RIP Truman Hernaez

Veteran chess campaigner Truman Hernaez passed away Tuesday at 2:00 in the afternoon, March 30, 2010 at the Philippine General Hospital.

God rest his soul.

Chess Lessons for Teachers

Since the beginning of third term my SpEd class has become the place to be during lunch time, I mean after lunch. It started with one grade 5 student who asked if he can borrow a chess board. Since I was concerned about the pieces getting lost, I asked him to bring his opponent in SpEd and play there instead.
The pair played 'till the bell rang as a signal of the start of the for the first period in the afternoon. The following day, this boy arrived with three more classmates and asked if they can play. Of course I said yes! Right about the second game of the 2 pairs, a group of grade six female students came and asked if they can play with the TIC TAC TOE. They played on the other table with loud giggling and laughing.

Then the following day after this, it was a blast! There were at least 5 boards laid out with the boys from grade six and five and the girls choosing to play TIC TAC TOE and memory game. This was my dream of seeing my students play strategy games that promotes thinking skills and their memory getting the needed stimulation.

I'm not saying that my school or any school in particular or the school system itself is at fault in providing our students the necessary mental stimulation. In fact for the past 100 years scholars have worked and put in lots of ideas and researches on the why's, the how's and the when's to help improve the student's learning.

Why is chess, scrabble and other boardgames are a valuable tool in education?

Here's what I have noted in the past five years as a chess coach, trainer and club moderator:

Chess is a game. It has it's inherent fun value that easily attracts students and children of all ages. I have dealt with the "zero knowledge" and the "varsity level" learners and in between. From what I've seen, they enjoy the game first and foremost. I can't imagine myself or any of these kids playing the game without the element of fun. 

Chess provides competition. Everybody feels good to win, nobody loves to lose. This is a fact why chess moves someone to play the game for hours non-stop. One more chance at winning, one more chance. This is where the clear thinking adult guidance should come in. During lunch times, I make sure I announce to everyone in the room that there's only 10 minutes left before the bell. Since we have at least eight chess clocks, they use shorter and faster time controls enough for them to finish that one more game and clean up and dash to their rooms on second floor.        

Chess is an avenue for focus, concentration and attention skills improvement. This is where the blur comes in specially for the outsiders. Would you believe me if I tell you that lunch times with my chess players are often the noisiest? I say noisiest but not rowdy or out of hand. They have learned to laugh at themselves or laugh at some jokes from a nearby table and still focus on their game. One Korean student named James would always imitate his friend Shawn into saying "Sir, it's own-age time". The boys love to say this when they think they are winning against me or to someone older than they are.Since we all play a friendly game, we are very lax with the loudness of the players but they themselves keep quiet when they are in a losing position. It's in this situation when they focus, concentrate and attend to the position seriously, without any cueing from me or any adult.   

Chess is "HOTS". Higher Order Thinking Skills is a concept that has become a major educational agenda. Just what are the skills included in the order? Let me share the entry from Wikipedia:

" The simplest thinking skills are learning facts and recall, while higher order skills include critical thinking, analysis and problem solving. Including higher order thinking skills (HOTS) in learning outcomes is a very common feature of standards based education reform Advocates of traditional education object to elevating HOTS above direct instruction of basic skills. Many forms of education reform, such as inquiry-based science, reform mathematics and whole language emphasize HOTS to solve problems and learn, sometimes deliberately omitting direct instruction of traditional methods, facts or knowledge. Critics of standards based assessments which use open-response items which require higher order analysis and writing instead of multiple choice questions point out that this style of testing is even more difficult for students who are behind academically. Indeed, while minorities may lag by 10 to 25 points on standardized percentile rankings, the failure rates of minorites are two to four times the best scoring groups on tests like the WASL. It is debated whether it is correct to raise the importance of teaching process over content.^"

It's a HOT game indeed! When one plays the game one has to do some decision making skills, make judgement calls, look ahead, evaluate positions and possibilities, do abstract reasoning, recognize patterns  do strategic planning to name a few.

What more can you ask for when you see your students enjoying while learning? Aside from the fact that it engages the students mentally and socially, you also know they are aware of the responsibility for the actions they make over the board.

That's what we want our students to become, be responsible for their own actions and it's all there in the game of chess. The Educational Value of Chess is something you cannot ignore so don't ask me ever again Why Chess?

This article was inspired by the works and writing of Mr. Theory. Visit his blog at Central Oregon Chess Journal.

Soulful Video

Here is something I'd like to share:

Blue Moon 2nd Time Around

We will have another blue moon for tonight and this will be the second time we will have it for the year. News of lunacy and suicides filled the neighborhood last night and it was one of my chess mates at the center of it all. As of the moment, he is fighting (if that's the right word) for his life at the intensive care unit of Our Lady of the Pillar Medical Center in Imus, Cavite.

