Good News

Who doesn't like good news?!!

I. RH Bill signed.

Finally. After a series of hearings, drama sessions and amendments, 2 law-making houses of the country signed the RH bill on Dec. 19. I remember that well. It was my sister's birthday. Then it was passed on to the President hoping that this law will be made official by his signature before Christmas. People knew it was in the bag. Everyone who is in favor or couldn't care less, now turned their attentions to their own Christmas preparations while some Church organizations could only wish for an abomination.

On Dec. 21 the president signed the bill into law and it was only publicized today due to the sensitivity of the issue. The church brands this hush-hush signing as a cowardly act from the President. They see it as a sign that he was ashamed to be connected to a law for the fear of excommunication during Christmas.

I doubt it.

He must've realized to wait it out. He did after all sign it on Dec. 21. If the so-called end of the world did come, they might blame RH bill for it. I don't know. He must have his own special reasons why he only publicized it now. But frankly, I don't care. As long as the reproductive education and contraceptives are made available to the nation, that already sounds good to me. I really hope this RH bill will help trim the population and make people more empowered to make better choices.


II. KABANG in good health

Dogs are such heroic beings. They love unconditionally and they give comfort to their owners anytime, anywhere. Kabang, a mongrel from the Philippines, received international praise for saving the 2 young girls from a speeding motorcycle. This cost her entire snout and upper jaw.

With how she looks who would think she could still function and be in high spirits? I guess angels were looking after this angel.

She was flown to the States, where they treat dogs like real members of the family and community, to receive surgery and treatment. Because of a successful fundraising spearheaded by a nurse from NY, the dog was able to fly to the States to undergo chemo treatment for ongoing cancer, treatment to eradicate heart worms, reconstructive surgery and overall rehabilitation. According to the latest news, she has already beaten the cancer and is now concluding her heart treatment so she could proceed with a series of surgeries. 

She is expected to be back home next year, June.

She deserves all the best care! There are countless stories of dogs' loyalties and sacrifice. This is just one of the most publicized and bravest stories one would know in this lifetime. I hope dog owners realize how lucky they are to share their lives with one of the most loyal, loving and brave creatures that ever graced this planet.

The Night Circus.Gone Girl

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is really not your ordinary fantasy story though it started off quite exciting and simple. Towards the 2nd to 3rd sections of the book, it became subtle and a bit more complex. The gist is a story about 2 prodigies with magical capabilities who were destined to compete with each other to the death. It's the type of story that the venue of the competition, the supporting characters and the mishaps are equally important. The setting, being in a circus, puts the imaginative tone and adventure to high gear.

It was an okay read. Though I don't really think I would read it again. I was thrown off somewhere when I wanted solid answers. There were some hints but I was not entirely convinced. I just went through with it to know the conclusion of the lovers with the hopes I would find something more.  And I couldn't discount the fact that the sequences of the chapters really made it more difficult for me to read. I guess it wasn't the perfect book to delve into this time around. It all seems like a blur.

___

I was busy surfing and reading various lists of Best Fiction Books of 2012. The lists were decided by various critics, old and new from print and media, across different websites and organizations of book lovers. There are books I was familiar with, but there are recognizable select number of books that keep on coming up in everyone's lists like Behind the Beautiful Forevers, Bring up the Bodies, Arcadia and Gone Girl.

Reading those repeated titles and knowing that I don't have them brings me searing jealousy and desire.  I just have to have them.

Though I've read good titles this year, nothing beats learning about good newly published books from renowned critics and mature book lovers I admire. I was never a fan of acquiring books in hype, but these books are anything but a product of hype. I know there's a perfectly good reason behind the credible recommendation and it's never about the sales but by the insights of a book lover to another. It's always about the profound experience and substance a reader takes with him. That's what I want to have.

So I searched for specific titles yesterday in the leading bookstores hoping I could still get some copies. Thankfully, I can always rely on National Bookstore.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn is my pick for today. After a series of titles of an era-set of melodramatic novels, I'm definitely in the mood for a good contemporary suspense.

2012 Must Reads

Argh!!!

There are so many good books that were published this year! And I want to read them all now!!! (ala Veronica Salt from Willy Wonka)

I know I've read some pretty good titles too, but some books, which I still don't have, are always coming up on the must-read list for this year. So, I'm doing the next best thing searching and contacting the local bookstores now, I need to have copies.

But for my own pleasure, I'm coming up with my own list of Good-Books-I-read-in-2012. Hopefully this will calm me down.



source: salon.com / nytimes

A Cool Christmas Gift

Namamangha ako sa mga artists na walang keme, yung plain artists lang talaga. Walang entourage, walang ere, yung mga oras hindi nakasubsob sa launching or schedules, chill lang kumbaga. Kung gusto nilang mag malling or mag hiking para magkaroon nang inspirisyon, gagawin nila. Kung gusto nilang maki-jam or kumain nang marami, mag-jejeep or makikisabay sa mga kaibigan at makikipagkwentuhan parang isang tambay sa kanto. They know they are good at what they do, pero they don't need to advertise it. And their art is not really the focal point of any conversation. Sabi ko nga, para ka lang may kausap at tumatambay sa isang kanto. Alam mong ikaw puro salita lang maiibigay mo pero sila they are geniuses with really something tangible to brag about.

