Get Real : Awesome (claims) | ||||
AN ORGANIZATION I BELONG TO, THE Movement for Good Governance (MGG), has, as one of its objectives, raising the level of discussion and quality of information during the election campaign, so that the information that voters obtain on candidates are not just those provided by the candidates themselves (which are naturally going to be self-serving) but have been subjected to scrutiny for either feasibility (as in their platforms, which require the assessment of experts) or authenticity (in regard to their claims, which require investigation and drudgework). That way, the voter will be in a much better position to choose their leaders for the next three or six years. Manny Pangilinan's TV5 has picked up on MGG's work and will jointly sponsor a five-part special series that will in effect showcase the results of this scrutiny. And since Sen. Manny Villar's TV and radio ads far outnumber the ads of his opponents, they provide much more grist for an investigator/evaluator's mill. Take the ad, for example, which roughly translated goes something like this: "Have you experienced sleeping on a short bench in the market? Or the death of a brother because you had no money for medicine/proper health care, so you were helpless? Well, I, too, have experienced all that. Which is why, when God blessed me with a good life, it became my vow to help those who have nothing. If I really wanted to get richer, I would just go back to being a businessman. If I could get out of poverty, I can also do it for you. This is my vow: to end poverty." The TV ads are highlighted by a 1962 picture of the young Manny and his younger brother Danny-the year that Danny died-as well as a Villar family picture. The message being conveyed is simple and powerful: he was dirt poor, but God got him out of poverty; and he has vowed to do the same for others. And he is sincere: he is not running for president to make money-because if he only wanted to get richer, all he needed to do was go back to being a businessman. It is indeed a great ad. One viewer's reaction was: Awesome. Awesome, indeed. Because documents sent to me turn those assertions on their head, so that the only thing accurate about the ad may be the family pictures. First there is the matter of the copy of a death certificate of Daniel Bamba Villar indicated as issued by the NSO. According to that document, Daniel Bamba Villar, son of Manuel Villar and Curita Bamba, address xx (number illegible) Bernardo Street, North Balut, Navotas, died at the Far Eastern University Hospital on Oct. 13, 1962, at the age of three years and eight months, of cardio-respiratory failure due to leukemia (there is something about red cells, but the writing again is illegible), after a 13-day hospital stay. In the space for informant, the signatory is Manuel Villar, father. Now, that Daniel Villar was brought to a private hospital-FEUH had the same reputation then as Makati Medical or Manila Doctors or St Luke's would have now-rather than, say, a government hospital like the Philippine General Hospital, or San Lazaro, does not necessarily disprove the Villar ad contention that his family was poor. It is not unusual for families, however poor, to do what is necessary in order to secure the best care for their children, and damn the consequences. That it was Funeraria Paz (one of the two top funeral parlors at that time), as indicated on the same death certificate, that took care of the funeral arrangements, again does not necessarily contradict the "I was poor" contention, for the same reason. But then, Villar does not just say in the ad that his family was poor. He said his brother died because there was no money for medicine or medical care. That appears to be clearly contradicted by the certificate. Moreover, there is the matter of the address provided by Villar senior: apparently, from pictures and on-site investigation, Bernardo Street in North Balut is part of San Rafael Village, a gated community, equivalent at that time to FilAm Homes in Quezon City. A copy of the Transfer Certificate of Title for the property-which is a 560-square-meter lot-has also been provided. Now anyone who can afford to buy a 560-square-meter lot (the TCT shows that Villar senior borrowed P16,000 from the GSIS for the release of the title-which at current prices is roughly equivalent to P1.266 million) is not exactly consistent with being dirt poor. Finally, there is the matter of Senator Villar's assertion that if he just wanted to get richer, all he needed to do was get back to being a businessman. Again, the documentary evidence: his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) for 1992-the first year he joined government as a congressman-showed that his net worth was P75 million. After nine years of being a congressman, and eight years of being a senator, his most recent SALN (2008) shows a net worth of P1.047 billion. Being in public office surely has paid off for him.
