lintik lang ang walang latay

Nagsabog ng lamig ang araw
ang hangin ay maalinsangan
nagyeyelong pawis na bumalot
sa nanlilimahid at malagkit na katawan

ang sinag na umuukilkil hanggang
sa kaibuturan ng aking kalamnan.
mga dahong lanta'y ni hindi makangisi
at ang mga ilog-batis ay puno na ng galis

Kapaligiran ay iba na nga
Kalikasan kaya'y umaalma na
sa kalapastanganan ni eba't adan?
gising! mag-isip! kumilos!

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Last week, Countless Homo sapiens sapiens hypocritically celebrated EARTH DAY. Myriad forms of activities were undertaken to appease our abused planet. Concerts, Film showings, Marathons all in honor of Gaea.

I was able to attend EarthJam concert on T.Morato with friends who also genuinely care and appreciate the beauty, bounty, and anxiety of the environment. I personally went there to catch a glimpse of Giniling Festival. And I was not disappointed on that account.

The organizers cannot be faulted though. They have resource persons talking about what ills our planet. There were pictures and video clips MTV-style that strongly sends their message. The message that our planet is a planet in distress. That extinction of species are at an alarming rate, that global warming is real, and that our rivers are dying, and that our skies are already black from the fumes - the product of our advance civilization.

So advance that we take for granted our environment and the basic nourishment we derive from it. And how ironic that The Leaders of the most advance and developed countries remains adamant if not arrogant for disclaiming the palpable planetary degradation. They refuse to enact laws that will protect our planet. Bigotry at the highest level.

And with the gargantuan message the celebration tried to sell, Did the 'Mahaharot ng Pasig',
'Talipandas ng Tanay', 'Yakitiyakyak ng Nuninu' got the message? Would they act suddenly in reverence to Mother Nature?

I'm afraid the message fell on deaf and tûtûlè-full ears. Them the avril-avril-an wannabes.

Our NGOs and environmental groups have already done so much to the extent of straining their personal finances to be crusaders for our planet. And it is about time for our government to give their share. Laws are not enough, especially those crafted without teeth. We need laws that would punish companies and individuals who egregiously flouted the environmental statutes with devious disregard.

Many are hoping that someday, we will be able to swim our rivers which is teeming with life. Where the oceans have corals, whales and other colorful marine life. Where our sky is blue and a chorale of bird chirping happily. Where we can satisfy our thirst without fear of contacting water-borne diseases. And where our kids would have trees to climb on.

And I, too, hope that we will be able to reverse this pitiful condition of our planet. Hoping that future leaders would have political will to enforce reforms that would translate into results that would be favorable to our environment. HOPE.

Koreanovela : Endless Blood

And they heard boom tarat tarat tararrarararrarat boom boom boom.

Only the beat wasn't of happy-wowowee-game-crazy mood but of gloomy-macabre-death march-somber mood. 33 died in another school shooting massacre in the US of A

Setting : Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, United States of America
Mood : Intense, Horrifying, Mournful
Hero/Victim : Students, Professors, Lecturers
Villain : Cho Seung-Hui (South Korean)

33 lives were claimed including the villain.

=============================================

The news came but we were not shocked because event like this has happened before in the US of A. Alarmed, not even. Media sources has long painted the American culture of today's generation to expect such violence. Hate crimes, accessibility and legality of possessing guns, xenophobia, etc breeds and infects them like plague. What really caught our attention was the number of victims plus the Asian looking killer?
Whoa... Asian... napaka encompassing... Naku sabi ng kapatid ko, baka pinoy? Malalagay na naman tayo sa mapa (think Gianni Versace?). Hindi naman siguro kayang pumatay ng tatlompu't-tatlong tao ng isang pinoy sa isang araw. Oo nga't may mga ganung insidente sa atin massacre, serial killing, pero isang tao + 32 na biktima... hindi pa yata. So, sabi ko, hmm, baka Malaysian?, Vietnamese?, Indonesian?, Chinese?

And not so long a wait, they revealed he was a South Korean. Sigh of relief. Just imagine if it turned out to be a Pinoy, the possible retaliatory attacks, and hate crime could be perpetrated against Pinoys in the US of A? What was his motive? What made him transformed into a horrible creature randomly zapping the life of anyone caught by his eyes. A little research and the wonders of CNN and Google led me to this site. You can read two of his school play described as twisted, macabre violence.

And then our conversation shifted on our beloved country where recently have been welcoming the Korean Invasion. Should this news made us feel suspicious and malevolent towards our South Korean visitors?
It should not... I cannot imagine jangyum, chunyang, jessy and justine, etc going ballistic and gunning everybody down. So far the Koreans in our paradise manage only to have drinking parties and fist fights.

My Prayers go to all the victims and their family and friends.

Quail in Rose Petal Sauce

the simple truth is that the truth does not exist; it all depends on a person's point of view - Gertrudis, Like Water for Chocolate : L.E.

