Moon, Over Rated Glow.

My favorite scene in the movie, E.T., is the one where Michael and E.T., his brother and friends were cycling to bring E.T. to the forest and the cops were on their tail.  And suddenly the group became airborne! Broom...they were up, up and away.  And then you see them passing through the moon. 

Another movie where the cosmic body is featured prominently, in fact its central theme, is Moonstruck, Cher's award-winning movie.  In here, the memorable scene is when everybody falls in love while the moon glowers over New York City's Brooklyn Heights' neighbourhood.

While the sun is featured in brochures to promote vacation resorts, the moon and the stars are used to arouse in us visions of romantic nights. I googled the question "why do people find moon romantic?"  I found the following answers:

"Cycles of the moon coincide, roughly, to women's cycles of fertility and sexual receptivity. Simple as that." "The cycles of the moon have been observed for thousands of years in rites and ceremonies from many beliefs...it has determined planting and harvesting times at the Solstices..its energies flow and ebb much like our emotions and the earths tides...its light helped to ease the fears of darkness for many...and sends the sensitives to lunacy....its appearance is the signal for rest and rejuvenation of our minds and bodies...its nightly journey is the Goddess seeking her lover the Sun...it inspired writers to tell of love in the glow of its light....it has mystery and indescribable beauty and an energy that must be felt to truly understand the romantic relationship between the moon and man." "i don't find it romantic at all. the full moon makes me absolutely insane-- i can't sleep or function normally and my dogs go crazy." "I find it beautiful...If I think of it as romantic, it's because I remember someone I was with, at the time I saw it..." "I have a photographic memory, so when I recall things.I recall everything,the weather, the surroundings, the person/people who were there."  "I don't find the moon romantic at all - my cycle waxes and wanes with it and at full moon I'm usually slightly demented...!!! It's something to with the tides." "It's just awesome in presence and shiny it symbolizes to me the massive world out there, and the moon/sky on a clear full moon, is beautiful and calming to watch.It reminds me how large and amazing life is and when we are with someone special reminds me of the endless possibilities and future of the big wide world we live in,how lucky we are to have that amazing person next to us to share our great experience with." "Because it provides just enough light for outdoor night sex."   "Hmm..It's just that that sort of dim, silvery light is romantic...the sometimes crisp, chill air that can go with evening and might make one inclined to cuddle for warmth...lots of things." "the color of the moon and the soothing effect it makes on us is so tender that we start to miss our love...i feel like that especially the full moon n a halo around it its sooooo romantic to see it that time. i like to see moon @ night with only one star very close to it." "I only find the moon romantic if I am walking under it holding a special girls hand." " "Other people have been to the moon before, but I will never go. I have seen photographs, but photographs often lie. Being on the moon could be as beautiful as anything, and I like to think that it is more. I don't know though because I'll never actually see it, no matter how much I want to, it will still be a mystery. The mystery is what makes it romantic, the fact that it is out of reach. If I actually went to the moon, I would know what it is like. And I could either find it as beautiful as I imagine it could be, or it could just be a rock floating in space. I don't want to know which it is though, I am happy imagining it the way I do now."  "night is by default, the sexy time of day."  "at night there is only one thing you can watch in awe, meditate to.... it's the witness of your love story, it's the designer of the landscape, it's the muse. And it's so many other thingies, that good poets try to say in thousands years, and i'm not even a bad poet."  Personally, I find the moon not just romantic but also mysterious, enigmatic, absorbing, enchanting and exhilarating. It's not just the shape and color but more the juxtaposition of it in the darkened sky - and the truth that it only glows because it is illuminated by the mighty sun - but despite this dependence, the moon dominates and rules our nights while the giant is asleep.

Sun, Glorious Hazard

It's ten thirty in the morning and the famous Manila sun is shining gloriously here in the outskirts of Manila. 

But even with the sun present almost throughout the day, I rarely see umbrellas borne by Filipinos nowadays. 

This sudden abandonment of the umbrella is surprising since the Pinoys are serious about the condition and health of their skin. I speak with the proliferation of skin clinics and products as evidence.

The ultra violet radiation, according to experts can cause skin cancer, photo ageing of the skin, and cataracts - just a few of the potential health hazards associated with overexposure to UVR.

