hallo-vember

Okey, so this is like... one week late?

But since it's still November, I still want to post this here. If only because it's not a very common site in the Philippines, where instead of Halloween we have Tingkalalag, which means Time of Souls.

So, BOOOOO!!

Kalabasa with lights

tag-ulan

Sige na lang gaulan diri sa Dumaguete niining niaging mga adlaw. Matud pa sa balita, duna kunoy bagyo nga ginganlan ug Jolina na milabay karon sa Pinas. Ug karong sunod bulan sa Agosto, adunay tulo ka bagyo nga expekted na moabot. Panahon na pud sa baha, pisak, magkasakit kay naulanan, mga nilabhan dili mauga, ug andar na sad ang mga kisame nga gatulo. Ug tungod kay wala pa man nahuman ang mga dalan, puerteng trapika sa kalsada.

Ay, unsa ba?! Nindot man unta ng ulan kay bugnaw, dili ta panington ug dili na kinahanglan ang elektrik fan o airconditioner pero hasul baya kung duna kay lakaw dayon kalit ug bundak sa ulan dayon wa ka kadala ug payong. Haskang paeta, jud.

Pero ang tsada sa ulan kay makatulugon ta. Di ba? Hay, suksok sa daghang unlan ug balukot dayon. Mao na ako buhaton. Now na. Goodnight!

remembering apollo 11

Apollo 11 from Wiki

40th anniversary from NASA

The Untold Story from Popular Mechanics

Buzz Aldrin's lunar bootprint

dumaguete is sick

Literally.

A wave of fever, cough and colds has been sweeping the city since last week, affecting citizens of all ages. In fact, today and tomorrow, classes in the high school, elementary and early childhood education departments of Silliman University have been suspended for sanitation purposes. The staff are going to disinfect the school premises as so many students have been sick these past days.

Though classes in the collegiate and post-grad levels have not been suspended, the university physician's clinic has been flooded with students with the exact same symptoms of fever, cough and colds. Many of my own students in the medical school have been/are sick, too, and we get lots of coughs and sniffles in class, from both students and teachers alike.

I hope this sick wave passes over soon. Such a bummer, it is.

123456789

Ok, I couldn't resist it.

This post is scheduled to be published at exactly

12:34:56 7-8-09 :-)

nautical mile(stone)

A nautical mile is a special unit of measurement used by all nations for air and sea travel. It is equivalent to 1.852 kilometers or 1.1508 miles. A milestone is an important event, as in a person's career, the history of a nation, or the advancement of knowledge in a field; a turning point.

Though I did not swim anywhere near 1.1508 miles, today has been a milestone in my 'swimming career' (oo, kina-career ko na ito, haha!) because today I did twenty laps at the Aqua Center, whoohoo! And that's 2 laps of breaststroke and 18 laps of free style, which is a big achievement for me already because though I could swim breaststroke like forever, several months ago I could not finish one lap of free style without stopping two or three times by the gutter.

So how did it happen? I think it was a combination of several things. First, would be my eavesdropping on the swim coaches giving instructions to the Negros Oriental Swim Team as they practice everyday, those lithe little bodies doing their laps tirelessly back and forth, back and forth, their arms slicing the water cleanly and their legs pumping to the coaches' barks of "Kick harder!"

Second would probably be all that studying of muscle physiology that I've been doing for my classes, I got to know and understand the energetics of muscle contraction (you can go anaerobic glycolysis for short bursts of speed but for the long haul it has to be oxidative phosphorylation, so learn how to breath properly!) as well as the adaptations muscles make when subjected to constant training (making more mitochondria, more motor unit recruitment, better energy extraction efficiency, etc).

Third would probably be the cup of coffee and two cheese rolls I had two hours before the swim, adenosine triphosphate sources ftw.

And finally, I think this is the clincher: my brand new swim goggles!! My good old red Nike chrome ultralight goggles have retired, the rubber had softened and run, the lenses have blurred because some of the red rubber have actually melted into the plastic. I tried and tested almost all the goggles at Lee Plaza and this all-black, double-strapped Aryca had the perfect fit. It was kind of ostentatious being reflectorized and looking like it was meant for biking than for swimming but this one hugged my eyes perfectly while the others pinched and puckered, so it wasn't such a difficult decision to make. And after today's break-in swim, I think it's pretty cool. 8-)

ivy and clyde

Here's my dear, dear cousin, Ivy, with her parents, Tito Felix and Tita Paro, on her wedding day, June 22, 2009, in Houston. Clyde is somewhere there near the altar, beaming his big smile.

