Wanted 100 School Bags

This is the school where I spent my first and second years in high school. I though to get a shot of it while I was in Masbate last week to bury by grandfather. He was 94, but this is another story.

I thought my coming home to where I spent my growing years told me I should go back in April 2008 when we celebrate our 30th year after graduation.

I was glad to have visited it, never mind the heavy rains brought by Nina that soaked the soil in the school grounds. Maputik! Seriously, the visit gave me the nostalgia. It was here where I danced Pandanggo sa Ilaw, ate tira-tira, did gardening and woodworking, and played the guitar in the rondalla.

Enough for reminiscing. I need to gather 100 school bags with school supplies in them–pencils, notebooks, pad paper, ballpens, erasers–I indicated to my former high school classmates that I will try to get sponsors for this project as part of our homecoming activities. This is easy–100 people to donate 1 bag each with school supplies; or 50 people to donate 2 bags each with school supplies. I have till March to do this.

There are 100 school children waiting for these bags. They are indigents, they go to school without shoes nor slippers, or breakfast, or pencils. How can you not have the heart to help them?

For your donations, comment on this blog, or send an email to santacruz.adela@gmail.com, and we will be glad to assist you on how your donations can reach these children.

Thank you in advance!

Rockin’ Reggae

I am not sure if it was five years ago when Chong, the famed drummer/percussionist Mr. Tengasantos, told me he was forming a reggae band. He was proud to say its vocalists were to be women. And that’s why they were to be called Reggae Mistress (a contraction of Miss and Tress (for three)–Irene, Chang (the Mrs. Tengasantos), and Ira.

A reggae bar was to be their home. And was their home indeed for four years. And as my friend would always realize to himself about the “transitory-ness” of things, the home had come to an end and the band had to find another home. This time Ten 02 is. Last Thursday was their first gig. Good that Ten 02 is not hard to find: in one of the corners on Timog Avenue in Quezon City where a Shell gas station is.

Here’s a clip. Go and enjoy dancing reggae. It’s therapeutic. Dancing to reggae music isn’t rocket science. Just sway to the beat and you will be well rockin’ reggae.

Clear the Clutter

Don’t know what to do with those computers, printers, fax machines, and other office equipment which don’t work anymore?

Clear your office clutter with SM’s Recycling Market, which happens every Friday and Saturday at the SM North EDSA from 8am to 2pm.

Not only do you free up some space, but you also get some pesos in exchange for your office junk. For example, corrugated carton picks up P5.00/kilo; soda bottles are priced at P1.00/pc; a CPU at P160.00 a piece; and clean PET bottles at P22 per kilo. Not bad for garbage.

A good friend, Christopher, emailed blast this price list [which looks like it was revived from a crumple]. If you’re interested, just post your comment here and I will email you the hi-resolution file.

When you take a closer look at your home or office, you will realize you have a lot of junk.  Just have a garbage bag ready and you’ll see how much space can be freed for the more usable stuff.

Have fun taking the junk stuff to the junk shop!

Masbate, Masbate

Do you know anything about Masbate? Anything at all?

I grew up in the city proper (the town proper before it was declared a city), on Quezon St., studied at Amancio Aguilar Elementary School for my 1st and 2nd grades; transferred to Jose Zurbito Elementary School for my 3rd-6th grades. Both are public schools, which by natural selection, would extend my schooling to Masbate High School, also a public school. Today it’s called Masbate Comprehensive National High School (MNCHS). But I left in 1977 and came to Manila to continue my 3rd and 4th high school years. Nevertheless, I am an adopted alumna–I learned as we prepare for our 30th homecoming in 2009. I am happy I am still in.

Every time I am caught in an exchange of pleasantries, home towns an inevitable topic, I would always be asked: “Anong meron sa Masbate?” (”What’s in Masbate?”). Tough question, for me who hardly visits, nor kept very good memories of my childhood there. Thankfully, now that our batch is coming together for a reunion, my classmates would be a good help to refresh them.

Today, however, I have decided to tell you about cheese, sausage, coffee, saud (Masbateno for flea market), and Fazenda de Ezperanca.

First: Did you know that we have mozzarella cheese made in Masbate? I bet you didn’t know that. Yummy. They are made by drug rehab patients in Fazenda de Ezperanca–bet you didn’t know this either! My childhood best friend Ofel gave me a block of it, thanks to her. It’s the freshest you can get since I have no doubt it is made from fresh cow’s milk. Small wonder because Masbate is cattle country of the Philippines!

And then there’s the sausage–also made by the hands that till the land in Fazenda. Great with the mozzarella! Yummy! Yummy!

And then there’s Masbate Buffalo arabica coffee–completes an afternoon snack.

