Ketsana aka Ondoy drowned Manila

When natural disaster strikes we anticipate the worst, yet the force of it overpowers our preparedness and well being. The devastating calamities hit South Pacific ring without much readiness and it happened in a row. It was so quick, in just a week many lives were taken.

Where could we run/turn to after this??

The overwhelming assistance coming all over the world to aid survivors of the tropical storm that flooded Manila is more of help. Kindred spirit that is.

Through UNICEF is just one way we could penetrate our figurative sympathy with them. Many of us who follow the deadly situation would like to extend our helping hand. Please follow the link patiently and drop an amount we think it could push the mission. (Thanks)

UNICEF gives immediate assistance to children of the Philippines affected by tropical storm Ondoy :: News Releases :: Media Center :: U.S. Fund for UNICEF - UNICEF USA

Posted using ShareThis

when rain drops

Outside the rain begin again. We do have frequent downpour and windy summer here. Albeit am used to wet season back home it felt different to have rain around on summer days. It has been weeks that rained which is unusual to the season.

So to put myself in solace I keep repeating the old kiddie song, rain, rain go away, hoping it would really stop. Still the drop gets harder. I decided then to gaze for quite longer to the falling crystalline -like -rain. And before I knew it, I am being rushed to the altitude of nostalgia. I was caught unguarded. False hope envelopes the soul once more..yet just before letting myself fall again into dream without assurance here comes the wake up call...

Thanks FM radio for playing this momentarily...

..Just another lesson to be learned

Gotta move on and not lose faith

Just another obstacle to face

Live my life before it gets too late

I won't give up

I won't stay down

This is what life's worth living for

(Life's worth living for)

I still believe in love....

weighing happiness

The best of laughter comes out naturally when pain has finally subsided. (wink, It’s easy said.) Or am I just ostentatious to what truly emotion holds dear?

That said, I could say, I found the last few months enjoyable, full of laughter and excitement all throughout. It has been busy months aside from the usual things I do. If I feel like running miles, I hopped in into the mountain bike my cousin had given me and ready to shake-off the road. Parties are always around the corner that’s why weekends never end-up boring. As well as thrilling movies are never out of sight so no more room for sentiments. But then again people who are closed to my heart are still the most significant bearer of what happiness brings.

And I’m not just trying to escape the perennial feeling which undeniably wasted much of my time and energy. I do love experiencing new adventures and my guts says am ready to push trough. Although some adventures might be too risky, yet, I think there’s always fun at some point.

Nevertheless, others utter, happiness is generally caused by our own internal state of mind rather than an external event. It’s a great fallacy to constantly look outside ourselves for happiness.

Federer won his sixth Wimbledon title

Roger Federer held up his trophy with Andy Roddick beside after beating the latter in a marathon match that lasted more than four hours on the Centre Court at Wimbledon, Sunday, July 5, 2009.

What a play?! I loved it. It really pays off watching the crowd-pleaser match with all the screams, clapping and jumping off the seat. Great job Roger!

..we are the World - bids farewell

There have been much unending favorable words all over the world we could hear how wonderful Michael Jackson was. He is being appreciated how he changed the world especially music and how he touched lives through his songs.

I could say he is incredibly unique, one of a kind. From childhood I was deeply touched to the message and to the good purpose of the creation of the song “We Are the World”. It’s a beautiful song. And it really would be had every one of us contribute a little to the fulfillment of his dream.

As Janet Jackson put it, “to you, Michael is an icon: to us he is family. Indeed, you are family in most hearts. Farewell MJ, surely you’ll be remembered.


The participation of various artists is pretty inspiring. Well done. I played it over and over again.

make your place kinda bigger

Almost everyone’s catching up some fun under the spring heat as summer still a month away. Thinking what else to do? You perhaps want to consider making your place for a bigger and cooler look to hang-out with. So get started and make your place ready for a summer full of fun. From On the GO.

>Foyer. To make a small entry look larger, mirror a wall or hang a large mirror above a chest or a console.

>Focal Points. If you have a fireplace, hang a mirror above it to reflect light into the room. No fireplace? Buy a great looking console and hang a large decorative mirror above it.

>Bathroom. The fastest way to lighten and brighten a small bathroom is to put a large mirror above the vanity. If your budget permits, mirror the opposite wall to create an even more spacious feeling.

>Kitchen. If your kitchen feels cramped, mirror the wall space between the cabinets and the counter top. This trick adds more light and makes the workspace look larger.

>Closets. Turn a small closet into a computer nook. Mirror the walls, add built-ins, and install good lighting. Your computer room will be bright and cheerful thanks to the magic of mirrors.

..as Susan Boyle sang..I Dreamed A Dream

I first saw this lady on the early news tonight on the television channel I was watching. Right away I turned to "youtube" to see more of it.

