Losing on a Last Day

October 16, 2009 (Friday), Makati City, Philippines -   As I swam back to consciousness, I slowly became aware of a particular sound, the kind of disturbing silence in which you know at once that something is dreadfully wrong.  My eyes snapped open and I blinked once, twice…a bit drowsily.

The buzzing, eerie silence continued unabated.  What was that sound which was making me uncomfortable? It was familiar and at the same time, it was not.

I rolled over and sat up somewhat unsteadily. Looking at the dim surroundings my gaze jumped erratically around the shadowy room.  It flitted from the stationary electric fan – it was not whirring merrily away as its usual wont – to the night light – it was only dark glass glinting – to the shaded windows – which showed the faint outline of unmoving leaves and potted plants.

My last memory was that of the sturdy alarm clock’s hands pointing to 4 a.m. and after that I drew a blank. Or maybe that was a dream which I could not remember in its entirety?

The slow trickle of salty liquid between my shoulder blades encouraged me to move.  Standing up and walking slowly, I reached out a trembling hand to touch my face, and it came away wet. I could not see but only feel the slight dampness of my palm even as I stared at it,  hence I carefully skirted the dim shapes in the gloom.

I reached out to where I knew the phone would be. A moment passed before I could remember the number I was to call. A busy tone rewarded my first try, but then finally, a feminine voice answered and I jumped into speech.

“Hello Ms. ____, good morning! This is Cat of  ____.  I just woke up and it was hot. Is there no electricity? Do we have a rotating brown-out for today?” I asked as I groped blindly for a woven native fan I kept near the phone.

“Hi Cat! There’s no electricity but not because of any.….what happened…excuse ha?,” and she turned away to answer somebody else who came into her office as I waited somewhat impatiently and continued my search for the elusive abanico to fan my overheated face.

Coming back to the phone, she continued on “The transformer at the front of ________ building near our corner exploded. Earlier this morning, somebody jumped from _______ . SUICIDE! Yes, that was what they said. The body landed and the next thing we know…BOOM!”

“WHAT!…. What floor?! Omigosh…What time?!”  I gasped back in astonishment as I did a little exploding of my own.

“Well, they are not saying anything else. Confidential and under investigation. But it was probably an hour or so ago.”

"How about Meralco? Do you know the time frame as to when it could be fixed?” The logical, work-conscious part of my mind pushed me past my shocked daze because I usually had double the emails on a Friday.

“….Unfortunately we don’t know when Meralco will be able to fix it,” she added in a mournful tone.

“So….he or she is dead…whatever floor it was…and the body hitting the power lines that’s why the transformer was affected,” my voice trailed off as I stated the obvious in disjointed sentences.

I thanked her and automatically put down the phone.  I let go of the woven fan that I had gripped and forgotten to use during the conversation. More beads of sweat trailed lazily down my forehead and back.

Walking this time towards the weak daylight showing through the gauzy curtain of my balcony door, I stopped and brought my thoughtful gaze up.  Up and towards the various windows dotting the pale-painted walls of the opposite building facing my current home.

This was my neighboring building in which one person on a Friday morning had jumped from in order to make a grim appointment with Death and leave the living world behind.

A faint sound interrupted my silent contemplation of the different windows.  Fancifully, the thought passed that they all looked eerily similar to empty and unforgiving dark eyes set in an pockmarked canvas of an uncaring face.

Glancing back into the blanket of unrelenting darkness behind me, I cocked my head and listened intently.

The growing sound that I heard this time was familiar.  It’s absence earlier was what had torn me away from the cradling arms of Morpheus.

The electric fan had just come back to life and was now whirring merrily away.

Travel Toinks (Beijing): "BUSted"

Aug 24, '09 9:19 PM

Once upon a time, three adventurous and unsuspecting friends named Lhooh, and ChehCheh and Niao-Miao (the names have been changed to protect their identities) went to Beijing to see the great and famous sights of the fabled city.

On the trip,  they encountered many truly wondrous things - and things to ponder about!

Such as.... figuring out the apparently complicated transportation process of the famed city.

A case in point: Lhooh asks passing citizen about what bus to get on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lhooh:  Excuse me sir,  but could you tell me which bus goes to Tiananmen?

