4th Pikit Relief Efforts.

2 weeks in Bongao, Tawi Tawi, a few days in Zamboanga, a full-packed bloggers overload in GenSan and a very rewarding sunny day in Pikit, North Cotabato. that comprised my October of 2008. my butt barely hit my office swivel chair at all.

i woke up to a screetching alarm at 3 am. was in a cold room, under some thick blankets in a hotel. was disorganized at first. wondered where the hell i was. as i looked at the bed beside me i saw 3 girls cramped in a double bunk bed. and then i remembered. i was at GenSan. the morning after the 2nd  Mindanao Bloggers Summit. chattee, dulce and tiara were my roomies. have to wake up. have to meet my mom in Pikit at 8 am for another round of relief efforts. had to drag my heavy butt to the banyo. 

got to Barangay Paidu Pulangi with my mom's Lions Club crew at 9:30. was met by my suki, the good looking vice mayor Don and some uncles and aunts. i was fatigued, sleep-deprived, tired but still functioning. i had to hop into the front seat of the dumptruck again just so that the military won't stop the driver. face value daw as my mom calls it. i call it beauty. plain and simple (nyehehe please don't take me seriously i still lack sleep). 

as usual, nawala ang pagod ko when i saw the kids at the evacuation areas. my mom and i gave out biscuits and cornick (care of Rebisco) to the young ones while the locals were preparing our lunch. i tried to appear stoic but lost control once i saw the children.  even if we bring truckloads of food, i still feel kulang pa rin for everyone there.  oh well, had to practice restraint just so i wouldn't  cry. 

let the photos speak for themselves. 

(our entourage. promise i told them we didn't need the road security :)

(first faces as we were going in)

(when they look at you like this it would be impossible not to feel sad)

(oh yeah that's me up there on the truck! i'm so macho davah?:)

(and that's my mom with the orange scarf. ain't she the coolest!?)

awwwwwww

Pierre (jesterinexile.blogspot.com)

yahoo i'm in GENSAN!!

now currently sitting in at the Mindanao Bloggers Summit 2 here at the Family Country Hotel.

i'm touched.

really I am.

3 speakers mentioned me, my blog and the efforts I do with the bakwits of Mindanao.

and i thought my readers were composed only of Girard, Teng and maybe a handful of friends. I don't carry an adsense account (i don't even know how to go about it) and have nada information on page ranking chenes. i just blog about the nonsense i do everyday, my yoga practice and of course my children. i didn't know i made any type of waves in blogosphere.

ripples of change i want to do (yoda-like?).

peace starts with a smile. and of course page views :)

namaste and salaam to everyone who visits this page. leave me a comment.

(nakanang.. posing with Mayor Acharon)

We are Off to GenSan

Fresh from my very fatigue-ridden trip from Bongao, Tawi Tawi.. I am off to MBS2 in General Santos City.

This is ME time now. Wala munang work. 

Will be chillin with fellow bloggers.

Seeyah! Peace and more Light

CO-PRESENTERS:
City Mayor Pedro B. Acharon, Jr.
Congresswoman Darlene Antonino-Custodio
NOKIA
Department of Tourism XII
ABS-CBN Regional Network Group
Bariles Republic
Gen. Santos City Tourism Association
SOCCSKSARGEN Blogers

GOLD SPONSORS:
Friendster
Globe
AMA Computer Learning Center
Grab A Crab Restaurant and Coffee Club 101
Gregoria Printing Press

SILVER SPONSORS:
Nokiahost.Com
Asia United Bank
Family Country Hotel & Convention Center
East Asia Royale Hotel
Fine Pixel Advertising
IDEAS

BRONZE SPONSORS
GenSan Sale.Com
Blogging from Home Book
Pacific Seas Seafood Market
Generals Logimark Exponent
Prints and You
Writing Edge.Com
Forest Lake San Carlos Park
Rolee Bakery & Cafe
Jehzlau Concepts
Techykid.Com
Jaypee Online.Net
Blue Media Communications
International Container Terminal Services, Inc
Shalom Wizard Academy
Dreamworld Travel and Tours
Sta. Cruz Seafoods, Inc.
Dellosa Design Build Services
Kristan Bookstore
DOLE Philippines

Husky Bus Lines
Shakey's Pizza
Family Brand Sardines
Gaisano Mall of GenSan
Chowking - KCC
Jollibee National Highway
Procter & Gamble Philis., Inc

Mega Sardines

CCP Twin Bill Official Poster

Here is our official poster for the twinbill plays at the CCP. See you there!

ps: click on the link so you can see the microscopic fonts :)

Peace & Light!