Grabeh!! It was an astonishing audition of Susan Boyle in Britains Got Talent 2009. Her rendition of the song ”I Dreamed A Dream” fully blown me and emotions started to enveloped my being. She was 47 and yet still living a dream. (Ooppss, think caught up here)

I listened to her song many times without getting enough of it. Her beautiful voice gave shiver down to the spine while it feels like angels held me high in their arm.

Best of luck Susan! May you fulfill your dream of becoming one professional singer..
Somehow you touched my heart. You woke up my nerves to keep on dreaming again.

You may want to follow the link and be amazed as embed of this video was disabled.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Happy Easter weekend!

A refreshing and inspiring Easter wish filled with all the colors and joy of spring time.

The Suyo-Cervantes Road way finish

“Hope is like a road in the country; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence.” – lin yutang

I bet the biggest hope my dear ancestors lived with that reached today’s generation has never in their wildest imagination will likely to happen. However the long awaited dream has now turned into reality. And I think, of all wait this is the best of them. Now, it’s just few steps away from every doorstep of most household in town – the completion of Suyo-Cervantes road. I must say the grace has been extra-beneficial for this two neighboring towns, as well as with the provinces near east.


the stretch of the road finally paved, connected to Urzadan bridge


stone masonry w/ weeds already


the ravine between Brgys. Urzadan and Uso

Am sure you can no longer figure out where this is. This is now the “Lipay Bridge

going zig-zag and up to Cervantes. before the Tirad Pass

(Appreciation is given to those who work hard in the completion of the road.
Of course I won't forget ITDPCL, DPWH and KEI Engr’s, you guys all did a job well done)

..gone for weeks, now it’s back

I wanted to give precious change (a bit) to my blog as a treat for having been my hangout for more than a year. That’s why I decided to purchase and paid my own domain.

I followed the instructions on the blogspot settings, set and registered a domain myself. Then I found out days after that google apps registered it with GoDaddy.com. As far as I know, I bought it from google apps then why there’s this GoDaddy.com? So I chased my domain at GoDaddy and try to follow the long links to activate advance settings. Until I made a one wrong click and it turns out mess. I was really frustrated about it. The more, I’m getting anxious because I had a hard time registering it through my busy schedule. I called GoDaddy customer line and would get some help but still I wasn’t able to retrieve my registered domain for some reason. So if by chance you’ll find your way to GoDaddy.com, there you can see SHINEELLENMAYatCHICORIVER.com is for bid, auction and most of all it’s for sale at much higher price than I paid for it.

I am tongue-tied when I saw it and with that I’m so upset. Couldn’t think of a better reason to explain and give myself the right conclusion how internet really works. My consolation now is there’s this blogspot.com for free. (Although I feel sad to the dollars I spent for the registration, sayang naman :) ) So why would I leave it and bother to spend time with things without assurance?

More of March

We’re now in March and for me days seem moving way, way fast. March is widely known as the month of many weathers. We can expect everything and anything from warm, sunny days to fierce winds by way of rain, fog, frost and even snow.

Sometimes we get a lot within a very short time. I myself say it so. (Not to add that I was born on March.) It’s this month that our long journey being locked up with our studies will usually end at. There was the achievement, excitement, and of course very happy that we could finally relax. Lot of pleasant and pleasure things to do are at wait. The mountain hiking, swimming and picnics, joyrides, sharing and singing, reunion with family and friends to mention a few which sometimes makes me say “it’s nice to go back being a student of those yester years”.

In addition, we also have holy week that falls on March that sometimes makes me feel intimidated. So from anything and everything, we try to do lot of things. From fasting, abstaining and some tend to totally give up necessary things. And to quote abstain, many college students have abstained from Facebook for lent not only last year but in recent years – as Stephanie Simon reports in the Wall Street Journal. (Woo, that’s a thing that impressed me much about the Americans.)

Moreover, March was once the first month of the year, moving to third place when January and February were added about 700 BC according to Nicholas Rhea in Britains Newsquest Media Group in 2005.

March sometimes give me much that I am so pleased yet I’m always reminded of the things that may come unexpected. And so with the old familiar saying “if March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb.”

RE: [unpeaa] Updates

Thanks to this email and update from Engr. Larry L. Cabatic (Batch 1986)President, UNP Engineering Alumni Association;

Greetings of peace and felicity!

We had our First UNP BSCE Graduates reunion (sort of) last Sunday,February 15, 2009 at Linda's Garden, Vigan City, Ilocos Sur.

There were 36 of us who attended. Members of batch 77, 79 and morerecent ones were with us. We shared our memories and laughter. We had a short and simple program followed by a lunch sponsored by Engr.Cristina Corpuz-Palos of batch 1985. Thereafter, we had a planningsession where we contributed our ideas on things we can do to share toour beloved Alma Mater as expression of our gratitude forpreparing us in attaining where we are now.

We will post some of the pictures.

In the meantime, please be informed and help us disseminate this: that there will be another gathering / reunion set on May 2, 2009(Saturday), 9:00AM at the Open Cafe, UNP, Vigan City, Ilocos Sur.

