DOUBLE INSERTION, TRIPLE BAD NEWS

What Has Become of Politics

Good luck comes in threes. It follows then that bad luck also comes in threes. As I was listening to the early evening news edition, a series of bad news slapped me on the face. First, the Senators were again wasting much time debating on the “double insertion” case of Villar. They were not supposed to be debating still but investigating already. Second, though the Health Department was happy no A H1N1 has surfaced yet, the arrogance of the quarantine bureau regarding the implementation of a new ruling regarding foreign performers that have to be tested for the virus may have left the two Davids scratching their heads. Third, there could be a possibility that the presidential election next year will not ever happen. What! This indeed was the worst news of the night. Three bad news that may spell the worst of our lucks.

It has been two weeks already that the Senate was debating on how to amend their ethics rules on investigating one of them (i.e. erring senator). This was a result of the alleged “double insertion” made by Villar on a road project. According to Senator Madrigal, the former padded the budget for the project in a way that benefited him. The road project was rerouted to pass by the properties and holdings of the gentleman senator. This doubled the budget because the government had to buy lands from Villar at a staggering Php15,000 per square meters. However, nothing happened today because they could not come to understand each other. Last week they settled that they had differences. Goodness! What a waste of precious money from taxpayers. Nothing happened today because two not so gentleman senators walked out of the Senate.

I was fascinated on how zealous the Health Department was in trying to contain out the very confusing swine/A H1N1 influenza virus. I have appreciated what they have done although sometimes their concern already bordered on paranoia. They first did not want Pacquiao to come home yet after his jaw breaking fight with Hatton. The department wanted the group to quarantine themselves in California, but Pacman was more intelligent to say that they run a greater risk being infected there. Right. Today, some quarantine officials were pissed off by David Cook and David Archuleta. The group was to conduct a test to determine if both Idol singers had no viruses in their throats, but they were made to wait for so long in the hotel lobby. The concert organizers still had to ask their lawyer for the green light. Why? So this irritated the equally irritating quarantine officials. Bad news for me dying to listen for good news.

The worst news of the evening was also the most shocking. It could be that the presidential election will not happen next year. Oh, my goodness! How long will these self-serving government officials continue serving themselves? This may happen because…brace for this…the commission on election may run out of time preparing how to do the election next year. The COMELEC is right now on the bidding stage for the computerization of the electoral process next year. But there have been a lot of trouble with the bidders. (Well in good they have detected the trouble brewing.) By the time they decide to do the election manually because the computers are not yet ready, they will have no more time to prepare because they have been so preoccupied with nothing! Another waste of taxpayers’ precious pesos.

These have been the reasons why I hate watching news on TV. I don’t know if the rating goes high whenever the scoop caters on how bad our luck is. They say that news networks are just doing their jobs, but to broadcast a bad news when we are dining makes me want to choke on my own vomit. So as not to die with a very embarrassing post-mortem autopsy, I change channel and watch the government news network. As expected, the government has been spending wisely all taxpayers’ hard earned money. It always forces a smile on my full mouth. What makes me laugh though is how bad some of the Palace officials speak English. We are not native speakers of the language, but if I am the press secretary, well, I should be one of the best speakers of the land. This is not so bad news however. It’s just plain comedy of errors.

SUCKER FOR HIGH HOPES

Feeling the Election Fever Already

The right to suffrage is guaranteed in the constitution. It is an inalienable right of every person who is in the age of majority. The right affords every citizen of a country the freedom to vote whoever he wants to bring his voice to government. Majority of officials in the country are elected by the people. Unfortunately, election in this country has turned into a circus of some sort. The officials running for office are the performers and the people, the audience. There are several sorts of odd personalities who have run for office whose only qualification is that they can read (without comprehension) and write (the alphabet). They danced and sang their way to office. Surprisingly some of them won. This is because the electorate themselves are no more than just mere real life circus audience. Filipinos are fun loving but do not think of their future that much. We live by what is today. Election time, circus today…gone will be the fun the next day.