Healing starts from within but sometimes we get the inspiration from nature.Please pray for everyone!

Now that the blue moon phenomenon has been demystified by science a long time ago, I'd like to share this YouTube video of Orange and Lemons:

Prayers for Truman Hernaez

Please pray for veteran chess campaigner Truman Hernaez. He is currently in comatose at the ICU of The Our Lady of the Pillar Hospital in Imus, Cavite. Unconfirmed reports of self-inflicted gunshot in his head caused it.

Truman has been battling depression the past few years after he came back from his short stint as a board crew on the seas and his mother dying 2 or 3 years ago.

Prayers and more prayers!

Holy Week in the Philippines

When I was a child, the Holy Week is the season of fasting, praying and no TV's. In fact I can still remember how spiteful my aunt was to us when I played basketball with my cousins on a Maundy Thursday a lot of summers ago. Holy is also a week when no Baranggay "operations" are done or you be extra careful not to get wounds because it will take longer to heal if you get on this week.

Holy Week was something observed by Filipinos with solemnity, sacredness and respect. There were even memories in my head when we would have to contend with the white noise on TV because of the disruption of the regular programming in observance of the Passion of Christ. I was born in Makati City and grew up in the areas of Bangkal, Evangelista and Pasay City. In Evangelista, Makati, there still stands until now the stage where Moro-Moro is played. This is a stage presentation of the story of the Passion of Christ. I remember very well how people of Makati and its closest neighbor Pasay troop to the place and wait for the show to start.

Back then, I felt the reverence people have in remembering the Paschal Mystery of Christ. Now malls full of sex embedded advertisements, no radio programs to listen and be distracted to and no TV shows. There weren't any internet access nor cable television for everyone except for the Americans in Subic Bay.

I found the article of Quiling Secusana very helpful for someone who wants to know more about the topic:

FLAGELLANTS

They scourge themselves in a somewhat paganistic manner considered medieval by many. This is done by stripping themselves naked from the waist up, walking barefooted under a midday sun and flagging themselves bloody with ropes and broken pieces of glass attached with strings to bamboo sticks. They do this as a means of atonement of their sins. It is a sort of retribution of their offenses and human weaknesses for past favor such as after going through some crisis or danger in their lives. This is commonly practiced in the provinces of Pampanga, Tarlac, Rizal and practically all over the Tagalog region.

PABASA

It's a family affair with the cooperation of relatives and neighbors. Others do these twenty four hours daily within the seven days of singing and reading of the Passion and Death taken from the verses of the Bible. Foods and drinks are being served to the singers.

BLACK NAZARENE

A century-old black statue in Quiapo, sculptured in Mexico during the Galleon Trade era, considered miraculous by devotees is brought out for procession every Good Friday. The statue is borne on the shoulders of male devotees in a slow, difficult procession around the narrow streets of the district, a score of men struggle to keep the image moving on. Thousands more try to muscle their way to touch the Nazarene as if carried by a powerful tide in an ocean of humanity.

SALUBONG

In Palawan it is reenacted in Iwahig Penal Colony participated by thousands of torch-bearing convicts in uniform line up in a pre-dawn ceremony.

MORIONES FESTIVALS

Marinduque Island is famous and known throughout the world. No one could recall its beginning but old folks claimed it started since time immemorial. Usually it is held in the plazas of Boac and Gasan. The towns present a spectacular pageant wherein people are dressed like Roman soldiers to commemorate the beheading of Longinos. The festivities have a Mardigras atmosphere.

BAGUIO CITY

Thousands of lowlanders, Manilans and foreign tourists flock to this summer capital to escape heat. Hotels and lodging houses are all booked a month before the Holy Week. Others trek to the mountain to view the city of pines and people enjoying the merry making not minding the religious people are in church for this Holy occasion.

SIETE PALABRAS

All radio stations throughout the nation are being sponsored by religious groups to air the reading of the "Siete Palabras" (Seven Last Words). There are series of speakers depicting the life of Jesus Christ and of course in different versions but the same meaning. Aglipayans, Episcopalians and Roman Catholics do this simultaneously.

VISITA IGLESIAS

In Manila it is a practice of Catholic believers to visit, if possible, 14 churches within Metro Manila representing the fourteen stations of the cross.

PagtaltalBALA-AN BUKID

Guimaras landmark, a huge white cross overlooking the City of Iloilo, a favorite pilgrimage venue of Visayan people.

HUGE 14th STATION

In Iguig, Tuguegarao oversized station of the cross at the hillside outside the centuries old church with a beautiful facade.