Magsukol

Assalamu Alaikum from Bongao, Tawi tawi, the islands of carageenan, virgin beaches and hospitable friends.

I took an hour and fifteen minutes SeaAir flight this morning from Zamboanga. The flight was uneventful. 18 passengers including the pilot and first officer. Dozed off as soon as the doors closed. Woke up an hour later to very generous turbulence. Generous 'coz it actually felt like the air was hitting the plane on one side and the pilot was forcing the aircraft to stay in place. More like being in a blender on low speed. Can’t seem to word it basta I felt like the bangus I had for breakfast wanted to come up and say hello to my pink shirt.

Bongao population more or less is around 50 to 60 thousand people. It's so far down south that it's sort of a stones throw away from Malaysia. Bongao is the capital of the province of Tawi-Tawi. An hour and a half plane ride from Zamboanga and about 18 hours by ferry or boat.

If time permits I would love to visit Simunul Island where the first Mosque in the Philippines was built by Sheik Karimul Makhdum. If I still have time:(

Aylavet here!

(Bud Bongao)(took this while i was in another kumpit {local speedboat})

Buy Your Tickets NOW. Now Na!

Ang Bayot, Ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal sa Isang Nakababagot na Paghihintay sa Kanto ng Lanao del Norte" and "Ang Mga Mananahi" will be re-staged at the Tanghalang Huseng Batute at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

Shows are at 4pm and 8pm.

Tickets are now available at the following ticket centers:

• UP Repertory Company - 0915-5881782 (Z); 09166125404 (Gelene); Ogie (09187797982; 0926-8122336)
  
  
• Young Moro Professional Network (YMPN) - g108 Jocfer Bldg. Commonwealth Avenue QC. c/o Aradelria Belleng 0920-6529066
  
  

• UP Office of the Student Regent, Vinzon's Hall Basement, UP Diliman c/o Shan
  
  
• UP Muslim Student Association, Vinzon's Hall, UP Diliman c/o Tani Basman
  
  
• CCP Box Office
  
  

Tickets cost a mere Php 250. 00 (Ogie says its the amount of 2 Starbucks coffees). If you want to make reservations or give donations, please do not hesitate to call Ogie Braga at 0918-7797982 (ogiebraga@yahoo.com) or the UP Rep representatives at: 0915-5881782 (Z); 09166125404 (Gelene).

Help us support the remaining IDPs languishing in the evacuation areas in different parts of North Cotabato and Maguindanao.

no to leather.

since a few months ago i have forgone using leather products (as much as my cravings can). no more  leather bags, wallets clutches and stuff. i'm still working on the shoes though... but i'm getting there. just using the ones i have. no more buying. it suddenly dawned on me that the choices i have for non-leather shoes are very slim. there's canvass, joot, plastic (ouch! whoever heard of plastic shoes), synthetic leather and oh well.. rubber. so difficult to let go of the leather shoe addiction. adding insult to injury, having been gifted with size 10 feet (italian 9m, american 9.5), local shoe stores dont carry my size so going cold turkey on leather shoes is not a very feasible idea. not yet.

leather bags on the other hand are very easy to swap with the more eco friendly ones. my mom was just to happy to accept all my leather hand me down bags (sob). some were brand new from my sister M. oh well.

but getting over my leather crazed phase was easier than expected. much like when i quit smoking a year ago. just quit cold turkey. thats the way to go. same as drinking liquor. quit. just like that. 

really. i get weird dart-like looks when i mention to friends and family that i am slowly emancipating myself from my leather addiction. i get "what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-you" looks all the time.  pretty funny.

i am the type who cringes at the though of  slaughtering a herd of small fluffy animals and i do want to start somewhere. being eco-friendly that is. it's not denying oneself of the luxuries of leather (oh such luxury believe me), it's just the advocacy of being more responsible citizens of the planet. wow. that sounded too B.S. but hey, i wanna do it. 

so there. goodbye to Coach and LVs (which i truthfully cannot afford) and Gouyards. there's always ukay ukay to aid in my transition period. and there's the very trendy ecology  conscious grocery  bags like the ones below. cute.

so, if you're wondering what to give me this Christmas. here are inexpensive options for you guys (wink wink). mababaw lang naman ang kaligayahan ko. 

so there.  

queer and proud.