My favorite individual has creamy skin and takes care of it lovingly, but when it comes to arming her skin against the ravenous sun, she couldn't care less, and I wonder about it incessantly. 

When I was growing up, I remember an older sister who used to carry an umbrella wherever she went, even to the sari-sari store across our house.  And to this day, she has perfect whitish skin.

My father too, used to protect his darkish features by wearing a hat. It was the kind I saw in those old  Rogelio de la Rosa and Humphrey Bogart black and white movies.  And I must admit my old man looked dapper in his de hilo shirt and pants and with a hat on.

Back in Toronto during summers, the ethnic group that still religiously carries umbrellas and wear wide-brim hats are the older Chinese women. The others simply ignore the hazards of the sun.  Or maybe they just apply sun block.  On the other hand, men, including myself, wear the ever present baseball cap. 

Another favorite person of mine has a collection of hats; she has winter hats, summer hats and hats that she wears on all occasions.  She's not so much concerned about her skin but it's because she looks good with a hat on. 

I, too, have a collection of hats - baseball caps, winter caps, and all- occasion hats.  My friend Olga used to call me Uncle Vanya and my colleague Bill referred to me once as Harrison Ford's character in the Raider's series.

Here in Manila what I notice and find odd are those men wearing a winter toque.  I just could not imagine how hot it must be under those toques.  Personally, I only wear a toque in Toronto if the temperature drops to a minus degree.

But I love seeing an umbrella anywhere - rainy and sunny days. It protects and saves lives, literally. 

Reminds me of old, e.g- The Barefoot Contessa, and even newer Hollywood films, such as Spiderman 1 where cemetery/burial scenes are always shot on a dreary afternoon amidst rain or snow and black umbrellas are unfurled and a sweeping overhead shot presents an even sadder glow.

Guards.

I used to live in an apartment in Mandaluyong in the early 80's, and some of my young neighbours who were normally good kids  became petty thieves because of  drug addiction.  

So to protect my meagre property, I would line up beer bottles and empty tin cans by the window ledge when I lock up in the evenings to serve as an alarm and to alert me in case an intruder enters my pad.  "Maingay pag bagsak, " I told myself. 

When I moved to North America and lived in a condo, I didn't have any need for beer bottles since a guard was in command and was patrolling the building.

Back in Manila, most subdivisions, villages and condominiums employ guards to protect residents' homes and properties. There are check points at the entry and security guards roam the entire housing/residential complex in the odd hours of the night. 

But such security protocol is no guarantee for safety. Even in the paranoid, first world-class homeland security system, security breach had always occurred.  Just look at the recent incident in a New Jersey airport where a couple casually bypassed security just to get a last minute goodbye kiss. Or the serious case of the Nigerian national who was able to bring explosive materials into a Delta flight during the Holiday season travel rush. 

In most condominiums in Canada, residents are asked to leave a spare key with the Management Office in order for them to gain access into one's unit in cases of emergency or if there's a repair to be made. But residents would still install a second lock to  maintain privacy, and homeowners would put up chain locks and the standard "peep hole" to scrutinize visitors before giving them permission to enter. 

Condominiums also have security cameras that allow residents to see who their visitors are.  And a lot of private homes have sophisticated security systems now which connect to police and fire stations. 

In Manila, it is standard for homes to have double locks or even triple locks and several inside door locks. The ultra rich Pinoys (politicos and those prone to kidnap-for-ransom) have their own private security guards to look after them. 

Philippine security personnel almost always carry firearms, unlike most in North America who only have sticks in their waistlines and whistles in their pockets. 

Our guards don't carry anything at all.

Russian Connection.

This post was originally written last November 23, 2009 at 2:59 a.m.

Left - St. Petersburg under siege.

I've always wanted to see Russia. I am enchanted by its history, its personages, its palaces, Anna Karenina, Catherine the Great, Lenin, Tolstoy, the Bolshoi Ballet, and more.

It helps that I have great Russian friends. Iurie, Natalia, Larissa and of course, every one's dear 'ol friend, Olga. But from the many Russian words these friends have taught me, I could only remember two: da and den'gi. The spellings could be wrong but they mean No and Money.

