last week of classes

This week is the last week of classes at SU before the final exam week. Naturally, it's a terribly busy time for students and teachers alike.

Ondoy at my alma mater

Like never before, the Philippines was badly hit by Typhoon Ondoy over the weekend.

Here's a video taken at a place that is close to my doctor's heart, as it is where I learned the rudiments of medicine.

It's not a funny video at all, so maybe it's best to turn off the sound while playing this so you won't hear some inappropriate jocularity.

NOMS Family Day

Medicine Week

It's Medicine Week in Negros Oriental from September 20 to 27 and there have been daily activities which I haven't joined except for tonight's event at the Honeycomb Restaurant, a physician/pharmaceutical partnership called "If you can DO IT... we can DUET!" What else could it be but karaoke singing, a most favorite pastime of Filipinos, irregardless of profession or age. This duet (doctor and med rep pairing) singing contest, a first ever in the history of the Negros Oriental Medical Society, was a reverberating success, if one goes by the SRO status of the Honeycomb from 7 to 10 pm, tonight.

We even had legitimate judges in the persons of Dr. Susan Vista-Suarez, Rigel Suarez and another musician whose name I missed. I think in the beginning the judges thought it was going to be a serious singing contest, if one went by the outfits of the contestants, the hosts and the guests, but they quickly got on that the spirit of the event was more of fun and fellowship rather than finding the pair with the best vocals.

Among the contestants were Dr. Jasmine Lubguban, Dr. Susan Denura, Dr. Walden Ursos, Dr. Almira Bautista, Dr. Krypton Kho, Dr. Michael Singco, Dr. Verna Reyes, Dr. Mennie Soluta and Dr. Cabatingan (the winner!!). They all did duets with med reps, whose names I totally missed, naturally as the reps don't cover the anesthesiologists a lot, as we actually have very few drugs to choose from.

Highlights of the evening were the intermission numbers by the pedia residents and consultants of Holy Child Hospital who did a Hip-Hop dance number and the Nobody But You dance number by the all female pedia residents and consultants of the SU Medical Center. Not to be outdone, our guest of honor from Manila, pediatrician Dr. Victor Doctor, also did a special song for us. As they say, kuyaw ang mga pediatrician. Dili mahagit!

I think everybody had a wonderful time and we're all looking forward to more activities like this. From the group in our table, I heard plans that some were going to start practicing tomorrow for next year's Duet Contest. As for me, I am looking forward to hearing my super favorite singing doctor, Dr. Revey Nuico, who has The Most Amazing Voice everrr, but is so shy he only sings for his wife and kids. Hopefully, next year he'll finally join the contest, but then again, maybe he should just be a judge!

Sandosenang Sapatos

A children's musical at the Luce Auditorium tonight at 8 pm.

eating durian

and loving it.

The people I know who like to eat the controversial durian do so with an intensity and gusto that border on well, ecstasy. No matter how naysayers try to dissuade them from partaking of the evil-smelling spiny fruit, the durian aficionados just smile their knowing smiles and dig in with alacrity. They claim that whatever (minor) discomfort brought about by the strong smell of the fruit is quickly dispelled by its exquisite taste. So much so that after a while, you'll say, "Smell? What smell? Durian tastes and smells heavenly!"

Here are Abbe, Lai and Chona. Bon appetit!

on your mark...


get set...

a-ha-ha-yummmmm!

Now for the next round

_________________________

p.s.

Just don't get caught with this fruit in Singapore's public transpo system, ok?!

eight years

..............

we remember.

reymond and loraine's wedding

you may now kiss the bride...


...and little Nathaniel, too!

pretty purply bridesmaids all in a row

wedding nymph peeling her anagon at the boulevard

mike, lalaine, mahaderang mader, loraine, reymond



the reception was like an evening show. the newlyweds entertained us with their superb singing and dancing skills. indeed, their love story began when they first did a duet way back in 2002.

Oh, Nine!

Today is O-Nine-O-Nine-O-Nine!

(yoon lang po)

of books and brownouts

Now that the SU Founder's Day Celebration is over, the students' and teachers' noses are back to the proverbial grindstone as we cram all remaining lessons and projects into the last five weeks of the semester. Schedules and syllabi have gone haywire this term thanks to the one week delay at the start of classes in June because of the H1N1 pandemic, the numerous non-working holidays declared by GMA and the recurrent brownouts in Dumaguete.

There was one of those long-playing brownouts last week so Mike and I decided to go to Chowking for their siopao and buchi, but mostly for their electricity and free wi-fi, courtesy of Jollibee across Perdices street. Studying in restaurants has been a favorite practice of college students in Dumaguete for many years now; preferred hang-outs are Chowking, Jollibee, McDonald's, Cafe Noriter and Dunkin Donuts where for the price of a couple of donuts and a cup of coffee one can have bright lights, airconditioning, and the company of like-minded classmates for all-nighter group studies.

Mike was studying neuroanatomy and I was studying, or trying to study, autacoids and eicosanoids. Trying because I'm one who needs absolute quietude when studying and Chowking was definitely not quiet, even up to midnight, because all around us were groups noisily discussing debits and credits (business majors) and from another table I heard Ciprofloxacin (nursing students, said their tshirts).