My cousin Teng is amazing. He will be at this event. Unfortunately, I didn't get his talent. It doesn't run in the family :) 

************************************************

(snatched from their website)

Saturday, November 1, 2008
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM, with reception following
at the Chopin Theater
1543 W. Division Street, Chicago
Free to attend, but reservations are required. (See below.)

The Guild Complex, in collaboration with the Iowa Writers' Workshop, presents The Exchange for 2008. The Exchange is the Guild's annual international forum on new literature.

This year's program examines the dichotomies of borders and cultures from the writer's perspective. Because lines on the map do not necessarily define lines on the page, this year's program is titled "Migrating People, Migrating Literature." The 2008 program presents four special foreign authors with two distinguished Chicago authors, and is moderated by one of the city's best-known experimental poets.

The Exchange builds a bridge of creative dialogue between Chicago's top critics and practitioners and some of the best emerging writers abroad, through the participation of the International Writers' Program at the University of Iowa.

From the Iowa Writers Workshop's International Writers Program, we're inviting Laila al-Atrash (novelist, journalist; Jordan), Tarek Eltayeb (novelist, fiction writer, poet, playwright; Austria), Yael Globerman (poet, fiction writer, novelist; Israel), and Gutierrez Mangansakan II (journalist, poet, essayist, filmmaker, editor; The Philippines). For our international writers' biographies, click here.

From the Guild's local community of writers, we're inviting Paul Martinez Pompa (poet), and John Keene (poet). The discussion will be moderated by fellow Chicago poet Tony Trigilio. For our Chicagoans' biographies, click here.

bojo. in memoriam

he was my nephews and nieces good friend. they are fom Cotabato City. having been abandoned by his mother and father, he lived with his kind grandmother who raised and took care of him. he was 19 years old and a jolly person who always cracked jokes. he often slept over at my brother C's house, thus, making him their adopted son whether they liked it or not. he liked staying at C's place because he felt like he had a family there. my nieces and nephew treated him like he was part of the household. he ate there. slept there. took baths there.i t was his second home.

while on his way to C's house a few days ago he was accosted by strangers. they created a ruckus. being a young and strong boy, he fought back. they shot him 3 times. one shot hit his hip, hit the ground then ricocheted back up his neck. he still ran. but then, he fell and hit the ground. he died on the way to the hospital.

we never got to know what they argued about or why they chose to harass this kind boy.

but what we are sure of was... he was running towards the direction of my brother's house.

we fervently pray they catch the useless wimps that did this to him.

ingat wherever you are Boj. maybe you weren't loved enough by others, but you were loved by us.

walk with me.

heading off to Zamboanga, Tawi-tawi and Pagadian this Friday till next week.

any of you guys wanna have coffee/tea/water with me while i'm there? let's swap stories and lame jokes. 

sms/message me.

All Systems Go.

Just got the green light.. major marketing efforts are being started. Help me pass this on to your friends please. More updates (posters, press releases, kind supporters) in the coming days.

Critically acclaimed plays by Rogelio Braga, "Ang Bayot, Ang Meranao at ang Habal-Habal sa Isang Nakababagot na Paghihintay sa Kanto ng Lanao del Norte" and  "Ang Mananahi" will be re-staged by the UP Repertory Company at the Tanghalang Batute, Cultural  Center of the Philippines. Shows will be at 4:00 and 8:00 pm on both days.

Tickets are available at the UP Repertory 0916.6125404; 09155881782 and the CCP Box Office. 

Proceeds will be for the benefit of the North Cotabato IDPs.

We are enjoining those who will watch to bring donations in kind (please see list below).