I remember tagging along once with one of these friends, into an Orthodox Church somewhere along rural Ontario. It was a beautiful Church with lovely, historic icons.

Why we went there? There was a visiting Holy Man from Russia who brought along a piece of wood which was supposedly taken from the Cross that was borne by Jesus.

In Toronto, there's a growing number of Russian immigrants. They are mostly professional people, like Natalia and Larissa, an economist and a civil engineering, respectively.

In my line of work, I've met hundreds of Russians who came to Canada in search of a better life, much like the Pinoys, and some integrated easily while others, because of certain barriers, found economic and cultural assimilation difficult.

Natalia is one success story. An MS degree holder from Belarus, she's climbed the career ladder in Canada, but not without hardships, and now works as a Finance Manager, while continuing to study for her CGA designation.

Like many Filipinos who've adopted Canada as a second home and continue to cherish their own culture, Russians in Toronto continue to pass on their values and traditions to their sons and daughters, including their language.

What do we know of Russia?  

When I was growing up, all I knew about Russia was what I saw from Bond movies and then from Dr. Zhivago, and then much later on, from what Lenin and Marx preached. 

What we have now in much of Communist Europe and specifically Eastern Europe is unrecognizable from the days of the Cold War.  In Leningrad and Moscow, there are specialty shops reserved for the ultra, new rich where mink-clad women, not just Raisa Gorbachev, shop not just for clothes and cars, but for oil stocks and companies. 

But there are still sad stories I heard from friends, where new Mafia-like organizations, kill old women to get hold of their government-issued apartments. 

But Russian women, much like the Pinoys, are fashion-conscious unlike the office girls of North America. You spot them easily with their short skirts, blond hair, and three-inch stilettos.

My friend Olga used to say that Russians can form ten words from one single word, and from one name, numerous pet names. 

Like us Pinoys, Russians tend to have names which are commonly given to children.  For them, it is Ivan, Petre, Yuri, Natasha, Olga, Ana.  For us, it is Pedro, Maria and Juan. 

It's All the Same.

Winter blues, that's what experts call it. It's an affliction caused by the dreariness of  winter. Early darkness. Eerie coldness. Icy roads. Ergo, depression. 

But I found out that the same dreariness exists in Manila during the months of December and now, January. Evening comes early; at six, darkness descends upon the village near the creek where I reside.

In Tagaytay Highlands three nights ago, darkness slowly spread across the wide expanse of golf course overlooking Taal Lake while guests at a wedding dined merrily.

I have winter blues even here in Manila. It's not because I crave for the white snow and welcome cold of North America.  It is because evening comes a tad early and immediately,  I lose sight of the clear skies with stars and the moon; although almost four nights in a row, I've seen the moon.

It's all the same.  There's uncertainty in the dark. 

The Joys of Nothing-ness.

"Wala lang."  How many times have you heard or read the phrase from your friends' lips or email- headings when they call or write?

Stevie Wonder said it, too, in his famous song " I Just Called to Say I Love You."  

"Wala lang," is akin to saying "Out of the blue."  It's like telling, "really, there's no special reason for my call, email or visit.  I just want to connect."

Many times in our lives, we do things for no special reason.  That's why there are hobbies that we take up or do.  Hobbies are meant to distract us from boredom or nothing-ness.  

But I discovered lately the joys of nothing-ness.

Ever since I decided to make permanent my semi-retirement, and not feel guilty about it, I began to understand the meaning of "second happiness."

From the day I graduated from post secondary in the Philippines up until the last day of work in Toronto, I was programmed to do one thing: wake up early in the morning and go to work. If I was out of work, which happened when the firm I worked for closed down after Ninoy Aquino was gunned down and I had to migrate to the U.S., then I would be waking up early in the morning and worrying when I would work next. 

When we started going to school, our parents and mentors always told us, study well so you could get a good job. So early on in our lives, the economics of existence had been drilled into our consciousness.  There was no escaping it.

Is it any wonder then that children grow up now believing that money is everything that matters in life? And with this mindset, they go raving about high-paying but boring call centre jobs, or government posts wherein they can earn big bucks on the side?