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Quail in Rose Petal Sauce

2 cups water, plus 1 cup
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon aniseed
12 red or pink roses with open blooms, petals removed
1 pitaya , skinned
12 fresh chestnuts
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 boneless fresh quail
Olive oil

• Heat the water to boiling.

• Meanwhile, melt the butter in large skillet, cook the garlic and aniseed for 5 minutes, and set aside.

• Put the rose petals and cactus fruit in a blender and puree until smooth and set aside.

• Cut an "x" over the flat ends of the chestnuts with a knife. Toast the chestnuts in a hot cast iron skillet for 5 minutes. When the shells open, add the chestnuts to the boiling water and cook for 15 minutes. Drain thechestnuts and allow them to cool. Peel the chestnuts, add them to the rose petal mixture, and puree while adding the remaining cup of water, slowly.
  

• Reheat the skillet with garlic butter mixture and add the rose petals puree. Simmer for 10 minutes then whisk in the honey, salt, and pepper.

• Push the sauce through a sieve, into a clean pan, pressing on the solids to extract the juice and some chestnut pulp. Keep the sauce warm.

• Preheat a grill or grill pan.

• Drizzle the quails with olive oil and season with salt. Grill the quails until they are medium rare, about 5 minutes per side. Serve with the Rose Petal Sauce.

I'll try this recipe one day. And I almost lost interest because how and where the sugat would i get pitaya? Buti na lang may google at wikipedia. Nalaman kong ang pitaya ay yung dragon fruit. Yehey, problema ko na lang ay saan kukuha ng rose petals na walang spray ng chemicals? Hehehe..

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P is a good friend, and like before, we chat about anything, mga chismis at iba pang mga kaganapan. Pero lately, na-focus sa trabaho, and how a person be transformed/transmogrified into 'alipin ng dinero'. Hahaha...

Sad but true.

And, Unless we have to outline a definite plan why we work so hard and where to use those hard-earned money all this time, then I say everything will be lost in futility.

1) Para san pa at kumikita ka nga ng malaki kung hindi ka naman nakakapag- enjoy?
2) Kelan ka pa mag-eenjoy? Kayod ka ngayon ng kayod... hindi nakakapag unwind... Then dumating ka sa point na nag decide kang marami ka ng pera.. tama na yun. Saka mo mapagtatanto at sasambulat sa mukha mo na wlaa ka ng kasamang makipagsayahan. Kasi lahat ng kabarkada mo ay lumagay na sa tahimik. Lipas na sa kanila ang buhay binata/dalaga. Nagsisimula na silang magpamilya. Hala -- The world came crushing.... you are suck in a whirlpool with you at the center, and you are swirling alone, not even dust and leaves cared to join you in that miserable moment where you finally realized how alone you've become...

More money and no friends....

3) Simply put, above-average salary, stressful worklife, toxic workplace, insufferable officemates should not dictate how we would like to live our lives.

We always have a choice :

• Above average salary in exchange for the stressful worklife, toxic workplace, and insufferable officemates? Or

• Resign! be happy, merry, and broke? Or

• Above average salary and balance work and personal life? Yes the keyword is BALANCE....

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Everybody's into evaluating their worklife... and I saw this link from my former officemate's blog. Hehe.. t-in-ry kong sagutan yung evaluation form online. At totoo naman yung asessment na nakuha ko.

You scored 68 out of a possible 147.

Scores here represent a healthy level of commitment and motivation. Although there may be many things about your work you would like to change, in general, you seem to have found a career that provides ample psychic income. You've also most likely been able to strike a healthy balance between your work and personal life.

Although you may feel totally involved in your work, you are not over-involved. You relate well to what you do and to the people who work with or for you. You have a high energy level and can easily marshal extra energy for handling occasional overload situations. You tend not to react to pressure by being driven and aggressive.

food induced state

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel : Ooh. It's been a while since I've read a book that have my mind racing for what happened next or have imagined scenes between the lines. My breathing is labored in anticipation like an imagined-climax in suspended intensity. What's more interesting is that kitchen is where most if not all events revolves; complete with recipes and family guarded secret procedure of food preparation. With 42 pages into the story, different food induced state have already been exposed as possible. The mood depends on the emotions of the persons preparing it. Hmm, I think this also explains why most Moms cook the best dishes for their family because its prepared with all the unconditional love her person emanates. Hahaha, that also leaves a loophole. What does it tell you if your mom's home cooking doesn't taste as good? She's not enjoying the task? She's not capable of love? Or She's in love with someone/somebody else? Haaa.. probably true if you want to romanticize that fact. But simply said and devoid of any rhetoric is -- she just lack the skills, end of story. Heheheh....

Sensuality at its best.

