Tonight's the night we'll put all of the things aside

It officially weekend and a long one for me. Monday is Labor day so I decided to take leave on Tues and Wed to be at home with my wife and the kids. Five days maybe to much to rejuvenate me. But what the heck!

Bwahahaha!

Cleavage Redefined

"Kaya naman hindi ko maiwan-iwan ang bansang ito.."

I can't help but grin hearing this from another Pinoy engineer beside me during the daily morning bickering meeting. He was as if in a trance murmuring to himself, but obviously he knew that I was just an ear away and wanted me to have a piece of it.

Apparently, there is this lady whose cleavage was showing for everyone to see. I'm not referring to the hollow between the exotic container that houses the mammary gland but the cleft between the gluteus maximus. It seems showing off this part, which in some parts of the world would be reason enough to stone women to death, becomes a de rigueur. I'm just wandering how low it will go.

But there were planes to catch, bills to pay...

We scurried to be in the library by 11am for the weekly storytelling session. I know that my kids, specially my youngest, look forward to this. Not only that they enjoy the animated session but they know for a fact that I would be easily hypnotized into submission of eating out for lunch, which today was at KFC, and the obligatory ice cream at McDonalds for dessert. A side trip to the toy shop was also expected.

Happy Birthday Nanay

Tadtadrin man daw ang laman mo at buto ay hindi kayang bayaran ang utang na loob mo sa iyong ina -- ayon sa kasabihan. Having seen my mother carried us thru life on her frail shoulder and made tremendous sacrifices, I guess that proverb is an understatement.

I know that it is so unlikely that you may stumble into this but I'm sure you know how much I love you.

Happy 70th birthday Nanay...

Dinilig sa Dugo

I watched Kingdom of Heaven which stars Orlando Bloom for the second time to while away Good Friday with some close friends. Those who had watched the movie would know that it is about a young Frenchman who, having lost everything, finds honor and redemption on a valiant quest to Jerusalem. Having read Jerusalem: One City, Three Faith, I know for a fact that religions, institutions that link humanity to its creator, evolved thru violence.

History is a good teacher. Co-existence is the key.

Amoy Eleksyon

Tipikal na siguro kahit sa anong bansa na kapag malapit na ang eleksyon ay makikita mo ang mga pulitiko na aaligid-aligid na parang mga bangaw, kaya naman hindi ako nagtaka nang makita ko ang reigning MP (member of the parliament) na oposisyon at ang feisty opponent n'ya from the ruling party (PAP) noong ginagawa ang sirang display ng lift (elevator) namin. Trivial matter that becomes a source of 'grave concern'. Pero in fairness, hindi gaya sa Pinas, makikita mo rin naman sila all year round--hindi nga lang ganito kaatat.

Isa ang lugar namin sa inaasam-asam ng ruling party na makuha sa darating na eleksyon. Matagal-tagal na rin naman kasing nasa kamay ng oposisyon ang lugar na ito. Okay naman ang oposisyon dito, professional ika nga. Malayung-malayo sa mga assholes na pulitiko sa Pinas. Okay din naman ang ruling party. The result will speak for itself, kita mo naman kung paano nila ginawang from 3rd world to first world country itong little red dot. They were at the helm since Tatang's (Lee Kuan Yew) time in the late 60's.

Obviously, politics is one of the ills that pulls down our country to the lowest doldrum.

Hey Judas, Don't Make it Bad!

Syempre pa, with all its hype, pinanood ko ang The Gospel of Judas sa National Geographic channel. It's quite interesting, but not really that surprising, to know that some early Christians viewed Judas as a hero. Even I somehow mulled at this notion that I even blogged about it last year.

I guess there's no questioning the authenticity of the codex, science already answered that. It is the relevance of the findings which I hope the Catholic church, or any Christian faith for that matter, would address officially.

Again it all boils down to faith, at least for me. This Gnostic or the dozen or so other gospels would surely fail to shake my fundamentals: one true God, social justice and practical compassion.

As Long as the Matter Doesn't Age

My multiphasic executive health screening report is already out. I felt relieve and very thankful as the result, in a nutshell, says I'm essentially healthy. Fit as a Gurkha! It's not surprising though as I'm living a generally healthty lifestyle: strength training twice a week, good cardio exercise by shagging at least 3 times a week either by playing basketball or jogging 4 km or so aweek and though I'm not shying away from any food, I make it a point to watch what I eat and strike a good balance.

This health screening, which is considerably comprehensive and also expensive, is one of the perks of being part of the management team. Some people (a few close to me) I know try to avoid this even if it's free and gives you a full day off as it is OB (official business). It amuses me to no end that these people are simply too scared, not of the the needle or the procedure where the doctor sticks her (yes, the doctor was a she) lubricated instrument to your ass to analyse tumour markers for prostrate and all, but for the chance of possibly knowing that there maybe something skewed with their system.

Scaredy cat, huh!

I don't like the feeling of not being in control, not even with regards to my health. If there is really something wrong with me (...knock on wood!), I want to know it as early as possible. I'm not a medical practitioner but I know for a fact that the odds are with you once that dreaded something is detected at an early stage.

Makansutra

Gastronomical!

This site gathers all the best, delicious and tasty food which are all favoured by Singaporeans--supposedly. It will help you to navigate your makan (pig out) trips via different regions. I also encourage you to explore nooks and crannies for undocumented mouth-watering kopitiams (foodstalls).

Caveat though, I have yet to visit most of the places mentioned. Not only because I truly love my wife's cooking, but growing up impoverished taught how to pinch pennies.

Out of The Radar Screen

I'm starting to hunt for good airfare prices for our Pinas vacation this Christmas. It may seem early but this is the way to go if you want to get a good bargain. With a couple of bargain airlines joining the fray like Tiger and Jetstar, travellers are spoiled for choices.

So what have I come up with so far?

Singapore Airlines has this 4 to go or 2 to go kind of stuff which requires a minimum number of passengers travelling together. This is our first choice that would set us back by 2,600 Singapore dollars, give or take, for 6 persons. BTW, with the peso getting stronger despite the neverending political bickering, a good exchange rate benchmark would be Php31 for every S$1. This is not a budget flight so it comes will all the usual stuffs. In fact SA is considered amongst the cream of the crop when it comes to air travel. The catch is all of you should travel together a minimum of 2 days and maximum of 14 days.

Jetstar, one of the budget airlines, would be just as great since it will land in Manila, but the price is just comparable to SA promo. We're dropping this one.

Give the guy a Tiger!

Taking Tiger airlines is very tempting. It will just set us back a mere S$1,200! So what's the catch? Since it lands at Clark in Pampanga, it will considerably adds up to our travel time and inconvenience. Baggage allotment is also less at 15kg per person compared to 30kg of SA. But there are ways I can go around these cons so most probably you would be seeing us riding a Tiger on the touchdown.

I'm not sure how much business Philippine Airline is lossing with the advent of budget airlines and tempting promos from SA, but I have a good hunch that it is considerable. Unless they evolve to adapt to the changes, they are bound to nosedive into oblivion.