Passerby: Which way do you want to go? East or West?

Lhooh:  Hmmm...I guess...Tiananmen East.

Passerby (pointing to a bus parked on the street): Then you take this bus.

Lhooh: Thank you very much, Sir!  Hmmm....and what bus should I take if I want to go to Tiananmen West instead?

Passerby (walking away): Oh, you take same bus.


* lightbulb*  well, it does make sense....ehem...



DISCLAIMER: The tales shared by the writer on this series of blogs about her trip to Beijing have been either exaggerated, simplified, mangled or mixed up for humorous purposes. While some undoubtedly happened (you can guess which ones did), the tale is not meant to imply anything derogatory about the Chinese culture or people.

Travel Toinks (Beijing): "Good Medicine"

Once Upon a Time in Beijing...2: "Good Medicine"

Once upon a time, three adventurous and unsuspecting friends named Lhooh, ChehCheh and Niao-Miao (the names are changed to protect their secret identities!)  went to Beijing to see the great and famous sights of the fabled city.

On the second day, Niao-Miao had unfortunately not been able to get rid of her toothache which had plagued her, so ChehCheh asked Lhooh to go to the pharmacy to help the ailing Niao-Miao, since he was the one only one in the trio who could understand the subtle nuances of the city's ancient language.

Lhooh ambled off confidently and went to ask the pharmacist for medicine for the tooth.

The conversation somehow went this way (no thanks to my imagination after it was retold by the leading character).


++++++++++

Pharmacist (nods sagely and brings out a box of medicine):
Where is the pain located, Foreigner-Who-Looks-Chinese?...is it in the tooth itself or is it the gum surrounding the tooth?

Lhooh a.k.a. Foreigner-Who-Looks-Chinese:
I am unsure... O Great-Pharmacist-of-this-Pharmacy.

Pharmacist a.k.a. Great-Pharmacist-of-this-Pharmacy (looking bored):
......

Lhooh a.k.a. FWLC (deciding quickly):
It may be the tooth itself, O Great-Pharmacist-of-this-Pharmacy.

Pharmacist a.k.a. GPOTP:
Well then, Foreigner-Who-Can-Understand-Chinese, take this.. 

(hands over the box of tooth medicine she had taken out earlier)....

it is for the pain in the tooth you have said.

Lhooh a.k.a. FWLC (curious):
Great-Pharmacist...

GPOTP (looking more bored):
......hmm?

Lhooh a.k.a. FWLC (clears throat): .
If this is for pain in the tooth ...may I also have the one which is for the pain in the gums? Just in case?

Pharmacist a.ka. GPOTP:
Oh, it works on both the tooth and gum.



* Eh? then why did you ask in the first place? *DISCLAIMER: the tales being shared by the writer in this series of blogs, while true, have been admittedly exaggerated for humorous purposes. It is not meant to imply anything derogatory about the Chinese culture or people.


- Aug 24, '09 12:03 AM

Recipe: Rose Bandung (Other Beverages)

Category:		Beverages
Style:		Other
Special Consideration:		Quick and Easy
Servings:		1 batch

Description:
Bandung is the name of a drink popular in Malaysia and Singapore consisting of milk flavored with rose cordial, giving a pink color.

Ingredients:

3 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups water
1 egg white
1/2 eggshells, slgihtly crushed (yes, the shell. Make sure you wash the shell first)
cochineal food coloring
rose essence
evaporated milk
crushed ice (cubed if preferred.)

Directions:
- Put the sugar and water in a pan and bring to boil.
- After the sugar has dissolved, add egg white and shell (to clarify syrup).
- Simmer for half an hour for the syrup to thicken.
- Strain.
- Cool.
- Add a few drops of the food colouring and essence to taste.
- Dilute 1 part of syrup to 5 parts water (or less if to your liking).
- Make sure it is slightly sweeter than your preference because you are going to add evaporated milk.
- Add evaporated milk to taste. Approximately 2 tbsps for a glass.
- Add crushed/cubed ice.
- Enjoy.

or alternatively you can do my shortcut way..

I bought rose syrup and just added it to liquid on a ratio of 1 part rose syrup 4 parts water/liquid (could be cold water or cold milk or you can add ice cubes later).