Isn't she lovely?

suggested lenten menu

sayote ni manang

bulad pinikas

sari-saring gulay

bingbong and tonette

Finally, a picture of the Mirafor family during the wedding of Bingbong and Tonette, that btw, I missed going to last December. That young lady in yellow is my niece, Paula, who graduated from Grade 6 with honors last March. She is multi- multi-talented: she can sing, dance, teach dance, write, lead, and also she weblogs!

the lovely bride, my new cousin-in-law, Tonette

Cheers to the newly weds!

(click on the photos to link to more wedding pictures)

green mangoes

... from our mango plantation.



Jowk!

Actually, we don't have a mango plantation.

But we do have two mango trees in our backyard. So these mangoes technically come from our mango plant. Period. No -ation suffix. :-D

Graduation Day

Finally, it's the most awaited day for Silliman and Foundation Universities.

To our medical graduates, congratulations and get used to your new names! (Click on image to see the rest of the Testimonial Dinner pictures.)

(l-r, back)
Dr. Yugeong Go
Dr. Philmed Salindo
Dr. Georgitha Partosa
Dr. Marikit Bituin Buquiran
Dr. Tanya Ramas-Uypitching

(l-r, front)
Dr. Julie Cabristante
Dr. Sheena Saycon
Dr. Pearl Vidal
Dr. Kristine Espancho

To my literature and creative writing classmates Jordan, Ayla, Mario and Sonia, congratulations and hoy balik-balik pud mo.

To my friend Jun Quevenco, Magna Cum Laude from the Foundation University College of Law, I am speechless! Ang galing! Hugs to your wife, Jay, and daughters, Katrina and Maika.

To my niece, Paula, already a weblogger at Grade 6, who graduated from elementary with honors and leadership awards, I am so proud to be your relative! :-)

To all the rest of the graduates, congratulations and happy job hunting.

To all parents and guardians, whew!

To my colleagues in the teaching profession, it's been a fun year and I salute you for braving the heat and the sweat by sitting at the SU Amphitheater in your incredibly thick doctorate togas for the entire sweltering afternoon hours to honor our pioneering graduates.

To my hairdresser, thank you for the tender touch and hair care advice, but would just like to let you know, ni fly-away na pud ako buhok. Duh.

And finally, to my dear teacher, Dr. Dale Law, thank you for the wonderful semester of brutally frank critiquing of my essays. I actually hope you won't get to read this because I'm sure you're going to flip with my colloquialisms and many "awkward" word choices. If you must know, Sir, from this day forward, every time I write a sentence, I always ask myself, "What will Dr. Law say? What will Dr. Law say?" I know what you'll say. "Repetitious!" ;-p

And, oh, p.s. to Prof. Andrea Soluta, my Literary Theory teacher, yes, Ma'am, I promise to submit my writing assignments on the different -isms before the deadline. I just have to make this post and yeah, uh, finish some pending Guess the Sketch Challenge games.

And while I'm at this, I might as well thank you, dear reader, whether you come visit here regularly or just stumbled upon this today, I am grateful. What's the use of writin' if no one's gonna be a readin'?

I, thank you all. Bow.

wall climbing, day 7

Nobody's climbing the wall, it's the wall that's climbing to higher heights as the mason and his assistants lay hollow block after hollow block to rebuild the cement fence that was destroyed by the flash flood last February 7.




This is how it looked today, the 7th working day in the rebuilding-the-wall project. Can you spot the differences between the two photos?



Notice the bananas in the upper picture. When the wall is finished it will become obvious that the bananas do not belong to us as the banana plant is actually ober-da-bakod from us.

last day of school

It's Friday the thirteenth, the last official day of classes in SU today. Next week is final exams week. It's hectic and panic time for students and teachers alike.

To my graduating classmates Fred Jordan (Creative Writing), Ayla (Literature) and Mario (Languages), I can't believe I won't be seeing you in school next sem! Huhuhu. I'm gonna miss you, guys. Thank you for all the 'discussions', intellectual and otherwise. ::wink::wink:: Hehehe.