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Talk. Dream. Imagine. Realize. Leap. Dance. Love. Smile. Laugh. Cry. Sing. Connect. Life is short. Why not? Why not now?
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Don't be fooled
Saturday, March 27, 2010
In awe
However, there is more to flattery that makes me stick to this profession. Indeed we physicians cannot live by flattery alone. It is the fulfillment that I get out of this profession that gets me through the busy schedules and the demanding duty hours. It is the fulfillment that I get out of this profession that makes me last a number of days even with only a few hours of sleep and two cups of coffee running through my veins.
A mother's smile and the sigh of relief and security she gives out right after she delivers her baby. The cry of a newborn baby. The privilege of being the newborn's first human contact as he or she is brought out to a world which is wider and wilder than the mother's uterine cavity. A simple thank you from the parents of a pediatric patient whose wound which he got out of child's play has just been sutured. Another thank you from an adult patient who just recovered from a severe bout of infection, or experienced relief from excruciating abdominal pain. I remember reattaching and suturing up the dangling and shattered ears of a waiter after his head was trapped between the doors of a closing food elevator. It felt like I was sewing up meaty pieces of a jigsaw puzzle entitled, 'The Revenge of the Food Elevator' or 'Look, Ma, I got my ears back and they're whole again!' Engaging in a conversation with a patient who is this time already talking back to you, smiling and thanking you for everything - all good signs that he has finally got out of the comatose state he was in when you first met him at the emergency room. The smiles on their faces which are overflowing with thankfulness, and which are louder than and more profuse than their thank you's. All these priceless moments, make me tick and inspire me more to be the best physician that I can be.
I could not picture myself to be in any other profession although in the tiny crevices of my brain I have entertained thoughts of being a chef or a photographer. Not that I dread or look down on other professions, of course not. I will never do that. The glaring irony here is that now, I could not picture myself to be in any other profession but in the past it was actually difficult and near impossible that I would be where I am now.
I come from an average Filipino family belonging to the middle class of the economic stratum and my parents are simple rank-and-file employees with big dreams for their children and with high hopes that their children would never go through the poverty they had to deal with as soon as they first saw the light of day. Life was already hard in the Philippines when my parents were born, as it is now. But I believe some things are just meant to happen and through God's grace, I indeed became a doctor. The first doctor in my family.
My love affair with medicine started way back when I was very young when I remembered someone asked me what I wanted to be with when I grow up. That was actually when I was older than six years of age because my kindergarten yearbook says I wanted to be a teacher. But teaching and the art of healing, I realized, are so closely related, and one is as noble as the other. I answered I wanted to be a doctor and the rest was history.
I would like to believe that my love affair with medicine is a process that is continuously evolving. It is not untainted with imperfections. There are those days when I have to drag myself out of the bed, and in my case out of the bed and on to the pier. It is not spared from challenges especially those times when you need to be strong and you need to maintain an unfazed stance even as both near-death and death reveal their faces to you, all depleted with emotions except that of maybe pain and helplessness, all ashened and gasping for air, grunting and screaming inaudibly yet paradoxically in a deafening way.
But I do not get tired of that. I do not get tired of everything medicine at all.
I do not get tired with lining up for my boat tickets. I do not get tired of seeing that scene at the pier over and over again, by my window at the seacraft. I do not get tired watching the men throw the ropes that will anchor the boat to the pier. I do not get tired and impatient as they position the wooden plank with care, it being our gateway to dry land. I do not get tired of hearing the cacophony of passengers' voices at the pier.
I do not get tired because of all those signal the beginning of a new day. Those scenes are a prelude to a day which will again be spent in saving lives, and most importantly, those scenes remind me that indeed, I am living the dream.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Need you now by Lady Antebellum
Why am I posting this? Because, out of my love for this song, I dream to reproduce a cover of this song. Someday. Who knows.
NEED YOU NOW
by Lady Antebellum
Picture perfect memories,
Scattered all around the floor.
Reaching for the phone cause, I can't fight it anymore.
And I wonder if I ever cross your mind.
For me it happens all the time.
Its a quarter after one, I'm all alone and I need you now.