DAVAO CITY

Old folks still practice the traditional belief of not to create unnecessary sounds especially on Holy Thursday and Good Friday.

BICOL REGION

Bicolanos are too religious from Catanduanes, Sorsogon, Legaspi, Naga down to Camarines Norte and Sur, they have all the Holy Week rituals.

SAN PABLO CITY

Celebrities and movie stars from Manila and neighboring provinces join the most attended procession organized by Don Ado Escudero of Villa Escudero.

14 STATIONS OF THE CROSS

At the grotto of Lourdes in Novaliches, Quezon City the devotees, thousands of them, come during the Holy Week as a pilgrimage at the Calvary built with the fourteen stations of the Cross, life size, zigzagging at the hillside.

AMULETS HUNTERS

In Sipalay, Negros Occidental, it is a day for Herbolarios searching for anting-anting in unexplored caves on Good Friday.

FORTY FIVE STATUES

In Paete, Laguna procession of 45 statues beautifully decorated "carrozas" depicting the life of our Lord. Also in Siquijor, an island on the southern tip of Cebu, is well known for its Good Friday procession. Huge centuries-old statue fully decorated with fresh flowers.

CAPILYA

A town in Zamboanga still practices the old tradition of Lenten Season, one of which is the Capilya. Town people put up an improvised 14 altars around the poblacion representing the way of the cross. A group of singers sing ballad songs of Christ's passion.

CENACULOS

It is held in the Philippine Cultural Center sponsored by the Department of Tourism. Cast of characters include popular movie stars. In Taguig, Rizal they popularize the modern version of "Jesus Christ Superstar" reshown at the Fort Santiago Amphitheater for the benefit of Manilans. In Mexico, Pampanga and also Dinalupihan in Bataan there is one who actually had himself nailed to a cross for his "crucifixion" simulating Christ's passion as best as he painfully can.

PAGTALTAL SA JORDAN

In the Visayan region, we have now the famous "Ang PAGTALTAL SA JORDAN" in the island province of Guimaras. A reenactment of our Lord's sufferings on the way to the Calvary held every Good Friday at the Municipal grounds. For the last years, it was attended by dignitaries from America, Mexico, Costa Rica, Argentina, Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Canada, and thousands of tourists from European and Asian countries. Jordan town is widely known as the "GOLGOTHA" of the Philippines.

Earth Hour 2010

Join us:

And here's what I found on YouTube:

Capablanca's Chess Fundamentals

I found a treasure site and I'm trying to share them here now. Hope it works:

Capablanca - Chess Fundamentals

Earthquake Hits Manila

An earthquake struck around 1:29 and was felt around Metro Manila and neighboring provinces. Yahoo Philippines was among the first to report:

"In a bulletin issued by the Phivolcs, the quake measuring magnitude 6.0 on the Richter scale, struck at 27 kilometers southwest of Lubang Island in Mindoro province at 1:29 p.m.

The Phivolcs said the quake's depth was shallow at 25 kilometers and was tectonic in origin.

The quake was felt the strongest at Intensity 5 in the following: - Looc, Lubang Island - Manila

Intensity 4 was felt in: - Quezon City - Mandaluyong City - Makati City - Pasay City - Taguig City - Pasig City - Talisay town in Batangas province,

It was Intensity 3 in: - Bagac town in Batangas province - Canlubang in Laguna - Clark in Pampanga - Rosario and Trece Martires in Cavite province - Marikina City - Tagaytay City

It was Intensity 2 in - Calamba town in Laguna province - Legaspi City in Albay - Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro"

I wouldn't want to think about this but let this be a warning for everyone: Holy Week is right around the corner. Non-practicing Catholics and non-believers would flock to the beaches instead of doing their seasonal holy obligations. Watch out for earthquakes and tsunamis!

Be safe and be holy!

Repair Pal for Auto Pals

A quiet but dangerous movement happening in the auto world recently. The Toyota Recall  more famously called as "Runaway Prius" has taken lives and injured others. There is also the Ford Recall that has to do with Firestone Tires and safety. Ford Explorer is something Repair Pal can easily look into and tell you if there's any minor and major repair to be done. If you would only search the net you will be surprised to find out that there are recalls that ranges from reflective devices issues to throttle controls.

I asked a friend of mine who is into auto detailing for some pointers to consider when looking for an auto repair shop and here are the 5 Pointers he shared to me:

1. Trusted Name - You won't entrust your car to any one. You bring her to a shop that carries a name that is synonymous with excellence and competitiveness.

2. Sincerity - The second point we need to consider is the shop owner's (and it's people) sincerity to it's customers. When your shop says it can be done in an hour, see to it that it is done within the 60 minutes or they are busted. They should also tell you if they can do the job or not.

