May 14, 2007
I didn't vote in today's senatorial and local elections. Not that I didn't want to; I'm just not a registered voter.
It's tempting to justify my actions (or rather, inactions) by saying "I didn't have time to register" or "My vote won't count for much anyway", but I did have time and everyone's vote does count. I have no excuse and I will deeply regret this...
For a while, anyway.
It's tempting to justify my actions (or rather, inactions) by saying "I didn't have time to register" or "My vote won't count for much anyway", but I did have time and everyone's vote does count. I have no excuse and I will deeply regret this...
For a while, anyway.
Labels: current events, elections, Philippines
March 28, 2007
Students held hostage on bus in Manila:
"I love these kids; that's why I am here," says Jun Ducat, the hostage-taker and owner of the day-care center where the children were taken from. Ducat said the hostage-taking was for the children's benefit. With the children chanting his name, Ducat was allowed to make a rambling statement, with media microphones laid beside a loudspeaker, in which he railed against corruption and politicians' failure to make good on promises of free education and housing for the poor. "I am asking for justice so they can have continued education up to college."
That is one sick bastard.
"I love these kids; that's why I am here," says Jun Ducat, the hostage-taker and owner of the day-care center where the children were taken from. Ducat said the hostage-taking was for the children's benefit. With the children chanting his name, Ducat was allowed to make a rambling statement, with media microphones laid beside a loudspeaker, in which he railed against corruption and politicians' failure to make good on promises of free education and housing for the poor. "I am asking for justice so they can have continued education up to college."
That is one sick bastard.
Labels: current events, Philippines
November 30, 2006
There goes the long weekend...
Watch it live!
Prepare for the inevitable blackout, people.
Watch it live!
Prepare for the inevitable blackout, people.
Labels: :(, current events, Philippines, typhoon, weather
September 30, 2006
Alright, we've got our electricity back! I woke up at 6 AM (that in itself is amazing) and saw the street lamp outside my window working. I tried some switches; nothing. Then I found out that my dad turned off the power to the whole house. I pulled down the switch and was rewarded with the sound of a humming refrigerator. I was ready to face the prospect of having no electricity until Monday (that's what Meralco told us) so I'm tremendously pleased at this turn of events.
On the other hand, I just found out that our Smart BRO antenna was toppled over during the storm and it's broken. Customer support isn't answering; maybe their overloaded with service requests? I've resorted to dial-up in the meantime and I really don't want to get used to this speed. But aside from that, our house has escaped virtually unscathed.
Meanwhile, the rest of Metro Manila isn't faring as well. A lot of those fallen billboards and signposts are still down and out. There's a lot of fallen leaves and debris to be swept up. I don't think power has been brought back to all parts of Metro Manila; I believe that as of last night only approximately half of the power grid was restored.
It's going to take a few more days until everything completely go back to normal, but Filipinos are very resilient. We won't let some nasty storm interrupt our daily life. Everyone's back to work and the malls are jampacked as usual.
On the other hand, I just found out that our Smart BRO antenna was toppled over during the storm and it's broken. Customer support isn't answering; maybe their overloaded with service requests? I've resorted to dial-up in the meantime and I really don't want to get used to this speed. But aside from that, our house has escaped virtually unscathed.
Meanwhile, the rest of Metro Manila isn't faring as well. A lot of those fallen billboards and signposts are still down and out. There's a lot of fallen leaves and debris to be swept up. I don't think power has been brought back to all parts of Metro Manila; I believe that as of last night only approximately half of the power grid was restored.
It's going to take a few more days until everything completely go back to normal, but Filipinos are very resilient. We won't let some nasty storm interrupt our daily life. Everyone's back to work and the malls are jampacked as usual.
Labels: current events, electricity, Philippines, Smart BRO
September 29, 2006
I retract yesterday's statement that it was really scary outside. It wasn't just scary; it was f***ing scary. That's the only adjective that truly captures the reality outside the walls of our house. Can't recall a recent typhoon that really scared the shit out of me (not literally). You think you get used to typhoons when you live in the Philippines, but you haven't experienced the real thing until one hits you dead on.The typhoon started to calm down at around four in the afternoon. Our family went out in the evening for a movie because there were no signs of electricity coming back any time soon. Unfortunately, all the malls were closed by the time we decided to leave the house. We tried looking for a place to eat and pass the time and we managed to find an open Yellow Cab Pizza (Better Living branch) on the way home. Until now, there's still no power at home.
The weather was much, much improved this morning so I decided to go to the office (besides, I really needed to charge my cellphone). In the daylight, you could see the destruction brought about by the typhoon. The only word to describe it is "awesome". I don't mean to say that I enjoyed seeing uprooted trees, fallen signposts, and gigantic billboards crushing buses. The typhoon's destructive effects were an awesome sight to see. My brother took some pictures of the carnage; I'll try to upload some of them later.
It took me two and a half hours to get to the office. The MRT wasn't in operation and there was some serious traffic along EDSA for some unknown reason. The bus I took had to take a long detour to avoid the traffic. All seems well though, for now.
(Thanks to Pau for finding the above photo. I actually saw that bus on my way to work!)
Labels: amazing, current events, Philippines, typhoon, weather
September 28, 2006
If you haven't heard already, typhoon "Milenyo" (international codename "Xangsane") is currently hammering Metro Manila. It's really scary outside right now. Classes have been suspended in all levels and government offices are officially closed. I eagerly checked my HP email this morning for any announcements and...
Walang pasok!!! Gosh, I never thought there'd come a time that I'd say that as part of the workforce.
I sure am glad I don't have any pressuring deadlines. At least I don't even have to work from home. Now I can comfortably watch Game 2 of the UAAP Men's Basketball Finals on TV. Hope it's no less exciting than Game 1.
Addendum: D'oh! Power blackout started half an hour ago (running on laptop batteries now). Just when I thought I could stay at home, watch TV, and play some PC games. At least the basketball game was pushed to Saturday; thanks to Ma'am Didith for the info.
Walang pasok!!! Gosh, I never thought there'd come a time that I'd say that as part of the workforce.
I sure am glad I don't have any pressuring deadlines. At least I don't even have to work from home. Now I can comfortably watch Game 2 of the UAAP Men's Basketball Finals on TV. Hope it's no less exciting than Game 1.
Addendum: D'oh! Power blackout started half an hour ago (running on laptop batteries now). Just when I thought I could stay at home, watch TV, and play some PC games. At least the basketball game was pushed to Saturday; thanks to Ma'am Didith for the info.
Labels: :D, current events, HP, Philippines, typhoon, weather, work
