas station in San Simon to fill in some gas. That’s when the most unlikely thing happened. It was as if someone played a bad joke on us. While waiting for the attendant to fill the tank to the brim, my wife and I decided to step out of the car. I grabbed some water in the boot while she picked something in the gas station’s store. Unconsciously, we both locked the doors with the car key still inside. A minute after I shut the boot door and as I was lazily stretching myself I heard the car alarm’s beep followed by the sound of a latching door lock. Damn, for a moment I think I saw myself turned pale. I almost cried out in despair. We are locked out!

After hopelessly trying to wake myself up as if in a bad dream, I started considering some options and eagerly asked help from the gas attendants and other people who also stopped for gas. The inputs ranged from the ridiculous (yet the most direct) shattering of the glass window,  to the tiring and frustrating trip back going to Cavite (a 60 km ride back) to grab the spare key and to the most viable yet costly (Php 1000) option of hiring a locksmith to do the job. Also considered was taking chances if other Honda car keys will match. That one didn’t work, as expected. For the first time I hated Honda’s wave key and alarm feature.

The thought of missing the balloon fest (and ruining our trip) made me decide to seek the locksmith’s –who was referred to us by one of the gas boy - assistance so I called him up. I was greeted by man on the other end of the line sounding a bit irritated (I understand the feeling of being awakened early Sunday morning) yet he was kind enough to encourage me to keep on trying by opening it through the door handle using a stiff wire to reach into the lock. The mixture of desperation, thought of a Hazard Pay’s episode (Discovery TV show), a welding rod wire and persuasion from my wife seemed to work together after that conversation.

And after an hour of trial and error, the lock tab popped. To say I shouted for joy would be an understatement. Upon checking my watch, I learned that we’ve been locked out for almost 2 hours already. So without wasting another minute we continued our trip but only after dropping along their way home the two gas boys who stayed with us until their night shift ended. They were our cheering team during the whole ordeal. My wife and I exchanged congratulations several times on our way to Dau. We kidded ourselves as being able to be in cahoots as carjackers. Honda City owners beware.

We arrived in the Balloon fest area by past 7 AM, tired but glad we still made it. Parking far from the entrance gate didn’t matter anymore. Just being at the site bustling with people from various sex and ages gathered (or forced to, mostly by either husband or kids) with one interest – to watch an event featuring “everything that flies” – is satisfying enough.

continue…Balloon Fest’s Last Day.

Tis The Season to be Jolly

“Don’t be afraid to be weak
Don’t be too proud to be strong
Just look into your heart my friend
That will be the return to yourself” - Enigma. Return to Innocence

The ‘ber’ months must have some effect on everyone if not to the Filipinos alone. Once the very 1st day of September sets it everything seems to intensify or gets exaggerated. As if some switch gets turned on right after the midnight of August 31.

Different ages react differently to this transition. For most adult this is the start of expenses pouring in. Everything seems gets listed in the “needs” section of the budget list. The “wants” list more often becomes empty – blame it on consumerism? For most children however, this is the season to be Jolly, period.

I can still remember my excitement - when l was kid - every time when the calendar reaches September. As if the calendar page between August and September is a musical card that plays a song when opened, “…Santa Claus is coming to town…” And unknown to me then, this Santa Claus are those adult that gets weary and anxious when these ‘ber’ months sets it. They are either our parents or our “unlucky” ninongs and ninangs (godparents). After 20 years, I’m now one of them.

It was as if just a couple days ago when someone reminded me to start buying gifts to avoid the shopping rush. In fact that was months ago. Just like any broken vinyl record this irritatingly skips and repeats. Sadly the holiday rush doesn’t skip. It just repeats. The farthest I can remember panicking at this level is since I started having my own pay check. (Now I’m confused if having a paycheck should either get celebrated or cursed.) My wife and I normally kid each other usually around every January to start buying Christmas trees and gifts by this time. But before I know it, the ‘ber’ months are in, again. Now I’m behind 2 months already. It’s now November.

The mall sales now get more frequent than before. The bonuses are coming in (or shall I say passing through). The yuletide songs are as common as jeepney noise. The dreaded traffic gets worst. The horrifying thought of the inaanaks (godchildren) knocking at the front door getting realized as December nears. It’s funny but when someone says now “Christmas is just around the corner”, this is now like a windtalker’s code that someone is out to get you.

Hey, did I just realize I’m now a Grinch? During this season most adults are, I guess. Well it must be the cycle of life I guess. Some call it karma. The act gets repeated but the recipients change. If before I was thankfully receiving crisp bills, now I’m…I’m not giving one. Beside, the crisp bills now are of less value. Now that’s justified (miser smile).

Every time I’m in this situation I think of an old Filipino song (by Asin) with the following lyrics:

Itanong mo sa mga bata (Ask the children)
Ano ang kanilang nakikita (What they see)
Sa buhay na hawak nila (At the life they have)
Masdan mo ang mga bata (Observe the children)
Sila ang tunay na pinagpala (They are the lucky ones)
Kaya dapat nating pahalagahan (We should appreciate them)
Dapat din kayang kainggitan? (Shouldn’t we envy them)

Although this is not a Christmas song, this clearly describes and shows how having the innocence just like the small ones becomes a very big deal. More often, taking the simple meaning of an event or season is what matters most. Children love summer for the vacation. Children love Christmas for Santa Claus. If they love it for Christ’s birth, the better of course. But that’s where our adult explanation comes into play (and it’s another long story or blog).

So if only most adults, including me, can see this significance just as it is (even just during December), then I think this is when we can wholeheartedly join the children in saying, “Tis the season to be jolly”.

Hello, Wifey : )

Until today, I’m still feeling the guilt of not being with my wife on the midnight of her special day. It has been her tradition to stay awake until the very first seconds of her birthday. In return I get to greet her first. Unfortunately this year is different as I was at work packing precious processors instead of packing a birthday gift.

So to make it up to you wifey, here’s one for you:

Being you…

Enhances my identity

Being caring…

Makes me appreciate your presence more

Being patient…

Teaches me to be one

Being understanding…

Encourages me to know compassion

Being funny…

Just tickles my funny bone

Being strong…

Makes me stay as one

Being loving…

Makes me love you more

Being a late greeter…

Gives me the excuse to write this one bad poem.

Happy Birthday!

I love you!