Next summer, May 2010, we will again be electing the highest official of the land. There will be another election for president of the country, unless some idiots up there in Congress will be successful in amending the constitution. I hate lawmakers when they keep on amending the charter for their own selfish motives. Who does not? We have definitely not learned our lessons yet. To assure of clean, honest and fair elections, as early as this month, May 2009, several cause oriented groups have launched campaigns already. Whoa! Their respective activities will run for one year. This will cost much; however, in the name of clean election every centavo that will have been spent is worth it. It is noteworthy that one of these cause-oriented groups targets the young electorate, basically the neophyte first timers. The campaign kicked off well through a nationwide telecast. I hope their noble intentions will be sustained until the Election Day.

Embarrassingly, I have not voted in three major elections, so I was deleted in the voters’ list. For two occasions, I was not home and it was impractical really for me to fly home just to cast my vote. I would have wanted to be a flying voter, but my guts got me before my feet landed me in the precinct. In the last occasion, I purposely did not register. I did fall in line to be officially listed, but the inefficiency of the process got into my system and I was so irritated about how unprofessional everything was done. I left my queue and went home together with my best friend. This year, however, I registered again. Not that my vote matters. Seldom has one vote made a winning difference to any lucky elected government official. I plan to run for office. I have set my eyes into it long before I became a school administrator. It is part of my career path. I am targeting 40. By this age I should be in office whether elected or appointed. Definitely, I will play the game with all honesty and fairness I could muster. I cannot betray the confidence others place upon me whether having been elected or appointed to office of public trust. The right to vote is sacred.

I AM SO PISSED OFF TODAY

...And My Patience Has Worn Out Thin

Patience is a virtue. Only a few men are gifted with this. I am not one but I know how to be patient. This is because each one of us is different from each other. One’s abilities and strengths may not be another’s. I may be capable of teaching, so everything about education I know much better than an engineer, for example. The latter may be good with strengths of materials and how to build structures which unfortunately I am not. I can talk and talk and talk without stopping. Others may not be able to do this, but they may be good in carpentry which sadly I am not. With these things in mind, I have taught myself how to be patient. My patience, therefore, is born from necessity and not inborn. Because my work requires me to deal with people from all ages and all walks of life, I have to be civil, keep my calm and be patient as my wits can hold me sane.

I was able to sleep well last night so I woke up this morning feeling good as well. Although I woke up quite late, I was all ready to face the new day. I had spaghetti for brunch and toasted bread. I ate contentedly as I watched some news on TV. The US serviceman who open fired to some of his comrades inside a mind wellness clinic in Iraq did not surprise me at all. He could be suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome which is very common to military men in the battlefield. I just hope he was not so impatient to wait for his turn and kill all those before him. My patience was tested to the same stress level as my day progressed. When I was in the middle of my workout, some people were looking for me. They were the same people whose favor I politely turned down a week ago. They were asking for a monetary contribution to hire a band for the fiesta procession. I could have been very generous if I have something to give; however, for now I am just flat broke. Every penny I have has been budgeted for me to last until the middle of June when I will have received my first pay for the next school year as a principal. Surely, I was irritated but I still promised to give something tomorrow.

After taking my shower, I saw somebody outside. I asked my mom who the person was looking for. She was my student in the local college where I am a part time teacher. She was the third to be asking for grades in College Writing today. I blew my top but I did not show it for I am only scantily clad in a bath towel. I was not able to compute for their final grades because they were so late (by two months) in submitting their term paper. I was only able to compute four of the 21 students I had. Clearly, it was not my fault that they do not have the grades until today. They just submitted their respective papers online and I still have to read them. Because it is vacation time, I refused to do any work related with school. I am so feed up with ten months of working diligently in school. I believed that I more than deserved this break. I did not talk with my student. I asked my mom to tell her I could not give them their grades for now. I will personally hand their grades to the registrar as soon as the new academic year starts.

I have no enough cash on hand today. This is why I was so irritated with the fiesta contribution they asked from me. To add more stress to my brewing top, my mom told me that the toilet cleaning set (of dubious chemicals) was due today. This just did it and I let out a loud sigh of frustration. My mother got a hell of scolding from me. I asked her not to patronize anymore those bogus products. We can by the same at half the price from the local supermarket. I am literally broke and so much stressed. My stress level reached an all time high when the oven ran out of precious LPG. My mom was in the middle of cooking something, I had no money to buy a replacement tank and I was so much stressed already, I decided not to eat. Suddenly I lost all my appetite. I can be very angry but I do not want to do it in front of my mom. I ran out of patience today that I locked myself in the room and fell asleep as late as 5 this afternoon.