3. Customer Assistance - They give you after sales assistance or in this case, after repair assistance. They give you that necessary follow-up on the repaired car part or parts. They provide you that homey feel when your calling them or when they take in your car for repair. Let's say you need to have your head gasket replacement, they of course can give you points on your options.

4. Competitive Mechanics - Nothing much to say but yes, the know-how and experience of our auto mechanics bring in will spell much of the difference between a happy customer and a dissatisfied one. Watch out for tell tale of a good mechanic.

5. Well-tooled- The professionals do it with professional tools. Nothing less!


If you or someone you know drive a car, it is important for you to know where to bring your car for repairs just in case you do not have any recall orders from your car company but is serious about the safety of your family and the people on the road.


Or let's take the case of my chess friend who is currently in Los Angeles doing her master's in Cognitive Psychology. Having been a licensed driver for almost fifteen years, she thought she would be ready and equipped with experience if she encounters any vehicular malfunction on the road. A minor oil leak caused her no concerns when she was city driving but her plans to do an interstate driving led her and her car to visit Repair Pal's Los Angeles auto repair.

It's not easy to choose which auto shop you'd bring her to but with the pointers I stated above, there's only one name in mind and that is Repair Pal.

Trippers

While this blog has become a source of news and rants about Philippine Chess in it's first 2 years, I believe I have chosen to let go of writing about this board game and focus instead on my playing online chess. Although I have a lot of times informed our readers that I have decided to do this, I still get fan emails about this blog informing me how aweful this once mighty blog has become. A tripper like our email sender needs some repairing, psychologically, spiritually and emotionally.

This is my blog address and you can't tell me to leave this and give away to anyone. Sorry folks, this is mine!

Fatwa on Philippine Politicians

Sunday evening news after an afternoon of rain on a Summer day.

Fatwa on former president Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada, former senator Franklin Drilon and Senator Manuel Roxas issued by the Muslim legal scholars also known as ulama. The last fatwa I heard (or should I say considered blasphemous) was the one given to Salman Rushdie for his fourth novel "Satanic Verses".       

The Satanic Verses controversies shook the Islam world while Rushdie received death threats, he has outlived Ayatollah Khomeni, the one who issued the fatwa.


I don't know if this will affect Erap's bid for presidency this time around. A veteran politician and showbiz personality, Joseph Estrada will find ways to counter on this. Like a quick-witted Erap joke, Erap ignored this fatwa and said 

"I am a friend of Islam, and I respect Islam," Estrada told Agence France-Presse in Manila shortly after arriving from a weekend campaign in Mindanao, where over 150,000 people have been killed in the long-running insurgency.However, I will not tolerate any organization regardless of religion if they violate the law."

I don't see anything wrong with Erap's intention to end this national insurgency problems and I think our thinking Muslim brothers also want peace for our country so why use the war between MILF and the Philippine Government as the reason for the fatwa?

So my dear brothers and sisters, fellow Filipinos both here and abroad, Muslims, Christians and agnostics, let peace be the reason for living!

RP Beats Brazil in Football

Good news: Philippines beats world's football superpower Brazil 6-2 last Thursday in the Deloitte Street Child World Cup indoor football tournament in Durban, South Africa.

Bad news: Politicians and the government will hang on to the illusion that we do have a good national sports program.

Congratulations!

The story is here: RP Beats Brazil in Football 6-2!

And here is a video tutorial we might learn from about the game:

 

Tigers Blog Moves

Hello there!

I have a new home at The Brown Man Diary Blog. Hope to see you there!

Click here: The Brown Man Diary.

Exported Blogs Part 2

I have now moved another blog to my new home here at The Brown Man Diary Blog. I manually did it and this time it's much faster and easier because it didn't have much compared to my Pinoy sa Morocco blog. I am still searching the net on ways to direct my readers here when they visit these "old blogs" of mine.

It's early in the morning and I'm still high from the reconnection event I had last night with a long lost friend (a couple) who is now living in Winnipeg, Canada.

Until next time! 

Old Glory of Manila

I remember very well how my dad would boast of his childhood days to me. His reminiscing of the good old days when he would play with his friends and "trolley" along the San Miguel Avenue fronting the Malacanang Palace. Him growing up in San Miguel and going to Pio Del Pilar Academy in Sta. Mesa and V. Mapa High School in Mendiola street.

His sweet recall of his childhood to teenage life story was truly infectious that I grew up dreaming that one day I would get to live and enjoy the scenes he enjoyed while growing. Sadly, my generation can only hope and dream of such lifestyle.