Said I wouldn't come, but I lost all control and I need you now.
And I don't know how I can do without, I just need you now.
Another shot of whiskey, cant stop looking at the door.
Wishing you'd come sweeping in the way you did before.
And I wonder if I ever cross your mind.
Its a quarter after one, I'm a little drunk,
And I need you now.
Said I wouldn't call but I lost all control and I need you now.
And I don't know how I can do without, I just need you now.
Yes I'd rather hurt than feel nothing at all.
Its a quarter after one, I'm all alone and I need you now.
And I said I wouldn't call but I'm a little drunk and I need you now.
And I don't know how I can do without, I just need you now.
I just need you now.
Oh baby I need you now.
NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Talk with more sense, reap benefits
Resarchers analyzed the conversation snippets and categorized them as either small talk or more substantive ones.
Results showed that the happiest person had twice as many substantive conversations, and only one-third of the amount of small talk as the unhappiest person.
Small talk made up only 10 percent of the happiest person's conversation while it made up almost three times as much of the unhappiest person's conversation.
This study is indeed interesting. However for me, it poses a which-one comes-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg type of question. Do people talk deep because they are already happy to start with? Or do they talk deep in order to become happy?
This study has also has subjectivity screaming from all its seams. I still find its results counterintuitive. I look forward to more studies about the subject in the future.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Ang Kaban ni Silay: Last Song Syndrome
I WILL FOLLOW YOU
by Geneva Cruz
Let's go ride down to the beach and be alone
In a world where no one else has known
How I love the fragrance of your sweet cologne
That I smell
As I sit close to you
Well, we've known each other for sometime now
Though I know that's not so long
You haven't held my hand
Tell me, 'Is there something wrong?'
I will follow
Though you're naive
'Cause I believe in our love
I will follow you
Boy, don't you know
That you're the same sweet person
And I love you
I really love you
In my heart there's some place
You will always be
'Cause I love you dearly
Can't you see
We can hear the shower of the rain on us
As we sit together at the station
There's no one around
And we can't hear a sound
Just the rain
That falls on you and me
And then when I see you start to look
At the clock that's on the wall
I wish that I knew why
That it makes me want to cry
I will follow you
To anywhere
The wings of love will fly me there
I will follow you
'Cause can't you see
With you is where I wanna be
Forever
I mean forever
You're the one
That truly means so much to me
'Cause I love you dearly
Can't you see
Never felt this way before
And I love you forever
I will follow you
Can't stay away
And everyday I promise
That I'll love you
Because I love you
I really love you
Tootoorooroorooo
I will follow you
I will follow you
Tootoorooroorooo
I will follow you
LOVE CAN WAIT
by Geneva Cruz
On the day that we met
I thought you'd just be a friend
But as the days pass by
I feel the love grow deep inside
Ahh-oohhh
Everytime that you smile
All my days are filled with laughter
I know that you love me
But we are just too young for love
Ahh-ooohhh
Never knew the reasons why
But when I look straight in your eyes
I feel the love grow deep inside
Deep inside
Love can wait
Love can wait
Why do you keep goin' on?
Are you true to me?
I know that love can wait
Love can wait
I hope that you can wait
Now that we're too young
Can you wait for me?
I know that love can wait
Moments that we have shared
Mem'ries I'll keep forever
I now that you'll be there
To spend our lives together
Never knew the reasons why
But when I look straight in your eyes
I feel the love grow deep inside
Deep inside
Love can wait
Love can wait
Why do you keep goin' on?
Are you true to me?
Love can wait
Love can wait
I hope that you can wait
Now that we're too young
Can you wait for me?
I know that love can wait
I promise
I'll be there for you
I'll keep our friendship
All my life
Hoping that
When we get there
We could start anew
This love would all come true
With you
Aaaaahhh
Aaaaahhh
Love can wait
Love can wait
Now that we're too young
Can you wait for me
I know that love can wait
I know that love can wait
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Unbelievable but true
CAMP CRAME — Kakaibang sex trip ang ginawa ng isang 18-anyos na kolehiyala sa kanyang ari na naimpeksyon dahil sa celfon kaya napaaga ang pagsalubong ni kamatayan may tatlong araw na ang nakalipas sa Koronadal City, South Cotabato, ayon sa ulat kahapon.