Patience is a virtue. Born out of necessity, I taught myself how to be patient. I may have succeeded in some occasions but today I dismally failed. As I reflected on what took place today, I would like to believe that I was not responsible for all the bad luck that befell us all. I had no money to give because last week I already told the chapel officials that I was not donating. I did not have anything extra to give, simple. All cash I have has been budgeted already. I could not give grades because the students submitted late, and I hate very much people who cannot understand what a deadline is. My fourth year English students knew this by heart. My mom did not tell me ahead of time that a payment was due today. I had no money and we could not even cook a decent meal without sweating a lot inside the dirty kitchen. What a life! I would have liked to shout and break things whatever I can get hold of. These are my ugly and violent ways to release pent up anger. However, my saner self prevailed. I am stressed. My patience has been worn out thin. I will definitely sleep with a heavy heart tonight.

'TIL DEATH DO US PART

Two Students and Two Colleagues

It definitely is a cliché to say that man is destined either to get married or stay single. Some say it is fate that dictates this or that it has already been written in the stars. (Whoa!) Thinking about life and as I mature, I am more inclined to believe that to stay single or get married is a matter of choice. I am single yet and this has been my choice. There are several reasons why marriage is not yet life’s option to me. For now, I have all the freedom to do whatever I want to do and go wherever I want to go. I have nobody to care so much and think about whatever the consequences of my decisions and actions are. I definitely feel free. It has always been my dream to be bad – act badly and enjoy the risk that comes with the gamble. Surely, I can only do this when there is no string attached to me – relationship that is. I don’t want to hurt my loved ones. Because there are still wild things I want to do, I have decided marriage is not yet for me…for now.

Having rested my case, I don’t want to say that those who get married today are way beyond their hay days. I also do not want to insinuate that those who get married today are fed up with being single. Whatever their reasons are, definitely marrying couples have only love to feign about why. This month I have two former students who are marrying. Both are guys and coincidentally were also once classmates. I know both to be very hard working. One was quite loud and short tempered but I know today his soon to be wife has tamed him. The other one was a shy guy and according to his soon to be wife still remains the shy guy he was once before. I know both their soon to be wives. Both women have been my colleagues. (Coincidence No.2) The first is a feisty woman but a lady inside. I consider her my younger sister. She’s very close to me that her mother thought we were more than friends. The other lady is sweetly close to me because she is our school nurse and I happen to always confer with her in matters of health among our students.

I am all too happy for both couples. Both marriages are still to be solemnized and I have been invited in both occasions. I am the veil sponsor for the first couple. I am one of the principal sponsors for the second one. I cannot help but feel excited for both events that today I called up my friend and ask for the color motif to match my barong. Though both marriages come in a time when the whole world is feeling the economic crunch, I hope their first few months as married couples will be all right. There will definitely be bumps along the rough roads ahead but am sure they will survive. I will definitely tell them later that the sole thing that can make both their marriages work is communication. Each partner should communicate and maintain an open mind for the other. It is not only love that makes marriages work and last forever. Successful marriage also takes a lot of communication, dialogue, a listening ear and a forgiving heart. I know these things but definitely I am not yet the marrying species. I still enjoy the carefree life of being single. I still want to be bad and enjoy the risk that comes with the gamble. Marrying though is one big gamble, but I cannot engage in one for now. Yet…

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Simple Things that Make Moms Happy

Today is Mother’s Day. Of both parents, the mother has been more honored than the father. Mothers do not deserve more than fathers. Just there are sacrifices that a mother is more willing to give than a father. This is the reason I think why there is much fuss with Mother’s Day than the one for fathers. Frankly, I am not even so familiar when the latter is supposed to be celebrated. I planned to cook for Mom today, but before this took place I still had to contend myself with the eight-hour power failure. Again our pet cat woke me up. He’s into this everyday now and I find it so cute. I cannot ask for more every morning. I though woke up groggy because I slept at 3a.m. My mother has already rice brewing in the cooker in anticipation of the brownout. This is one simple thing that makes mothers more special. They have attention to details for the good of everyone.