Thankfully, a colleague of mine who shares the same affection of the "Old Manila" showed me this video below. Manila before the WWII catastrophe!



If you can't get enough, visit Old Manila Nostalgia and Old Manila Walks.

Exported Blogs Part 1

While the whole wide universe is celebrating the expected demolition of Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiao over his Ghanaian foe Joshua Clottey, I am here busy exporting my blogs into The Brown Man Blog. I don't know what has gotten into me but one thing is certain, I'm tired of checking my "other blogs".

The first blog I am exporting is my Pinoy Sa Morocco blog. It'll be available when the clock strikes 12:00 A.M. I hope you guys will enjoy reminiscing as much as I do.

The Event

Let's "K.I.S.S." this post away.

After Manny Pacquiao's win against Miguel Cotto, the whole world prepared for the match of the century between the world's best pound-for-pound boxer Manny Pacquiao and the once world's best pound-for-pound Floyd Mayweather Jr..

But of course we saw how both camps drove each other away from the negotiation table and blew a chance to be part of probably the world's best fight ever. Mayweather camp insists on a drug testing that will ensure "fairness" but of course Pacquiao's camp will not give an inch of a leeway.

They will somehow meet each other but in a different fight, legal fight after Manny sued Mayweather.

About the fight this coming March 14, Philippine time and date, there is one thing I am expecting and that is another win by our very own world champion Manny Pacquiao.

Butch' 2nd Time Around

We reacted and posted our reaction here about Butch Dalisay's  Advise for Top Ten for Wannabe Writers and we're glad the Guru of the Pen gave more time to add to his list of reminders and have to's for writers.

Here it is:

1. Don’t just write, edit.

2. Learn how to take pictures.

3. Understand and learn basic layout and design.

4. Learn to work with other professionals.

5. Be prepared to travel.

6. Back up your work.

7. Register as a professional, and keep proper accounts.

8. Learn how to deal with failure.

9. Give yourself an incentive for doing well.

10. Give credit and give thanks to others. 

Wisdom from the Pinoy Penman himself Butch Dalisay. To read more click here.

 

I Need a Name

Photo owned by Francis .A Buenaventura. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use, copy, editing, reproduction, publication, duplication and distribution of the digital photos, without the permission of the photographer, is punishable by Law.

 

This photo I took from the Outbound Trip we had needs a title, a caption or just about anything for my easy filing. Please help me by commenting or send me an email. 

Thanks!

 

Benedicto "BenCab" Reyes Cabrera

Here is another Filipino who contributed so much for our country through the visual arts. Although it took a BenCab painting stolen article before I realized he should be honored in this blog, we all know he is in fact one of the Filipino Icons. In 2006 he was conferred the Order of National Artist for visual arts President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

I remember so well the book BenCab's Rock Sessions by Eric Caruncho because it was given a lot of promotional airtime at NU 107 some years ago. I think I heard one of the DJ's of NU saying that Paul Mc Cartney bought paintings of BenCab in Malate when they had their concert here.

BenCab is BenCab!

For more on his life, check him out at  BenCab Museum, Benedicto Cabrera and Profile of Ben Cabrera.

I wish the 2 lost BenCab paintings will be located and be brought to it's rightful owner. 

World's Heaviest Singkamas

The world's heaviest giant singkamas is owned by John Paul Garcia of barangay Cabittaogan, Ilocos Sur and it weighs about 23 kilos,2 kilos heavier than Guinness World Records held by Leo Sutisna of Indonesia. 


Congratulations!

Mangyan Culture Thrives

The Mangyan Cultural Exhibit is on at Mahatma Gandhi International School from March 8-12, 2010 and if you have the time, please visit us!

I have included the Mangyan Heritage Center Official Website on my sidebar just in case we have visitors interested to read more about our brothers from Mindoro. Our newsletter says it briefly and concisely:

"Mangyan is a collective name for eight highland tribes from Mindoro, who not only maintained their original cultural practices, but managed to preserve original writing. Scripts of two of the tribes are recognized as National Treasures, and inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Registers."          

That's all for now but with this post I was introduced to more ideas regarding cultural activism that will influence and direct my future postings here.

Too Truthful to be True

I finished my "work day" around 430 in the afternoon and then headed to the movie house near our subdivision. While I was at the window, I had to give it a thought whether I'd watch a local film, Alice in Wonderland or The Fourth Kind.

After I asked the teller if she's done watching all the "Now Showing" films I decided to see the Fourth Kind. I got in middle of the show so I thought I'd sleep then wake up and start from the beginning but it was not meant to be. I watched and intently looked for flaws and fakes but I guess I've been away too long from the "subject" that I thought the film was for real.