To my graduating students, hey, I hope you finish all your hospital make-up duties so you can march this March. ;-)

rebuilding the wall, day 4

After the old fallen wall was pulverized and the steel bars scavenged for reuse, after the ditch was dug (days 1 and 2) and the deformed steel bars skeleton of the posts were assembled (day 3), it was time to set the posts' foundation in cement (day 4).

just add water : sand, gravel and cement

setting a firm post foundation

rebuilding the wall

Last February, a flash flood devastated Dumaguete and some neighboring towns. We were not spared as about 15 meters of our cement wall came tumbling down courtesy of the raging waters that entered our compound.

fallen wall

Rebuilding the fence started this week. These photos were taken on day one. Let's see how many days it'll take to put the wall up again.

digging a ditch

and making it deep

fave hang out: shakey's

Here's SUHS Batch '78 again at Shakey's Dumaguete this evening.

(cw)Grace B., John Joseph, Ariel and wife, Chona, Diana C.

(ccw) Mike Du, Abbe, Zenovia, Chona K., Luis (partially hidden), Eugene N., ako, Marie, Eric. L., Tatoy, Edu

not the usual suspects, l-r

Chona and Ariel Florendo (from NSO Dgte)
Mike Du (all the way from Polomolok, Gen San)
Diana (from Manila, visiting daughter in SU)
*John Joseph (from Stockton, Ca) * tonight's sponsor

Though we were really happy to be with each other again after not having gathered for a while, the smiles for the pictures had to be coaxed out of most everyone. For the tone of the evening was quite somber and talk was mostly about unpleasant topics like (1) the spate of killings in the city, (2) the "price range" of hired guns, (3) the proliferation of illegal practices in Dumaguete and Negros Oriental because the "masterminds" are very rich and able to buy off the police, the military and the judiciary, (4) the recent nationwide bank fiasco, (5) how bad the economy is in America (this one from John), (6) illnesses, (7) people we know who are now "in-between-jobs" and for the boys, (8) business ventures and (9) the upcoming 2010 national and local elections. And, yeah, (10) the very recent threatening call to one of the hospitals here where the caller said another doctor is going to be %#@* soon. What's the world coming to, Mama?

summer comes a-MARCHing in

father and child in Boracay, by RV

RV in Boracay, Alex Pal in Apo Island, Em Dy in Cagayan de Oro and Camiguin Island, Dominique in Hongkong and Macau, Clairebear in Bunker Bay, Australia, Abner out for a walk and enjoying the sun in New South Wales, and we, ourselves, just in from a black-sand beach in Bacong.

Could it be that it is... almost summer?!!

hello, 2009!

Heart of fire(works) at the Dumaguete boulevard

captured by Reveynui

goodbye, 2008

The Passing of the Year

by Robert W. Service (1874 - 1958)

My glass is filled, my pipe is lit,
My den is all a cosy glow;
And snug before the fire I sit,
And wait to feel the old year go.
I dedicate to solemn thought
Amid my too-unthinking days,
This sober moment, sadly fraught
With much of blame, with little praise.

Old Year! upon the Stage of Time
You stand to bow your last adieu;
A moment, and the prompter's chime
Will ring the curtain down on you.
Your mien is sad, your step is slow;
You falter as a Sage in pain;
Yet turn, Old Year, before you go,
And face your audience again.

That sphinx-like face, remote, austere,
Let us all read, whate'er the cost:
O Maiden! why that bitter tear?
Is it for dear one you have lost?
Is it for fond illusion gone?
For trusted lover proved untrue?
O sweet girl-face, so sad, so wan
What hath the Old Year meant to you?

And you, O neighbour on my right
So sleek, so prosperously clad!
What see you in that aged wight
That makes your smile so gay and glad?
What opportunity unmissed?
What golden gain, what pride of place?
What splendid hope? O Optimist!
What read you in that withered face?

And You, deep shrinking in the gloom,
What find you in that filmy gaze?
What menace of a tragic doom?
What dark, condemning yesterdays?
What urge to crime, what evil done?
What cold, confronting shape of fear?
O haggard, haunted, hidden One
What see you in the dying year?

And so from face to face I flit,
The countless eyes that stare and stare;
Some are with approbation lit,
And some are shadowed with despair.
Some show a smile and some a frown;
Some joy and hope, some pain and woe:
Enough! Oh, ring the curtain down!
Old weary year! it's time to go.

My pipe is out, my glass is dry;
My fire is almost ashes too;
But once again, before you go,
And I prepare to meet the New:
Old Year! a parting word that's true,
For we've been comrades, you and I --
I thank God for each day of you;
There! bless you now! Old Year, good-bye!

family reunion 2008

It's been a hectic day. The highlight of which was our family reunion party and exchanging of gifts. In the words of my nine-year-old nephew Onin: "The best Christmas ever!"

Next up: We're all (well, almost all) going to Cebu for my cousin Bingbong's wedding on Monday.