Food Items

Rice
Condiment (Salt, Sugar, Soy Sauce, Vinegar)
Dried fish
Mongo
Noodles
 
Non-Food Items

Clothing
Pots, plates, and utensils
Sleeping mats (Banig)
Blankets
Water containers/jugs
Mosquito nets
Detergent/soap
Medical supplies
Medicines 

Kalinaw Mindanao

I got this in my inbox today and found it interesting enough to share with you guys. If I'm not too busy with our own relief efforts I will definitely be at this event. 

With our hands together we ALL can make a difference in their lives. 

Spare a few minutes of your time and check out their site here.

Kalinaw Mindanao—a coalition of faith-based, human rights, and service-oriented institutions, organizations, and concerned individuals—is responding to the humanitarian crisis in Mindanao by spearheading the National Interfaith Humanitarian Mission on October 21-25 in Lanao del Norte and North Cotabato. 

It is their hope that everyone can extend their hands to our suffering brothers and sisters through any of the following:

• Donating cash or providing relief goods (rice, dried fish, salt/sugar, medicines, etc)
• Conducting a relief campaign in your school, workplace, church, or community 
• Volunteering your professional expertise (health, psychosocial, legal, etc)
• Participating in the actual mission and helping in the service-delivery

For inquiries and confirmation, please contact the Mission secretariat at InPeace Mindanao, telefax 082 299 4964 or email them at kalinawmindanao@yahoo.com.

"Our work for peace in Mindanao starts with a kilo of rice for the hungry, a blanket to give warmth to a child, a health worker's healing touch, and an advocate's voice to end all-out war.

Join us in this prayer. Help make it happen."

Relief Mission ulit!

I am pointing at Andrea, my wacky daughter, trapped in between boxes of clothes and relief goods. She is sitting on another box and not on the floor. YES... the boxes are really piling up and i'm in a better state to travel.... 

THAT IS WHY...

...... our next trip to the IDP evacuation centers in North Cotabato will be on Sunday (still tentative). It was supposed to be Saturday but I have a Parenting Session to attend to in my kids' school and I don't want to be castigated by the little ones for neglecting them so I'm moving it to this  Sunday, OCTOBER 12.

If any of you wanna join me please don't be too shy to send me an sms. That is if you don't mind sitting beside me in a rusty, ol' dump truck. It would be nice if  you have an SUV so we won't cuddle up in front of the dumpster and risk breaking our backs when the rough roads start. Pero kung wala... the dumptruck will service us well.

Please if you have anything more to give or send our way please do. I will have my arms outstretched to receive your donations.

Peace and Light mga kapatid!!

the 7 things I like about you. my hater is back.

ireceived this e-mail very early this morning. i'm guessing its from the hate mailer I wrote about a few weeks ago. more hate coming your way peeps!

"di ka pa rin tumitigil? nandamay ka pa ng taga-maynila sa patutsada mo! kapal rin ng apog mo ano? mga tanga lang ang tutulong diyan sa relief efforts mo. masagasaan ka sana ng dumptruck mo. at ilagay mo na lang sa orphanage yang mga anak mong walang kwenta rin tulad mo. sabihin mo na rin sa tatay mo na sumama na kayo sa impyerno."

1. I like that you have a very wide vocabulary of cusswords. I believe in your “real” life you are a sad employee unhappy with your job and bored to death.
   
   
2. I like that you are very vocal. No stop signs for you. Naagawan ka ba ni Ama ng asawa kaya? (am i getting warmer). Hooray at di ka shy.
   
   
3. I like that you hate me so much. You see I get so much love these days that you balance out the giddiness of good karma. Thank you.
   
   
4. I like that you threaten me all the time. With what you do I exercise caution always. I'm always on my toes and  watchful and vigilant. Don't fret I always have my 9mm handy, clean and oiled just in case you drop by and pay me a visit.
   
   
5. I like that you make me realize that I cannot please everyone in the world. And I don’t have any plans to. I just do what I do.
   
   
6. I like that you are very opinionated and have a myopic view of the world. You are always an example I give my kids to NOT emulate.
   
   
7. lastly, I like that you make my skin crawl whenever I think of you. It exercises my blood vessels and wakes up my molecules. Thank you for keeping me healthy.

If you wanna hurt me I dare you. Really. You are a pitiful, sad creature and all I have is compassion for you. You need a friend my dear.

And you need to get laid once in a while. I betcha you’ll feel a helluva lot better. Happy hormones!

Peace and light to you.