Reaching the end of the story I thought it was real or at least based on actual cases studied which is what the marketing come on tried to tell us.

But reading the reviews here by Above Top Secret and Wikipedia, I was wrong. This film is, was a mock-documentary like The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. 

In one scene, Dr. Tyler's colleague said "We can no longer differentiate what's real from fiction..."

Anyways, here is part of a review from Examiner.com:

"In the movie "The Fourth Kind," Milla Jovovich plays Dr. Abigail Tyler, the Nome, Alaska, psychiatrist who stumbles upon the 'alien abduction' link between her patients, during clinical hypnotherapy sessions. If you search for Dr. Abigail Tyler, Nome Alaska, a website called "Alaska Psychiatry Journal" provides a "biography" of Dr. Tyler with "related articles" on the topics of sleep disorders, emotional issues, hypnotherapy and regression therapy. However, the website does not have a homepage or contact information. The website was registered on GoDaddy in August 2009. A real online-medical publication would have such information, so this leads to the conclusion that the website is a viral marketing ploy, much like the promotion for the upcoming "2012" movie and the  for "Institute for Human Continuity." Sorry to burst your bubble, but this doesn't rule out that Dr. Tyler 'could' have been based on a 'real' doctor; but if there were, the true account would have made for a much more interesting find. "

Fake it is but how the director and the producers did it is impressive, too truthful to be true indeed!

Sunday Film Festival

Compared to most Sunday mornings I have had in the last six years, I can say I had at least one today that will definitely be within the Top 5 Worst Sunday Mornings of my Life! For what it's sake and what it's for, it was a big shit!

I slept noon time after I finished watching Push. The past week while in bed I tried watching and finishing this film but dozed off before the middle of the show. Today I finally did it and I can say it was better watching it than savoring my not-so-savory-emotional-state. Everyone was out of the house except for me in the bedroom and our hired "plantsadora" in the garage. After an hour of sleep I got up and saw the film Transporter 1 and 2.   I thought I'd finish the last part of the trilogy but middle of the sequel I felt like I have had too much of the fight scenes and car chase where the hero, Frank Martin always win with little or no scratch at all.

I say the film festival I had was enough for me to get through my Sunday, bloody Sunday! Nothing much to cheer for , not even my newly found confidence in my writing and shooting photos.  Life can be so shitty and yet hopeful. If there's anything I look forward to right now is the fact that life is constantly changing and that we humans are always open for it.

Since nobody would even care to look into this, let me say this for the one inside my being "Hang on there Francis!"

Contrasts in Black and White

Photo owned by Francis .A Buenaventura. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use, copy, editing, reproduction, publication, duplication and distribution of the digital photos, without the permission of the photographer, is punishable by Law.

Here is one of the many photos I took with the camera I borrowed from my brother. I saw this boy wandering about from cottage to cottage and then would pick stones on the ground. He'll then play with the stones and be lost amidst the beauty and serenity of the place. 

I am relearning to use Google's Picassa photo software and I'm glad they have the software available to everyone!

Disappointing Talentado's Winner

A big disappointment for the 1st Talentadong Pinoy grand winner!

The Yoyo Tricker won over the likes of Makata Tawanan, Far East Acrobats (members are from one family), Wanlu the Ventriloquist, Omar the ladder balancer, Bea Patricia and some other great, great performers.

Let's say the Yoyo boy tricked us all and went home with the 1 M cash prize and the 1st ever Talentadong Pinoy title. Yes he did his yoyo repertoire with an all-Michael Jackson song background. Nothing great really if compared to what the other contestants have done tonight.

Makata Tawanan, our cerebral poet-slash-stand-up-comedian made brought the house down. Alessandra de Rossi simply said:

"Lahat nakatawa pag ikaw ang nasa stage"

I felt the earth move during Makata's performance!

The Far East Acrobats opened the show and rightly so, they set the mood in fiesta swing. Beautiful and death defying performance that could have won just like Makata's!

Far East's acrobatics:



Here's one of Makata's performance during the weekly rounds:



He was my bet!

There were two female singers but the first one was so good. Director Joey suggested to the board of TV 5 to give her a recording deal.  Great one!

These are some of the contestants performance stuck in my head and nowhere was the yoyo tricker in my mind. Now for whatever factor in the judging procedures has, Talentadong Pinoy's first is a fluke! It is a fake and it doesn't live up to it's name which is the main reason why Ryan Agoncillo's show became such a big thing every Saturday nights!

Don't get me wrong I have no personal relationship with any of the contestants of the show and I would not gain anything for siding with the other contestants!


Watch this video and if you find anything spectacular for him to earn the title, chime in:



Ryan Agoncillo, it is a big, big disappointment to see the Yoyo Tricker win the 1st Grand Winner of Talentadong Pinoy!