I promised my Mom that she had to go to the market today and buy whatever she wanted me to prepare for this special day. I had told her three days ago that I would like to cook binignit in the afternoon. I knew she liked this much. After she came back from the market, she right away told me she was not able to buy desiccated coconut. There was no electricity to power the desiccators, so I forgot. As I was looking at what she bought, I surmised that she wanted me to cook spaghetti. This is another reason why I love mothers and my Mom especially. They settle for simpler things in life. They would rather sacrifice their own needs to better give or accommodate others. I think this is every mother’s instinct.

I slept because it was too hot after lunch. This was, however, after I was through cooking the binignit. I woke up at around four in the afternoon with mom asking me if I want to eat with her. I sure did. We ate the binignit but she could not help herself from moving here and there. She told me my younger sister was coming to dine with us over spaghetti. Mom also added that she would be bringing with her chicken and barbecued pork. As I was looking at my mother, she seemed too contented with these simple things in life. She cleaned the dinnerware intended to be used. She prepared all the ingredients for the spaghetti. She set the table. All I was to do was cook and the thought has put so much pressure for me to deliver. I did deliver. Cooking is my other forte. We ate dinner together with my nephew and niece. Looking at my mother, I knew she was happy for the day. She did not ask so much from me because she knew that everyday for me is Mother’s Day!

GOOD HAIR CUT ON A BAD HAIR DAY

Why a Teacher must Visit his Barber

I visited my friend barber today. Obviously, I got my hair cut and my facial hair trimmed. As I mentioned before, I always look forward to every visit I make to Louie, my barber. It took me quite longer to pay him a visit. It is vacation time-no class-so I need not have to sport a slacker hair style the way I did when there are classes. My hair has grown quite funny. The hair on both temporal sides grows faster than the parietal portion. This gives an impression that I have pattern baldness. Bald or what, I don’t care. I have shaved my head shiny before. I even like it skinhead, but in school it does not work very well. I just don’t know why my senior administrators don’t want me to have my head shaved. Since I will be back in school on May 18, I must have my hair cut. I should sport a cleaner look because our students’ parents and my colleagues expected me to, and I hate this very much.

When I arrived at the barbershop there were still two blokes ahead of me. I still had to wait, though the first one was almost through. After quite a while, Louie worked on the second guy. As I was waiting, a girl classmate in high school saw me. She was one of my close friends when we were still in high school. She was unassuming before and still is today. What I remembered about her was mathematics. She was good in math. She is a teacher now, a language teacher more specifically Filipino. This is unexpected because most people who are good in mathematics hate languages. As we were talking (she was waiting for somebody), she asked me how their high school students were doing in college. She wanted to know how their English was, I think. I taught remedial English and writing across discipline in college. She expected my answer. I told her not only their students but most students fare badly in college English in all four macro-skills.

As it was already my turn on the barber’s chair, our conversation continued now together with my barber friend. She told me students fare badly in both languages-English and Filipino-because they don’t care about the subjects and learning them. I affirmed what she told us. I also added that students today do not study their lessons. They do not read their books anymore and do their assignments only in school just few moments before checking or submission. Louie added that there is indeed so much to be desired of the students today. However, deep within myself I thought it should not only be the students who are at fault here. Teachers should be blamed of the deteriorating quality of high school education in the country. There are so many teachers who are incompetent. Parents too must be blamed. Academic success is highly correlated with how much parents spend time with their children on their school work.

As I left the barbershop I have these realizations in my mind. I have indeed grown older and more mature with life. Whenever somebody talks of more sensible things, I always like the idea. I am very fascinated when the talk becomes more socially relevant. I always experience this in the barbershop, and only older people love to talk about social problems. Another thing that I realize is that there are still teachers who are more than willing to change the current education system in the country. One is my former classmate and another older teacher who is with her. They are also frustrated with so much bureaucracy in the system that the more pressing needs and concerns were set aside for more personal gains among government officials. These officials are supposed to be working for improved and better quality education in the country. As good as my new cut looks, this still cannot resurrect the dying education system of the country. So sad!