Is it any wonder then that in both private and public sectors, corruption is now a given?  Wala lang, kailangan, eh. 

That's why appreciating nothing-ness is a subject matter that we should be teaching our children. Because from nothing-ness, we can bring about something else. Like doing things that one can fully enjoy.

I used to think that I could be a pilot. But back then, we didn't have the army motto like "Be the best that you can be." So we followed what our parents wanted us to be. How about telling our kids just to be happy.

Nothing-ness. Like waking up in the morning and smelling the flowers in the garden. Or waiting for the birds to show up and listening to their chirp and song.  Enjoying a fresh cup of brewed coffee until it becomes a mere drop.  Or gazing out the window and following the circling of the butterflies.  Listening to the sound of the creek at the back of your house.  Even just feeling the wisp of air in your face.

The Central Park in Manhattan is an oasis in the city-nerve that is New York City.  It has been featured in countless films and novels.  Even in Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, frequented it with his sis, Phoebe. The Park, even today, is frequented by people who want to do nothing; but just to breathe the air, enjoy the sun, look at others, and pass time. 

Nothing-ness.  It is pure joy. 

Wassup Tiger?

I read about Divisoria's 168 Mall somewhere so we went yesterday, Sunday, to whet my curiousity.  I left the car in a safe place and commuted by FX.  

So I saw familiar roads once more - Legarda, Mendiola and Recto-  and wondered why these busy roads had not been widened after twenty years or so.

In Divisoria, my attention was focused on my wallet and wrist watch, lest I come back without a driver's license and a timekeeper.  It was difficult choosing any merchandise since the items looked similar and cost almost the same.

But whenever I saw a stall selling hardware goods, I had to stop and buy something.  My most immediate needs were a mosquito repellent machine, a doorbell, a duct tape and a tube-like, hard pillow.  But at the roadside leading to the jeepney ride, I found a table full of "tikoy" and I just had to buy a box.

The stench was terrible; of course there was an "estero" nearby and of course, there was the continuous blast of carbon monoxide coming from the jeepneys of all types, although CO is supposed to be free of smell. I suspect it's the fumes coming from the jeepney's diesel fuel.

Then I found out that 2010 is the Year of the Tiger.  Inside the mall, there were several stalls selling Chinese good luck charms - Buddha, the waving Cat, and an assortment of the Tiger. 

The Year of the Tiger, according to the Chinese Zodiac, begins on February 14, 2010 and ends on February 2, 2011.   The Tiger is the third sign in the cycle of Chinese Zodiac, which consists of 12 animal signs.  It is a sign of courage. This fearless and fiery fighter is revered by the ancient Chinese as the sign that wards off the three main disasters of a household: fire, thieves and ghosts.

People born in Tiger years are highly competitive, adventurous, and very confident in their  own abilities - they are the sorts who can, and will, get things done.  Tiger people are aggressive, courageous, candid and sensitive. Their towering passion, ambition and all-or-nothing attitude  can take them all the way to the top in  whatever they endeavour to do.  They crave excitement and get bored easily. 

Tigers fiercely stand up for what they believe in and for this, coupled with their courage and dedication, they are respected by both friend and foe.  The intrinsic element of this sign is wood, and its direction is east-northeast.  The Tiger is the third sign of the Chinese Zodiac and corresponds to western sign of Sagittarius.

I was born in the Year of the Snake.  Being a snake, I share characteristics with Mahatma Gandhi, Oprah Winfrey, Rick Warren and J.K. Rowling.  

Snake people are very shrewd  and often achieve success through their wits.  They are wise and intense with a tendency towards physical beauty. Snake people are  discreet, restrained and refined.  They never  come across as pushy, and instead get their  way through subtle manipulation.  Cautious and intelligent, they possess analytical minds, but often also have a well-developed gut instinct. 

There's an air of elegance and magnetism about Snakes that make them very attractive to the opposite sex.  They are quite aware of their appeal, and thus can be rather vain and high tempered.  Snakes enjoy flirting, but when it comes to their partners they are often possessive.  The intrinsic element of this sign is  fire, and its direction is south-southeast.  The Snake is the sixth sign of the Chinese Zodiac and corresponds to western sign of Scorpio. 

So, what's your sign?