Saturday Household Symphony

I woke up nine in the morning and was greeted by my youngest "Pa why are you late to get up?" to which I replied "It's Saturday..." then went on to do my morning ritual. Still feeling the skin burns caused by my "marine surveying" the other day and muscle pains, I thought it would be another difficult weekend for a father of three active kids.

Right after my usual hygienic ritual, I heard my two boys about to erupt into childish petty quarrels which for the moment I didn't want to hear. So what I did, I took out my secret tools I call W.A.B. short for Weapons Against Boredom. It was early so I thought of using the "lighter ones"  in the names of Bugs Floor Puzzle and Building Blocks which I bought a couple of months ago.

Immediately life went on to become a peaceful morning!

After an hour I had them work on a DK Educational CD which allowed me to have more free time and at the same time provide my children the necessary intellectual stimulation on a Saturday morning. Two hours passed and lunchtime came.

Went by so fast, it's siesta time for my children and chess time for me. Lightning and bullets screams on my face and I just can't ignore these calls for fast, precise and quicky chess games.

Around three in the afternoon and we had our Rosary Prayer together with our neighbors. This time my wife couldn't join us because it's that time of the year when local school children are gearing up for their final exams and my wife teaches them privately. This means added income for the family!

Right after we said our final Amen's for the prayer, wife arrives and her choir members are arriving too one by one just in time for their four in the afternoon practice.

Saturday nights are Talentadong Pinoy and Midnight DJ nights. Our children loves watching our fellow Pinoys showing-off at times, extremely weird talents and feeling the goosebumps on their necks. I love Saturdays like this.

I still feel tired from yesterday's trip and I plan to sleep within the next hour. So off I go and head to dinning table. But before I go, I'd like to show you one tranquil scene from yesterday's trip to Anilao, Batangas:

All Photos are owned by Francis A. Buenaventura. 
All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use, copy, editing, reproduction, publication, duplication and distribution of the digital photos, without the permission of the photographer, is punishable by Law.
 

Dive and Trek in Batangas

My bag is packed!

In a few hours I will be in Batangas together with my grade 6 and 9 students. Actually I am a chaperon since Mr. Niko is the one teaching these students Environmental Science. We will be doing an Eco Trip where snorkeling  and sun bathing is a fashion.

Let's hope and pray we'll all be safe, learn from the experience and help clean the environment.

 Dive and Trek here we come! 

Great Cochlear Implants

I've been a special education teacher and a school-based occupational therapist for the last ten years and I tell you this, working with these children has helped me more than I have helped them. They taught me more than I have ever taught them. They have given me more than I could ever share and they have shown me much of what life should really be about than anybody else.

I have handled children of all abilities and have worked with parents and other paraprofessionals seeking to help children and students from different parts of the globe.Working in the school setting has indeed provided me various opportunity to work with them.

Children with Autism, with ADHD, with Cerebral Palsy, with Global Developmental Delay,, with multiple impairment and children with hearing impairment.
 
Back in 2003, I enrolled and passed a 10-day course on Basic American Sign Language given by the Special Education Assistance heade by Father Luke Moortgat, a De La Salle brother whose origin is from Belgium.

From the course I have learned that signing is just one of the many ways we can help our students with hearing impairment.

One great help we can give them is a Cochlear Implant. For those leaning on the non-medical side, I know you would want to know more about this. Just what is a Cochlear Implant (CI) about?

Cochlear Implants is a surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing. The cochlear implant is often referred to as a bionic ear.

Robotic, bionic or whatever you want to call it, I have seen it helps wonderfully my students. They perform better inside the classroom, outside of their schools and blend perfectly well within their society.

Make no mistake about it but Cochlear Implant Surgery is a safe and relatively minor operation of just a few hours. Students or children who have had the surgery have been known to go home immediately afterward, playing normally with minimal post-surgical effects. The surgery has the same normal risks associated with any surgery, and serious complications are rare.

Go and have your family member needing a cochlear implant be checked by a specialist. The gains from this is a win-win for everyone involved in helping our hearing impaired loved ones.

Let's give our children the gift of a lifetime. The gift of hearing and the gift everyone aspire for: normalized life.   

Antonio Vivaldi's Day

Who would not take a second look at Google's seasonal logo and admire their dedication at remembering events or birthdays that changed the course or history of mankind.

I was surprised to find out that today is Antonio Lucio Vivaldi's birthday and Google celebrates!


Some years back, National Bookstore was selling the Classic Series in package of three  and they had Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach, Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig Van Beethoven. I bought them all for a very nice price and to this day, I have kept it in my collection.