LIFE SUCKS!

Drowning to the Vortex of Nowhere

I felt so tired for two days now. Every time I feel so tired, I know I am depressed again. There were just so many problems that I had to face this week. Real life is supposed to be full of problems. However, I wish I will one day live in a place quite far from people (but not isolated) where I can just be myself. It is a place where I be the one dictating time, where there is no time prescribed to finish things or deadlines. It will be a place where routine is unheard of. I want to stay in a place where I do not have to think of when to eat and when to wake up in the morning. It will be a place where I live free without the cares of others or me caring in return. It will be I and nature, all alone. I want to run out of mundane problems that wear me off. Thinking of these problems leaves me so much tired.

I felt so tired the other day after waking up in the morning. I did not blame my workout for my bad mood. I just had so many small and irritating things bothering me. These problems were not mine but somehow I got affected by them. Thus, I decided to do my workout in the afternoon. I did not have the energy to do it in the morning. Maybe I was so excited for the change in schedule that I was not able to nap after lunch. Because of the hot weather, I usually take a short nap after lunch. I began my warm up and stretching at about 4p.m. and after two hours I was through with all – warm up, cardio, weights, abs and cool down. I felt fine the next day; however, I had a hard time coping up with the new schedule. I overslept until 4 yesterday that I woke up so groggy to start working out at almost 6p.m. This was too late that I ended up rushing on almost everything. Today, I went back to my usual morning workout.

I was not able to write anything yesterday because I was awfully tired. I know this is more mental than physical. I am now on my third week of working out and I am feeling and seeing results already. I feel lighter and I do not have difficulty breathing anymore. The slight muscle sore perks me up every morning as I wake up. The slight pain reminds me of little successes. I tried again this afternoon a stretch Adidas shirt I had, and I was happy it fitted me quite right. Last month, I could not get inside the shirt without looking like a bursting bag of potato chips. I felt happy. But overall, I am not feeling very positive lately. There are problems that are bothering me, and I hate when people think I seem to have the answer to every problem there is in this world. I would like to be happy for the trust afforded me but mentally I am so drained. I don’t want to live any more any longer. Life sucks and it is sucking me down the vortex to nowhere.

SING HOPEFULLY NOT TO OBLIVION

The National Anthem Brouhaha

The country has a number of national symbols. These symbols represent the Philippines, the Filipinos and their aspirations. That is why these symbols are held in very high regard. One national symbol, however, has always been in controversial light. Because of its very nature, the national anthem – Lupang Hinirang – has been the cause of confusion, object of bewilderment and sadly, butt of a joke. When all of us were once young, we were taught in schools how to sing the national anthem. Unfortunately, only a few schools taught us how to sing it not just well but correctly. The national anthem was written with a marching tempo in the mind of Julian Felipe. Its time signature is 4/4. Through time, however, we have forgotten really how to sing the Lupang Hinirang correctly, and the newer generation does the same too.

During a boxing bout before, one celebrity singer forgot some lines when singing the Philippine national anthem. Obviously, this has caused so much stir not just in the reel world but even in schools. From then on we asked our students to sing the national anthem without accompaniment every morning during the flag ceremony. This may be less apropos but we gave it a shot though. We even asked students to give the beat and lead the singing. We have noticed that whenever students were left alone, they had the tendency to sing the anthem in a much slower tempo, not marching. What we did was to ask the one beating to do it in 2/2 time and much faster because it is supposed to be a march. Most of them said, however, that they were taught to sing it that way – incorrectly.

The most recent brouhaha regarding the singing of the national anthem was during the Pacquiao – Hatton boxing fight. Although Martin Nievera was told earlier that he must sing the national anthem the right way, he made his own arrangement and sang it the way he wanted it sung. He started slowly with the first four lines (first stanza). The rest of the song was, however, sung in a marching tempo. Not so much a problem until he reached the last stanza. He was so theatrical with crooning to his heart’s content the final lines, my mouth was left agape. When everything sank in my mind, I let out a very loud laugh. What was he trying to do? The national anthem is sung at the beginning of programs for everyone to accompany. How then would people sing with Martin when suddenly he changed the tune? Some people might have appreciated what he did, but the Philippine Historical Commission was not happy about it and even demanded for Martin to apologize.