Dahil sa kahihiyang sasapitin ng pamilya kahit binawian ng buhay ay itinago sa pangalang Dory, ang biktimang estudyante mula sa kilalang kolehiyo sa nabanggit na lungsod.
Batay sa ulat ng Koronadal City PNP, isinalaysay ng pamilya ng biktima na nag-masturbate ang biktima gamit ang kanyang celfon Nokia 8210.
Gayunman, napalalim ang pasok ng nasabing celfon sa loob ng ari ng dalaga kaya nabigo siyang mahugot pa ito.
Napag-alamang nakiusap ang pamilya ng biktima sa pulisya na huwag na itong pangalanan dahil sa matinding kahihiyan na maaaring idulot sa kanilang lugar.
Matapos ang tatlong araw na pananahimik habang nasa loob ng ari ang celfon ay napilitan na ang biktima na magtapat sa kanyang mga kasambahay kaya isinugod ito sa pinakamalapit na ospital.
Ayon sa ulat, nahirapang umihi ang biktima matapos na mamaga ang matris nito sanhi ng matinding impeksyon dahil sa celfon.
Dahil sa kumalat na ang impeksyon sa buong matris ay nabigong maagapan ang pagsalubong ni kamatayan sa biktima.
Posibleng nag-rapture na ang matris ng biktima matapos maimpeksyon dahil sa celfon na tatlong araw na sa loob ng ari, ayon pa sa ulat ng pulisya.
Tsk, tsk. What was she thinking? God rest her soul.
A short-lived panic attack
With it, I am able to keep track of all my earnings and my expenses, from my trike fare from the pier to the hospital, and to my coffee indulgences. I pasted on it all my pay statements and even my deposit slips. Aside from my to-do lists and my grocery lists, I have also written on it the songs I am planning to download when I have the time and the books I am planning to read - yes, you're right, when I have the time. When a topic comes into mind, one that I think would be worth writing about in this blog, I immediately jot it down in my little green notebook. When I read something interesting, the little green notebook is just an arm's length away from me, and so I write anything on it, anytime, anywhere.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
This one's funny but it ain't a joke
I got this article just this mid-morning, from philstar.com under Pilipino Star Ngayon. I read this article aloud to my sister and she kept asking me if it is a joke. But actually, it isn't. This really happened.
Ayon sa ulat, sumakay ng eroplano ang mag-asawang kinilala sa pangalang Rex at Jovelyn, sa NAIA Terminal 2 para magpunta sa Cebu at sa kalagitnaan umano ng biyahe nila ay biglang nagsigawan ang dalawa hanggang i-umpog ng lalaki ang babae sa bintana nito.
Dahil umano sa lakas ng untog ay nag-crack ang bintana kaya naman nagsigawan at nag-panic ang mga pasahero na sakay nito. Gayunman, inatasan ng piloto ang mga flight crew na sabihin umano sa mga pasahero nito na isuot ang kanilang seatbelt pero nakalma lamang ang mga sakay nito ng nakalapag sa Mactan International Airport ang nasabing eroplano.
Samantala, ang nasabing eroplano ng PAL ay hindi na muling nakabalik sa Manila dahil delikado na umano itong ibiyahe pa.
Pinigil naman ng Airport authorities sina Rex at Jovelyn para sa imbestigasyon.
Sinabi ng mga airport observer, na puwede umanong kasuhan ng malicious mischief at alarm scandal sa minimum at reckless imprudence resulting to damage of property sa maximum ang mag-asawa. (Butch Quejada)
Haaaaaaaaay naku! I couldn't imagine how I would have reacted if I was in that flight too. I was laughing at the "untogan part" but on the other hand that was really dangerous because a plane is a pressurized environment and changes in pressure, I think, could affect the plane's flight and could also alter the oxygen supply inside the plane. Am I correct? Any plane enthusiasts out there?