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init sa kusina

At dinilaan ng apoy ang kaldero
at ang mga sangkap ay naglaro
sa marahang paghalo ng sandok
ang sarap ng lasa'y hindi maarok

ang anghang ng isang sili'y sapat
para ang init sa mga labi'y lumapat
damdaming higit na pinasidhi
nag-iwan ng lasang walang sukli

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kumain kami sa phoung, hindi niya ata nagustuhan. Too spicy? Didn't like the fried basil leaves? Ewan, hindi naman lasang sugat yung pagkain ... LOL. But i love the way she says she liked the food but didn't appear

like she's liking it. Staring at her lips, trying to read the non-verbals, trying to predict portentously.

I love food trips.

aparisyon

parang mga batang nagtataguan,
sa megamall ang palaruan.
hanapan, hintayan, txt-teksan,
pagod na paa, pawis sa mata.

ngiti sa king labi'y hindi maipinta!
singkit na mata pinipilit makakita
ang alon ng tao'y hindi iniinda
eksayted na 'kong makita ka!

Magic fruit

I spent this long holiday at home and in the bukid. We, siblings - cousins - aunts ... dread long holidays at home for it means major general house cleaning. And it also means Labor Day on holidays. hehehe. From attic, to all drawers and cabinets, to every nook and corners of the house - the walls, light fixtures, will be cleaned (must be cleaned) and inspected. It is not fun, devoid of earthly pleasures, because we will be slaves cleaning everything like mad--- like there's no tomorrow.

But as we get older, my mother have at least spared us from the MAJOR cleaning, our vacationing non-bisita cousins would be thralling their days away... pa-konswelo na lang yung paglalaro ng playstation during breaks.. Hahaha... But these developments do nothing to elevate the level of fun because everything is connected to everything else in the house. We cannot wander aimlessly around the house, nor be caught sitting idly or else be captured and turned into house-elves. And another downside of my mother's OC manifestations is STARVATION, because when she's in 'the ZONE' she forgets the world around her like she's immune to human's need to replenish their earthly bodies of nutrients; and even the need to rest and have nocturnal system shutdowns seems non-existent. Therefore, we have no choice but to help in the ongoing house reboot,defrag, and cleanup to speed things up and be able to eat ON-time.

While this is not a picture of a perfect vacation, there's a bright side in to all these menial tasks aside from the obvious superfical unblemished and purified state of the house.

Doing the house chores together provides a bonding moment for our family. It gives everyone ample time to brief everyone on everything and going-ons in their life. The teasings, reminiscings, and musings, and future plans. Old stuff evokes memory and emotions, old pictures assumes Lola Basyang's role to paint the past, tells what the captured moment was and the story behind the smiles, the frowns, the smirks, and the un emotional stolid look of everyone. And of how things have changed, the extinct establishments and what were born from their ashes. And not to mention finding lost things buried under accumulated dirt, trash, and dead insects.

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Just when we thought the Labor Day is over, my mother announced that we will be going to where our bukid is. What the @#(*$*@#&$@ kala ko, tuloy tuloy na playstion challenge namin?! Hehehe... Hmm.. wawa naman yung bukid, konti na lang kakainin na ng maduming ilog. Siguro dalawang malakas na bagyo pa bago yun tuluyan makain ng ilog. So, the force majeure has spared us this time... but for how long. I'm praying that that time would never arrive. The place is perfect for relaxation, more than a dozen of fruit trees, sampaguita scent, 3 varieties of bamboo, and the cool breeze from Laguna Lake. I plan to built my home there... wish wish wish ... kelan kaya yun heheheh... Haha, sira yung poso, uwian naaaa.... nyak, makiigib daw sa kapitbahay... Nanay ko talaga! .. LOL. After we finish watering the needy plants and my mother inspecting each plant sporadically, she noticed the MAGIC FRUIT bearing its first summer bounty. We've already feast on Langka and there are still 6 unripened fruit hanging on its branches... The makopas are in full bloom and already exposing tiny fruits. But this magic fruit, it's the first time i've heard of such, and the first time i've been told that our father have planted one on our bukid.

So how come they called it MAGIC FRUIT? Hmm... get a kalamansi, or kalamias or any unripe fruit and taste it.. Maasim di ba? Then try to eat just one of the red, oval, almond-shaped magic fruit. Just nibble it, it has a large seed and leathery skin. Then try tasting kalamansi/kalamias again... The magic fruit magically turns sour taste of sour and unripe fruit magically sweet.. And the taste lingers... mildy sweet. I really was amazed. hehe..
It turns out my brother's already aware of the existence of this magic fruit and its magical quality. He claimed that eating two of this fruit would reverse the sweetening effect. That I cannot confirm nor deny, I'm still amazed.

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Hehe... Nagpagupit ako at sobrang ikli ng buhok ko. Last na maiiksi ang buhok ko nung high school pa ata ako.. Hehehe....

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Excited ako!!!! Andito kasi si lablayp....... :D