For the liquid part aside from the water, I either use cows milk from tetra packs if I don't have evaporated milk, or I sometimes use powdered goat's milk to give it a different creamy taste. The carabao (or water buffalo's milk) is still something I have to acquire since its not always freshly available as to where I live in.

- Feb 1, '09 3:32 AM

ALTANGHAP @ Via Mare

December 5, 2008
Makati City, Philippines
5:30 pm


I was so busy, that as is my wont during Fridays, I forgot to eat lunch.

Yes Virginia, it does happen to me..more often than you might think. My stomach is empty but I pay it no mind in the thrill of answering emails and talking on the phone. Truly.

So...stomach grumbling and feeling dizzy... and remembering I had to pick up a gift for a christening tomorrow wherein I would also be a ninang/godmother to a hapless and innocent child (who will have no clue what kind of ninang she is going to be saddled with , she can blame her dad for that), I dashed madly out of my home and ran to GB1 (Greenbelt 1).

Lo and behold, I passed by National Bookstore, and Via Mare.

Didn't I say I would check out also if it was "lugaw" or "congee" that I had eaten and talked about in my post "Hankering for Congee" (http://cuh888.multiply.com/journal/item/62/Hankering_for_Congee).

So checked it, got bamboozled into checking out more of their menu..and under Altanghap, finally selected spicy tuyo flakes and a glass of cold, cold sago.

The only complaint I have relates to the rice in this dish. It was puffy, somewhat wet and certainly not the kind of fried rice I liked - which leans to fried and somewhat dried out rice - all the the better to pour sikwate (thick, rich, hot chocolate) in, my dear!

Its called "Altanghap" because its ALmusal (Breakfast) - TANGhali (Lunch) - HAPunan (Dinner) due to the fact that the meals under this heading can be served any time.

Enjoy!

- Dec 5, '08 11:43 PM

A Funny Fine Flight

November 14, 2008
Up-in-the-air

I fly PAL, but its usually economy and I sometimes I wish I could afford to go business class especially on long-haul flights such as those from the Philippines to the US of A.

Great was my surprise when things turned out very well for this particular flight of mine.

One of my best buds from college works as a pilot for PAL, unfortunately he doesn't do the US trips though but those in Asia. He did text me that while he would not be handling the flight (hmmmph, he could have taken the one I was on to Japan though...grrrr) he would be wishing me well. Let's call this buddy of mine as Mr. N.

I had just sat down and ruefully thought that I should really try to either check in early or reserve through the phone for an early check-in so I could have one of the exit seats and have more leg room. Long legs wasn't that great on long flights!

I was nonplussed when a pretty stewardess with a warm smile asked me if I was Cat Herrera and if Mr. R was my cousin. I had met Mr. R but had no idea why he would be claiming me as his cousin.  So I just dazedly said the complete name of Mr. R and remarked that I knew he wasn't on this flight.

Lo and behold, the stewardess remarked to another steward passing by that I was Mr. R's cousin!  As I was about to open my mouth to say we were really not cousins (btw, Mr. R is actually Mr. N's cousin and I daresay if I had married into Mr. N's clan, I would be probably Mr. R's cousin hehehe...) I got pushed towards an empty 3-seats. I couldn't believe my good fortune! This is a first time for me and a far cry from how I was situated on my flight to Sanfo in 2007!

Wow, I could finally curl and sleep at last. I was so thankful for that, that it was enough for me if nothing else happened and I thanked her profusely if quietly. And I didn't correct her anymore about Mr. R being my cousin *grin*

My next favorite part of flights arrived - they served meals. I got extra attention from the steward earlier who asked if I was okay. I asked for more water. I got a whole  big bottle, and a wink and a "sssshhh!" ....Hmmm...strange but satisfying as I love to drink water during trips like this.

I finally curled up with one of my heavy tomes when the stewardess earlier dropped by and passed me a tray which was full of cheeses and fruits and crackers and what have you. Hmm..probably from business class, eh? I gave her a big smile and said thank you so much, I will really enjoy this..and promptly went to munching on it while all the others around me slept.