Couples, keep your rifts inside the bedroom, okey? People dying from a plane crash just because of your marital rifts ain't a dignified way to die, you know. What a waste of lives that would be.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
The dreaded "C"
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
If you're female and you drink alcohol, you might want to read this

Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Peeping Toms and Janes
I wish we could take a peek of what the future will be.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Driving the wrinkles away

CAUTION: Absolutely great laughs ahead. These'll really make you chuckle, you might fall off your seat.


What makes you smile?
Here's my growing list of reasons to smile. In random order.
1. A speedy internet connection.
2. Chunky strawberry bits in my strawberry milk shake.
3. A warm shower that lasts forever.
4. A day (or days) off from work.
5. Booking a flight online.
6. Frolicking in the beach.
7. Smell of sauteed garlic and onions.
8. A warm cup of coffee.
9. Waking up in the morning beside the person I love.
10. Planning a vacation.
11. A bacon breakfast prepared by Mom.
12. A movie date.
13. Coffee crumble ice cream.
14. Finding money in my pocket or in my bag pockets, when I least expect to.
15. A successfully cooked recipe. (Cooked by me of course.)
16. Singing a praise hymn with the church congregation.
17. Hearing a favorite song played on air.
18. Finishing a good book.
19. Family and friends who love me as I am.
20. Having monggo beans with pork in coconut milk for lunch.
Friday, March 12, 2010
It's funny how
As if the lengthy flight is not enough to drive you nuts, their television system was out of control and it was not working. I noticed that technology seems to be drawing excitement these days, from teasing me, especially when I travel. Remember my trip to Florida, which made me come up with Facts I never knew I never knew? You could never imagine a flight that lasts forever and you have no movies to entertain yourself with.
Anyway, thanks to the airline's complimentary earphones, I got to listen to my Ipod somehow. I say somehow because the quality is not exactly impressive, but at least, I was hearing music. And given that, the poor quality of the earphones was forgivable. (No wonder why they give it away.)
I usually set my Ipod to random play, and yesterday, it decided to join the hype of teasing me. It played at least three songs which were all popular during a time when I was with someone hundreds of years ago. But things didn't work out with that someone, when we both found ourselves at a crossroad. And yes, that someone decided to choose a path which was different from the one I chose.
I was wounded then. Each time I would hear these songs, I would either press the forward key, or worse, press stop. Stop. Period. Silence. Then nothing follows. Oh yes, sometimes, tears accompanied by muffled sobs.
I am someone who's life is so entwined with my love for music, that songs bookmark major events of my life and represent major characters of my own lifestory. Yet the the hurt I was feeling was gnawing on that love for music, like termites do to wood, like cancer eroding the very soul.
But yesterday was different. When I heard the songs, I just smiled.
I didn't press forward or stop this time. I just listened to the songs in their entirety and smiled.
I smiled because the songs were not anymore the painful reminder that they used to be. The poison had lost its effect and the wounds have completely healed with no single mark or distortion to prove that they ever existed. However, my appreciation for the song remains untarnished. This irony of admiration and repugnance existing at the same time seems so hard for me now to put in to words but I know you know what I mean. It does not also mean that I have been nursing a wound even after a hundred years had passed. The wounds were healed long before. I bet my physician's license on that. It's just that yesterday, was a defining moment, that etched the reality of my healing on stone.
I realized, it's funny how you could just smile when you hear songs that used to be your songs with someone whom you used to care about deeply. Injecting a refreshing twist to that old OPM classic, actually, you remember the song but you don't remember the feeling anymore. You smile almost to the point of laughing when the song makes you remember how raw love was then, and how you both believed your love for each other was . . . yes, everything. Yet it wasn't meant to be. Never was, actually.
You smile not because you are bitter but because you realize that things have fallen into place now, (as for me, with somebody new, and it could be something else for you,I guess), and now you know not only why that something happened with that someone but also why that something had to end there.
When you find yourself in this state - a healed state, most would say - a lot of things are sure to happen. The songs keep coming. The smiles keep coming, and are peppered with laughter. And love is reborn. Stronger. Everyday.
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