I'm not artistic. I'm not really good with my hands in particular. Kaya super nalang ako mamangha sa mga artists na nakakagawa nang kabilib-bilib gamit ang mga simpleng bagay at kanilang mga kamay. May that be drawings, sculptures, paintings, carpentry or knitting. Bilib ako sa mga artists na tinalikuran ang safety nets of having a normal job and focused on their art and how to make a decent living out of it, may that be from small shops or huge partnerships. Ang hirap nun ah! Mas saludo ako kung nakamit nila ang mararangyang papuri at nakapagsimula nang pangkabuhayan pero parang wala lang, hindi umaakyat sa mga ulo nila.

Artists are really geniuses at their own right. Musicians, sculptures, painters, sketchers, anything that they can produce with their own creativity and passion. They are created by God to produce something to inspire everyone. It's good if some make it big for something so institutional, but for some who are struggling but really good artists, I salute them for still enjoying their craft and for being very humble about it. Art is subjective anyways and not everything appeals to the majority. For most of them, they only make things out of artistic expression and joy. That's why I see artists true, passionate and brave. Not everyone ends well off, but they still do art and it's not work, most of them are truly happy with their time spent. Unlike some of us who tread the day not knowing why we do things.

Not every art is seen at the same spotlight and yet we get a breath of art every single day in weird circumstances and instances. While walking and spending time with new found friends, I received a Christmas gift from an artist named KILLAH. He is a painter who operates in a shop in Rizal. He is your typical t-shirt clad, long haired, true-blue artist who drinks, who likes to share stories and who is humble. While walking in the mall, he pulled out two hand painted stones in his old artist backpack and offered it to Mitch and I. And I only met him on that day. It was his simple Christmas gift that costs nothing, but the effort was unmistakable.

Syempre nahiya ako. Wala akong maibigay. Hindi ako artist. Kahit bigyan nyo ako ng raw materials, wala akong magagawa kundi basura. He was not asking for anything obviously, but he had time on his hands and huge jars of creativity to produce simple things from raw beginnings, which in turn he shared with us. Nakakatuwa. Eto yung mga regalong di matutumbasan ng pera. I don't know if I truly deserve to receive art out of nothing, but I'm honored. Nothing but more salutations and admiration from me.

Killah if you read it backwards Hallik - he only paints ang gives away stuff with happy faces. This is made from a raw stone.

7 Hours in Starbucks

I just spent 7 hours in Starbucks yesterday. I literally saw the unfolding of the early afternoon to nearly midnight. I sat at the same table all throughout. I had two coffees, one hot and one cold. Since it was raining, I had my dinner there, which was surprisingly comforting granted they just reheated the so-called deli sandwich. If I'm correct, I had four bathroom breaks the entire time. Everything else was a blur except for Starbucks. I also felt the coffee shop attendants and guard staring at my table after the 5th hour. I honestly should've won something on that day.

Come to think of it, it was the same amount of hours you spend in the office. 7 hours in the coffee shop isn't my record by the way. I spent 9 hours once in Coffee Bean in Greenbelt when I resigned from work and enduring my dark ages. At that time lightweight laptops weren't the thing and I remember lugging a heavy Compaq Presario with 2 fiction books.

I definitely can stay long hours in a coffee shop as long as I'm doing something. I like the ambiance and the access to handcrafted caffeine drinks. It's like being alone with distractions when you need it. When I go there for a long haul, I usually read or blog and God knows that I need to catch up on my reading nowadays. And that's just what I did.

While waiting for a friend, I spent 2 hours reading a book that I have with me since last week. With my reading standards, I should've been done with that book 4 days ago since I'm on a vacation. But with all the activities and errands reading really comes in third or second. I try to read everyday especially before going to sleep, but I can only manage a chapter and I'm already wiped out. I try to sneak time during the day, but it's either the mood is so low and something always comes up. So when I made up plans to meet up with a friend yesterday in a coffee shop, I made a dash to get there earlier to catch up on my reading. When my friend arrived, I was three pages away from completing section 2 of the novel, and I asked her to give me a couple of minutes to close this one up. I never end in mid-chapters.

Now, I am 190 pages away from the conclusion and I'm already at the last section. The events are heating up and I can't wait to dive to it again. That 2 hour Starbucks window really helped a lot. I still have lots of books egging at my must-read list before 2013. Now I only have a few days. Pretty depressing.

What did I do in the next  5 hours you ask? Pure rejuvenating conversation, but that's a different story.

Morning Mice Hunt

Good morning, Loves.

What are you two up to?

Bruce is a steady, low-energy dog. If no one exciting is around, he just sits, sleeps and be incognito.
But when Harvey's around, something about this little Jack Russell always sparks his energy. Harvey has his own world when it comes to exploring things. He doesn't mind to have other dogs following him around. He likes to be the leader in everything. Though Bruce can hardly keep up with his speed, he tries very hard.

According to Ate Shiela, they were hunting for mice this morning. How did she know for sure? For a couple of days now, they had randomly found dead mice under our house rugs.

Yuck.

Dog Treats

I make sure our dogs feel the Christmas spirit. They've noticed parties in the backyard and I'm sure they've noticed a huge difference since we are always around. On normal work days, all of us are already gone by 9 am.

I'm also definite they've tasted something yummy mixed in their food. As a Christmas treat, I've bought them a stock of Alpo's Chop House, their favorite. They come in Ribeye, Sirloin and Fillet Mignon flavors. Chunks of meat in saucy and tasty graving. We mix 2-3 generous tablespoons in their dog food and it's gone after a few minutes.

I give this to Harvey and Buddy whenever there's some special occasion going on and especially during their birthdays. This year is a first for Chivas and Bruce, but just as expected, they both loved it.

80-100 Pesos a can. Pretty steep, but once in a while it's acceptable. It's priceless to see them extremely happy with their food.