Before the next meal though, another stewardess passed by. She was older and though quite hospitable, I had noticed her earlier in the business class section and she looked quite strict. I got a shock of my life when she suddenly stopped by and asked if I was Cat Herrera. What the? Was this more of Mr. R's doing?

Well, I wanted to hear what it was all about before I could say yes, but then she said she was looking for me row to row (since I had apparently transferred seats). Breathing more easily I hesitantly admitted my identity.

So now the steward from earlier and this older stewardess were bunked by my seat. And while I blinked rapidly, the latter was smiling naughtily and said she was asked to pass on a message from the pilot, who got contacted by an air traffic controller who said to greet me.

When she asked if I knew who the guy was, I said I had a friend who was an ATC (I was still thinking of Che, its impossible it would be Loo, her also wacky half,  who would be handling this flight). I didn't voice out my surprise when she grinned and remarked in such a way that meant she thought I had a secret admirer.  EH??

I thought - well, maybe Che asked one of her male co-workers to do the greeting, that is why they said a guy was greeting me. I smiled and didn't elaborate anymore but made a mental note to thank Che and tell her to thank her co-worker.

Before we disembarked, a couple of more things happened.

I got a bag full of chocolate cake slices in a Duty Free bag from the stewardess earlier (this was a blessing as I had to be up really early to walk to the office in Cinci and didn't have time to get breakfast). I had also talked to the steward who gave me tips on where to go in Sanfo and other places.

Lastly, when I stepped out of the plane into the tube...the older stewardess grinned at me again and remarked on the ATC who was my friend, making it more obvious she really thought I had either an admirer or was dating an ATC. EH???

Before I came back to the Philippines, I continued my PM with Che. I thanked her and told her the tale, and all the while I thought she had asked a co-worker to do the greeting. We laughed heartily over it when she said it was her wacky self who talked to the pilot. She was mistaken for a guy! Tsk--tsk..she really needs to work on her bedroom voice then *wink*

And here I am now, trying to ask Mr. N to give me the number of his cousin Mr. R (who I met before, along with his wife in the birthday party of one of Mr. N's daughters) so I could tell him thank you and to tell the three stewards on that flight that they made me happy I had flown PAL that day. I had noted down their names...but my buddy is not responding..so I'm writing this blog instead. *yawn*

Yup, that was one of my memorable long-haul flights to grin over.

- Dec 5, '08 12:19 AM

A flurry of snow in Cinci

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

I did mention to some friends that upon my arrival in Cincinnati, Ohio my manager thoughtfully presented me with borrowed stuff from his wife - coat, gloves, scarves, hats...enough that I could make a fashion statement every day of my stay here.

One thing which amused me though was the mask-like thing he also had me borrow..this time it was his hat/mask - it could cover the ears, and at the same time, protect the mouth area as it had some anti-bacterial cloth one could pull up to cover one's mouth and nose. His daughters gave it to him when he had to dig through goodness knows how much of snow in this year's blizzard.

The drawback? It reminds me of a robber about to hijack a convenience store :-)

I don't have pictures of myself wearing the other stuff, but earlier this afternoon, I did go walking around Cinci in the cold and snow as I wanted to take pictures of the buildings I had seen. Unfortunately, it was a bit difficult to maneuver and juggle my camera and bags due to the gloves I had on. 

I was particularly thankful though that I had chosen my manager's hat to use today as snow suddenly came down, then a gust of wind every now and then completed the afternoon's weather offering.

As a mad thought, I took out my cell and took quick pics of myself, covered face and all...don't I look warm and toasty?

Last picture here was taken where I usually get my bagels and  milk for breakfast...at least last year that is what I did (I survived on this diet) - umandar yung pagka-thrifty ko and I used the balance of the money for food, buying something else....like...books...I want to go to Newport on the Levy all in a sudden din...tsk!

The temperature ranges (in Fahrenheit now) I experienced were approximately from 23 to 38 degrees. Brrrrrrr. 

No wonder most people seems to be obsessed about weather here...it can make life pretty difficult - you just don't worry about food, but about the cold which could freeze you to death. At least I can now say I've experienced fall/autumn and winter-like weather...wheeeee!

-          Nov 21, '08 10:22 AM