The two pairs right next to us were blatantly flirting (in loud voices, how romantic can that be?) with each other and it was at this group that I beamed my razor-sharp dagger-looks. I wanted my eyes to say, "Can you please be quiet? Can't you see people are trying to study here?" But of course, they did not give me the time of day, or night, as it was, they just totally ignored me. After about 40 seconds I gave up and laughed at myself. Hey, this isn't the Main Library, this is Chowking, hello! Lighten up.

Right. So I played Plants Vs. Zombies instead.

rock n root

I was cleaning up my computer memory over the long weekend and saw these interesting interphases between rock and roots, in different places that I've been to this summer past.







Looking at the images, I remember the trips all over again. I am awed. And grateful.

Asa ta mokaon ron?

There's been quite a spate of new restaurants opening in Dumaguete just this past month: there's the newly renovated Kamalig Restaurant that has relocated down the same street but this time very near the Boulevard; there's Chicken Dinagyang which took over the place that Kamalig left, also along Katada Street; there's Sultan's Place beside the newly opened Hotel Nicanor along San Juan Street; and just this week, Ka' Waway along Ma. Cristina Street, just a few steps away from popular FoodNet and Boston Cafe. Italia is also just around the corner but Italia's prices are just too steep for Dumaguete that's why the place is nearly always empty.

According to the waiter, Ka' Waway is named after the owner's son. The owner, by the way, also owns two other restaurants in Dumaguete, Highway 10 and Chicken Ati-atihan. A special feature of Ka' Waway and Highway 10 is the unlimited rice for some orders, a sure hit with rice-loving Dumaguetenos. Chicken Ati-atihan looks kind of run down, though, while Highway 10 and Ka' Waway are noticeably well attended to in terms of interior decoration. Highway 10 is airconditioned and reminds me of a restaurant in Manila (forgot its name) where the floor was checkered black and white vinyl and the food servers were on roller skates. Ka' Waway is an open air place, with a fiesta atmosphere, lots of lights and ceiling fans. I liked the native thingy (was it very thin bamboo?) they wrapped around the posts and some walls.


This is a blurry cellphone photo of Ka' Waway's menu cover. It says "Native Pala-Pala Resto" which reminds me of a saying in Bacolod that goes, "Sa Bacolod ang pera ginapala-ginapiko" alluding to the abundance of wealth in Negros Occidental. I think this is not what is meant by a Pala-Pala Restaurant but when I asked two waiters what pala-pala meant, they didn't know either.

One waiter said it had something to do with having a big fishpond, or a big sea-pond perhaps, as a lot of seafoods were featured in the menu. They have tuna, tangigue, tarugho, bangus, mamsa, maya-maya, lapu-lapu, blue marlin, tuna belly, et al, which you can order su-to-kill, which means sugba-tola-kilaw, or you can have it deep fried or sizzling. They also have nilasing na hipon and squid something together with talaba.



Another interesting feature in their menu is that they have specialties from all over the Philippines like Native Fried Chicken ng Davao, Native Fried Chicken ng Tayasan ( a municipality in Negros Oriental), Pochero ng Bukidnon, Kare-Kare ng Cavite, Bistek Tagalog, atbp. We had the sizzling Pampanga Sisig (without egg please). It was hot, oily and crunchy/rubbery, as sinful sisig should be.

It was a busy night for the waiters who were practically running as the place was jampacked. I am amazed. Dumaguete is changing indeed. Time was when Dumaguetenos preferred to eat at home, as it is so much cheaper than eating in restaurants. Buy fresh and cheap produce from the wet market, cook it at home and voila. Gastric needs satisfied.

I like change. So I'm wondering, where to eat next Sunday?

_________________

Update:

Tried to google what 'pala-pala' means but it was to no avail. Thankfully, there's Facebook and my foodie friend, Carla G., who enlightened me, "It's where you pick the fresh fish and other seafood you like and have it cooked the way you like it done." Ahh! Ok, now I understand! Thanks, Carla. :-)

Dash 2500

I like this. A lot. The very nifty GE Dash 2500 vital signs monitor.

The Dash 2500 includes:

• 3 and 5 lead ECG with EK-Pro™ arrhythmia analysis
• Respiration monitoring
• Non-invasive blood pressure using DINAMAP® SuperSTAT™
  
• Pulse Oxymetry using Masimo SET® or Nellcor® OxiMax® SpO²
• Temperature monitoring using Alaris® Turbo Temp®

Too bad it's not ours. We just borrowed this from the PICU. We've ordered a different model from a different company because the GE Dash 2500 is just way, way too expensive. Like more than three times more expensive than the other brand. Sigh.

Dumaguete Duh

Is Dumaguete the brownout capital of the Philippines?

:-(

Electricity went off at dawn today and tsismis goes around that power will be restored on Saturday yet. Reeeaally.

But na lang may Jollibee na may free wifi. In fact, umaabot across the street sa ChowKing. Nice.

Nobody But You

makalingaw ni!