Martin was not the first to sing the national anthem in either wrong tempo or tune. However, because he is famous, he is now asked to apologize. I think Martin need not apologize. Of all those I have heard sang the Lupang Hinirang, Martin’s version was the most correct. I don’t want Martin to apologize too. There are even more government officials out there who cannot sing the national anthem alone from start to finish. What is important is neither the tempo nor the tune. How many of us live by what the national anthem wants us to be? We are so strict of how it should be sung, but we forget what is it meant to be for us Filipinos. The song embodies the ideals of our forefathers which we are supposed to uphold today. I think what is more important is the meaning of the song to us Filipinos, not how it should be sung. However, I will appreciate more if it be sung next time correctly.

POLITICS IS JOKE JOCJOC

Selective Amnesia & Short Term Memory Loss

When people are accused of lying, cheating or stealing for the Arroyo administration, they run for public office. In the 2007 midterm polls, former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano ran, even using the nickname “Garci” that will always be associated with poll fraud. Garcillano was rejected by the voters of the first district of Bukidnon, who instead picked the Liberal Party’s Malu Acosta as their congressional representative. Several senatorial candidates linked to administration scandals also lost in 2007.

Next year it could be the turn of former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn “Jocjoc” Bolante to seek vindication of his name through the ballot. Over the weekend, the man accused of overseeing the P728-million fertilizer fund scam disclosed plans to run for governor of his home province of Capiz. My goodness! How can he be so stupid. This is predictable though since most Filipinos suffer from short term memory loss and selective amnesia. Jocjoc will like to joke us on these two maladies that for centuries have been affecting us.

Unless a person is convicted with finality of any crime, the person is allowed by law to run for public office in this country. The fate of Bolante is just the latest reminder of the weakness of the criminal justice system. The proper path toward full vindication for someone who is truly innocent is to first have all criminal charges against him dismissed. And then he can seek the people’s nod for public office.

Bolante himself should be the first to want his name cleared by the courts. A speedy judicial resolution of the fertilizer scam is of course desired by those who believe that Bolante should be held accountable for using P728 million in agricultural funds to win political support for President Arroyo during the 2004 campaign. But such speed is seen only in special cases, such as the rape complaint filed by “Nicole” against US Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith. Even then, three years to resolve a rape case with finality may still be considered too long by those who believe that justice delayed is justice denied.

In Bolante’s case, the long wait for his extradition from the United States has not given urgency to the resolution of the accusations against him. As the wheels of Philippine justice move at their usual languorous pace, Bolante may even succeed in remaking himself into Governor Jocjoc.

LOVE - HATE RELATIONSHIP...

In Boxing, I should have added

Last May 3, I stayed glued to the TV watching the Pacquiao-Hatton fight. Since it is also vacation time and I just stay home, I get to see some of the pre-fight TV specials. What I have listed below are some of the things I love and hate about the fight.

I love the Pacman. With all the successes Manny Pacquiao had, he remained a soft-spoken, simple guy who has not forgotten his humble start. It is this humble beginning that propelled him to work hard and better his craft. Today, he is so famous that he has even outpolled Obama in the Time’s 100 most influential people. Despite everything though, he remains unaffected and resolute to his faith, which to Manny has been the source of all the good things he is now enjoying.

I hate Floyd Mayweather Sr. and his bad mouth. I was able to see the 24/7 pre-fight boxing special and this Hatton trainer cannot seem to keep his mouth shut. Freddie Roach was correct when he said that Mayweather Sr. actually has not trained a champion yet. He took over de la Hoya when Oscar was already a champion in four weight divisions. He did not train Floyd Jr. to be the undefeated pound-for-pound boxer before the latter retired. It was his brother. Floyd Sr. was no show when Hatton was floored in the second round. If I were Ricky, I will fire him and hire the three-time trainer of the year, Freddie Roach.