Four Seasons will always be mentioned whenever we talk about the man nicknamed as The Red Priest of Venice. Here's an entry from Wikipedia about this great work of his:

The Four Seasons (Italian: Le quattro stagioni) is a set of four violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi. Composed in 1723, The Four Seasons is Vivaldi's best-known work, and is among the most popular pieces of Baroque music. The texture of each concerto is varied, each resembling its respective season. For example, "Winter" is peppered with silvery staccato notes from the high strings, calling to mind icy rain, whereas "Summer" evokes a thunderstorm in its final movement, which is why said movement is often dubbed 'Storm'.

The concertos were first published in 1725 as part of a set of twelve concerti, Vivaldi's Op. 8, entitled Il cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione (The Contest between Harmony and Invention). The first four concertos were designated Le quattro stagioni, each being named after a season. Each one is in three movements, with a slow movement between two faster ones. At the time of writing The Four Seasons, the modern solo form of the concerto had not yet been defined (typically a solo instrument and accompanying orchestra). Vivaldi's original arrangement for solo violin with string quartet and basso continuo helped to define the form.

 Now if you really want to learn more about this, visit Classical WETA FM 90.0 and read and overview of The Four Seasons. 

More about the man:

1. Catalog of Instrumental Works
2. Complete Works Catalog  
3. Free Scores from ChoralWiki 
4. Free Scores from International Music Score Library Project  
5. Autobiography 

Gotta' go now and find that CD's of Vivaldi but before I go, let me share this t all of yu:

Pinoy Fever Around the World

Here's a break from natural disasters post for our blog.

I thought Talentadong Pinoy was Got Talent's franchise version here in the Philippines but I was wrong, it is Pilipinas Got Talent of ABS-CBN. The buzz right now is shown in the video below:



His name is Jovit Baldovino and we all know he has all the making of a singing superstar.With the right kind of people to handle him in the business, he will make it big here and overseas. Check out Jovit's Facebook Fan Page now. Good luck to all wannabe's out there!

Back in high school, I have always liked the songs of Journey and I think I would be returning to my collection once again. Thanks to Arnel Pineda and to Jovit Baldovino, but no I don't think Jovit and Arnel is on the same level. Arnel has worked hard and persevered in an industry where hype and publicity matters rather than hardwork and perseverance. No I am not a Jovit hater but I'd like to see him work harder with the chance given to shine.  

In London, another Pinoy made waves in the fashion world as Mich Dulce was chosen as one of the recipient  of International Young Fashion Entrepreneur Award. When I saw her face on my monitor, I asked my wife if she is the same girl who joined Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity edition  some years ago and her answer was positive.

Congratulations!

Tuguegarao Shakes with 6.1 Magnitude

I've been posting here about earthquakes more than about anything and this time, it hits home. I learned about yesterday's 6.1 quake only now and it happened in Tuguegarao during our almost exiting president, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. The report said Mrs. Arroyo had to stop her speech and wait for the shakes to stop. Most of the northern Luzon felt the quake but with different intensities. Here is the full story.

Since my main goal here is to inform, let me direct you to some links that would further our understanding of this phenomenon: Factbox: Earthquakes and Magnitude. And while your at it, let me tell you that NDCC will hold a nationwide earthquake drill.

Chile quake toll climbs to 708:



Pray unceasingly!    

Chile Earthquake Explained

Our post about the Chilean Quake   explained, courtesy of YouTube:

War on Drought

It's interesting to know that we have a war being waged in the countryside and I pray that our people succeed in this fight:



Our people will win, our country will win!

Power Outages In Luzon

I did not feel the power outages today because I was back in school meeting with parents, discussing their children's improvements and performance the past term. Then in the afternoon I had to wee the hours away until three-thirty save for some preparations for tomorrow's start of the third term.

I learned about the power failure when I reached the house of my tutee in Merville Park. I was greeted by the mom with a sigh and the story of her family reaching Mall of Asia then retreating because there wasn't any electricity. They had to drive to the Ayala Malls Makati where she explains "It's Ayala so I expect there was electricity there".

I thought of a coup de' tat, a power grab and a dry-run of how it will be done come May 10 Election but thank God it's all about NGCP's failure

Then I arrived in Imus hoping to catch a glimpse of my daughter's first-ever Taekwondo tournament, I missed it.

I spent the rest of the night dinning and playing with my kids, our Tic-Tac-To game spelled well for my 4 and 5 year-olds. It was such a great time we had that they didn't want to go to bed come nine in the evening. But as always, force of habit will be forceful.

Anyways, here is a news video highlights the brownouts that will haunt us for the next few days:



Summer time, Brownout and May 10, do the math!