Second: Every Friday and Saturday of the week, there is what we call a saud, or flea market, where you can get all these, plus many more: dried fish, rice, vegetables. Merchants gather round the capitol and sell their wares to people from as far as the Bicol towns and some foreigners who just want to pick up some mozzarella cheese!

(Original photos by Ofel. Thanks to Mr. Willem for the pose.)

Third: Fazenda de Ezperanca is truly inspiring. I can’t help but borrow a video upload of a 7-minute AVP from YouTube. Thanks to the original author. I am proud this drug rehabilitation center is located in my home province, and is doing wonders changing lives for the better–and giving us mozzarella and sausage!

Fourth: But certainly not the least, here is another video upload of an AVP on Masbate and all its undiscovered beauty, “The Hidden Beauty of Masbate, Philippines,” uploaded originally by ladyarchi.

What’s in Masbate? Now, I have some answers.

Susan, Susan, Babae Ka

I don’t exactly remember how I met Susan and became a little closer to her than just listening from a distance in a folk bar or chancing upon her on a television show or hearing her name in some conversations with artists.

Oh, but I do recall that the first time I really spoke with her was when she shared some of her favorite music collections to my daughter, Diyosa, saying they would fit her voice and style.

And the friendship flourished, which I didn’t imagine to happen as I was only a fan of her compelling voice in that equally compelling women’s rights song, “Babae Ka!” And, much to my joy, she would indulge me with her rendition of my favorite Sergio Mendes’ “Hey, Look at the Sun” when I make a request at her gigs. Thank you, Susan.

Friends have put together a show for her, on 03 July 2008, Thursday, 6-9:30pm, at My Bro’s Mustache on Sct Lozano cor Sct Madrinan in Quezon City. You see, she was diagnosed with cancer of the ovary, stage 1. And friends can do no less–Lolita Carbon, Joey Ayala, Becky Demetillo, Lester Demetillo, Pete Lacaba, Chickoy Pura, Noel Cabangon, Bayang Barrios, Cooky Chua, Joel Saracho, Bagong Dugo, and one special guest–in a mini concert to help her fight it! “Habi at Himig,” her music album in CD will be on sale.

Make no mistake. Ms. Susan Fernandez is bubbly like always. Ah, Susan, babae ka nga!

See you all!

It’s a no-smoking night at My Bro’s on July 3! Yahoo!!!

Original image: http://www.slashfood.com

Norwegian Wood cover

Here she is again, with a Norwegian Wood cover. This time, without the music stand! And with LJ, a session percussionist.

Enjoy!

Video posted by The Wobbly Walrus.

Diyosa@Conspiracy on Monday

Pardon the giant music stand in front of her, the videographer just didn’t move around a bit to get a better view. Ah, next time, Diwata.

Albeit a fuller view of Diyosa, listen instead to her in this video upload her rendering of The Way I Am by Ingrid Michaelson. Her voice and playing might just interest you to listen to her on Monday, 16 June 2008 at Conspiracy Garden Cafe. She’ll start her two-set gig at 9:30pm.

We are in the Word business

Here’s your chance to know more about Writeshop, our own little editorial company. Flip over the pages of Entrepreneur mag, June issue, to page 69, and discover how much money we used to start it up, our services, and the reasons for the company’s being.

Thanks to Jesse who interviewed us and wrote the story; to Walter who took the shots, and to Leah who spotted the value of the story when I met and chatted with her last year. Thank you, thank you.

And to quote Entrep, “This entrepreneur counts on a pool of freelance writers and a business network in growing a business that offers a range of writing services to various clients.”

Listen on Monday night

Noel, Noel

What fortune you have if you catch Noel Cabangon all fired up, for whatever reason he would be, at Conspiracy Garden Cafe in Quezon City–he stays on stage two hours straight and goes back after a very brief break for another hour, his performance level high every note of every song, his lyrics and melodies stir up your slumbering spirit or relaxes your mind, and his voice teasingly wakes up the romantic in you.

I had the luck to foot a short video of his “Simpleng Tao,” telling us how people live simply, each one choosing how to live it, with tools of the trade included. My free N95 (I learned this is what you get from being loyal to a Globe line) did an amazing job with this raw footage–thanks too to the steady hands of my son, Buhawi.

This video upload has permission. I always make sure to get one because I am a firm believer of propriety.

Noel, Noel, what gift you have. And the loyalty and faith you give to your craft up to this day is equaled by the loyalty and faith of your audience, even more. Small wonder they troop there every Wednesday. Three Wednesdays of absence is long–your European trip must have given you that fire.

Mabuhay ka, Noel Cabangon!