I love Freddie Roach. He is not just a tactician in the sport of boxing. He understands Manny Pacquiao emotionally. He provided the People’s Champ with the love and care of a father who has long left Manny when he was still very young. He was responsible for transforming the puny 106 lb lad from Gen. Santos to the southpaw wonder boy of boxing today. Roach also took under his care a half-blind vagrant who he made into his all-around utility man in his Wild Card gym. Because of Parkinsonism that slowly drained him of his strength, he also took as his assistant trainer Michael Moorer to continue his boxing legacy.

I hate the commercialism that goes with the boxing TV coverage. I watched the fight in cable TV but not the pay-per-view. I would be contended even of late telecast since I have the Internet and my brother right away sent me an off-line message yesterday that Hatton was knocked down cold at 2:59 in the second round. I wanted to see how everything happened. About 360 seconds of boxing was stretched to almost four hours of advertisement and commercial agony. I was at first very much irritated by the commercials that suddenly cut in important boxing telecasts. I was not even able to see Tom Jones crooned the British national anthem. The only saving grace is a commercial of a roof sealant featuring a dumb girl with heavy dumbbells to her credit. Whoa!

I love the Filipino people all over the world. I was just so happy looking at how united we were as one group of proud Filipinos as Pacquiao fought his greatest fight so far. As Martin sang the Lupang Hinirang, I was as moved as he was standing tall for all the nations to see that we are a mighty race of people who know how to stand up when we fall and run the race again. Manny has made as prouder than ever. Pacman’s victory was the triumph of Filipinos all over the world. His very impressive win over Hatton was so inspirational. A Filipino after defeat will not just simply buckle down and wallow on his loss. He stands up, learns from his mistakes and wins the many battles in life.

Having said what I love and hate of the Pacman-Hitman east meets west boxing bout, I would like to congratulate both Manny and Ricky for the fun and excitement they have given the world of boxing...even if for 359 seconds only. With the tons of commercials that have made me memorize some, the tournament was worth all my waiting. Mabuhay ang Filipino!

KISSING MY LOVE HANDLES GOOD BYE

All I Need is a Little Patience

I cannot talk bad to others personally. This is one of my worse traits. I consider this bad because people tend to take advantage of this weakness. Because they know I do not ever reprimand people and subordinates personally, they continue on doing what they want to do, and this is to my dismay. I do call attention of erring colleagues but I never write memos. I talk to people whose actions and decisions are not align with the goals and objectives of the institution where we all belong. However, I always do it in a civil manner without at all raising my voice or showing disappointment. I always treat people professionally, but I do not usually get the same treatment in return. I consider this as one of my weaknesses although some of my close friends tell me that indeed how I treat my colleagues is proper and correct. I do not know. This may be true only if my co-workers feel the same way as I do.

Well in good that two of my strengths are patience and perseverance. Working with people, I tend to be very patient. Different people have different abilities, so I cannot expect people to be thinking the same, doing the same and accomplishing the same. Because of this patience, I persevere and allow room for mistakes as long as not a single soul or purpose is compromised. This unfortunately has been misconstrued as leniency by some of my colleagues, which to me is not and actually are two different things – patience and leniency. I know I am patient and persevering to others, but am I to my own self? This brings me to what happened today. I woke up again in the wrong side of the bed today. Worse, our cat woke me up by meowing all over the bed as if taunting me to get up. Still not contended, he started rubbing his behind on my face. I am patient but not this morning. I did not hurt the cat but I gave it a good spank on his behind.

I woke up prematurely and felt so tired to exercise. I was to do my biceps today – a lot of upper body workouts actually. However, because our good cat woke me up earlier than I usually did, I did not feel exercising anymore. I felt weak and seemed not to have any drive at all to move. Despite this, I took my breakfast, viewed some newscast and went out to breathe fresh air. I got wind instead because two tropical typhoons visited earlier cutting short everyone’s summer fun. As I stayed outside by the veranda, I thought that if I missed my workout today, this could be the end of what I have just started two weeks ago. I put on my shoes, prepared the CD player and the dumbbell plates. I ended up doing 30 minutes of mid-impact cardio and another 30 minutes for my upper body workout. I also did three sets of eight wide push ups. I still had difficulty with my pecs. No, I rested my abs today. What went inside my mind was I should be patient about my desire to lose some weight and persevere through it all despite me being tired. This is not good, but I had to do it this morning or else what I have started would be wasted.