Please be there!

Shattering silence

Now you’re more of a coward mum
I can’t fathom what this is all about
Been hoping for some time now to get back the least wink of your eye
Unfortunately all I got was more than a silence

You were the kind who always creates sound
Sound that brings smile to the depth of my heart
That made me feel you were just so near
Might come on wee hours or at my busiest time

Suddenly you are so silent then
It’s disturbing, worrying and weakening
Would you mind telling me please
Rather, I’d loose in your shattering silence

Burden: deal or no deal?

On the weekend, I was contemplating over my mailbox what messages would I erase from the new mails in queue. Save some of those who has nice subject on it and would read the following day. However few minutes passed I decided to go over them and read quickly.

I found somehow a pointer in this long read mail and redirect my cloudy thought for quite a while.

Making it shorter;

Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can. Put down anything that may be a burden to you right now. Don't pick it up again until after you've rested a while.

Dealing with burden in some ways;

• Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
  
• Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
  
• Always wear stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
  
• Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be "Recalled" by their maker.
  
• If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
  
• If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
  
• It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to be kind to others.
  
• Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
  
• Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
  
• Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.
  
• The second mouse gets the cheese.
  
• When everything's coming your way, you’re in the wrong lane.
  
• Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.
  
• You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
  
• Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
  
• We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.
  
• A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.
  ==========('o')

Tiny-healthy legumes

Have we started setting aside legumes on our daily menus for some reasons? Perhaps we’ve already long forgotten them. Why not? Most of the people around us laid the verdict already. It causes or may develop arthritis as they say.

In contrast to the hearsay I’ve been hearing from some folks within and far from our place. To my relief (because I love legumes), below is a result of long study how legumes could be of much help to our health.

Taking a part of Canada’s RD February health news:

Diabetes. An increased intake of legumes could reduce risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by about 40 percent, according to researchers from the Shanghai Women’s Health Study ( a population-based study whose participants are being monitored for the occurrence of several diseases). They assessed the diets of more than 64, 000 women over 4 ½ years. Of all subjects, those who had the highest intake of legumes had a significantly lower incidence of the disease, adding further evidence to the beneficial effects of this food.
Coronary Heart Disease. Data from a large study of more than 9,600 healthy adults showed that those who ate legumes four more times a week had a significantly lower risk of coronary heart disease than those who ate them once a week or less.
Cancer. There is some evidence that legumes may decrease risk of developing prostate cancer. This may be due, in part, to their plant chemicals such as saponins and phytosterols.

I couldn’t almost believe it but here it is. It is such good news for us who like eating these tiny creatures. Ultimately we can start loving and eating legumes again.

RE: all UNP BSCE graduates

There will be a reunion on February 15, 2009 at Linda's Garden Vigan City. Motorcade will start at 9:00 a.m. in front of Mart 1 near Salcedo Plaza. A 150 registration fee will be collected for our lunch and other expenses.

Please pass this message. Thank you.

Nelia Verzosa - Aman batch ‘86

(I do hope this isn’t too late to post. Please find time to visit unpeaa@yahoogroups.com as well)

ticket to Grande Prairie

Who would think we aren’t nuts when we dare want to spend winter holidays in much cooler place? Haven’t we had enough cold in here?

Lucky are we, as some say, got free weeks and tickets in our hand and we traveled to Grand Prairie, Alberta. It is one of the fastest growing cities in Canada, located northwest of Edmonton. Has a large trading zone of people that includes Filipino contract workers.

Staying in Grande Prairie for a short time let me take note about weather comparison between this city and some cities near lake. Grand Prairie is really a home of snow and freezing temperature. Yet you could feel solemnity within the environment. It is so calm and peaceful. Most of the people just simply wore running shoes and jacket as winter stuff. Unlike here in Toronto area which is by the lake, the weather seems wild. Aside from snowstorm and rain, there’s a destructive gusting wind. So then people have to wear completely from hat, mittens, and scarf down to snow boots to survive winter time.

Another interesting thing to note is there’s no sales tax in this city, province wide. And it would be savvy I think to spend some time in there at this point of recession.

Though we didn’t see much of the whole place, because we’ve been there at a wrong time (as they quoted it), I would still say the visit worth everything. Aside from pleasure, I experienced what to be like living in that place. Most of all, to see old friends and kabayans really paid off especially when the plane ticket is fortuitously a gift.

Go along to an Ox year

The wonderful holidays have been long overdue and so with this little place of mine have been in slumber too.
It feels like yester years were just an inch back away. The entrance of the new year was a numb to my senses. It doesn't bell any enthusiasm although I have things in mind what to eradicate and set goals to work for.
In spite of that, I found the sight of these chirping birds in a freezing-midmorning new year invigorating to the nerves. It really was an inspiring view to capture. More so when you are trying to mend an anatomy like of a jigsaw puzzle in broken pieces.
Thence let the year of the Ox roll-over. May it brings out the best in us and blow our way with enough fortune and good health.