Exercising when even I am tired, I know is not healthy. I promise, however, that this morning would be the only and the last one. I am not happy that our cat woke me up, but the drive to be patient and persevere with what I have started definitely made my day. I always know that I am capable of losing weight. I always have the drive to do it with good and healthy life as my new motivation. I have been into several weight loses, but because of work pressure I always ended up big again. I tend to eat when I have problems. This has been what I am working on to prevent from happening again this year. Why is it that what troubles me so much in my work place is what helps me most with myself. My patience and perseverance have been my problem in work. When pressured in work, I ate more but the same patience and perseverance helped me lose weight. What the heck! I think life is just full of ironies.

BRILLIANT PACQUIAO CEMENTS LEGACY WITH WIN

Martin Rogers, Yahoo! Sports
(I am still stunned with the fight that I cannot think straight and write. This is from an article by Mr. Rogers several minutes after the impressive win by Pacman.)

It took just 359 seconds to add the latest devastating chapter to a legacy that will last for decades. Manny Pacquiao’s flurried fists made short work of Ricky Hatton on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and delivered the most emphatic proof yet that boxing has a superstar for the ages operating at his peak. Pacquiao sent the Englishman crashing to the canvas twice in a frenetic first round, then sealed the contest with a brutal left hook that had Hatton out cold on his back with one tick remaining in the second round. Floyd Mayweather Jr. may have announced his comeback from a brief and scarcely-believable retirement on Saturday morning. But there can be no doubt that Pacquiao is boxing’s undisputed king as he continues to ride a remarkable wave of momentum.

“Our strategy was the one punch,” Pacquiao said. “Left hook. Right hook. That was going to be the key to this fight.” The Filipino fighter is a quiet and reserved man out of the ring, but between the ropes he morphs into an electrifying machine – and Hatton felt his full force. The Hatton camp had hoped their man’s power would be telling, yet he simply had no response to Pacquiao’s pace and precision. A right hook put Hatton down with 54 seconds remaining in round one and proved to be the beginning of the end. “I knew it was over,” said Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer. “Ricky fights the same way over and over. He doesn’t have the ability to adjust.”

As Pacquiao moved in for the finish in the second round, Hatton tried to cling on only to be sent down again with a fierce straight left. Doctors immediately rushed to the aid of Hatton, who eventually and thankfully was able to walk from the ring under his own steam. “I am surprised this fight was so easy,” said Pacquiao. “I did work hard in my training camp and it paid off. This is as big a victory for me as when I beat Oscar De La Hoya.”

That December triumph over De La Hoya did not convince the entire boxing fraternity of Pacquiao’s ability, primarily as the Golden Boy’s powers had so clearly dimmed from his prime. Now there is no speculation. Pacquiao is the top dog, until someone proves otherwise in the ring. Floyd Mayweather Sr. was a no-show at the postfight news conference, leaving Hatton’s co-trainer, Lee Beard, to explain the mauling by Pacquiao. “We knew about Manny’s speed and that it could play a factor in the fight,” Beard said. “What you saw was two rounds of action and Ricky got caught.”

Roach’s status as a trainer grows in line with each victory his top fighter posts and it became clear his game plan was perfect. Hatton could not avoid Pacquiao, who landed with 73 of his 127 punches. The Brit could only land 18 of 78. “This is no shock at all,“ Roach said. “Hatton pumps his hands before he throws a punch, and it makes him a sucker for the right hook. Manny is a monster. He is the best fighter ever. There is no surprise here.”

Defeat was a bitter blow to the thousands of Hatton fans among the 16,262 in attendance who had journeyed across the Atlantic but saw their dreams dashed within a few brutal minutes. The typical symphony of chanting carried on even after their man had been sparked out, but it may not strike up again. Hatton, who was alert in his locker room before being taken to the hospital, is one of the most popular boxers ever with an incredible fan base, but his fighting future is now in serious doubt. For Pacquiao, the future is brighter than ever, and his legend continues to grow.

Said Pacquiao: “I can fight anybody.”