Halloween

My daughter is 15 this year and therefore, too old for trick or treating. But that did not make this Halloween any less tiring than the previous ones. Both Erika and I had parties to attend, separately. Given her recent injury (dislocated patella or kneecap) we almost didn't allow her to attend. But we wanted her to have fun so we eventually agreed so long as she was to promise to keep her knee immobilizer on during the party (and not take it off!).

Kasuy and I came as Gabrielle and Xena respectively. This photo was taken at the house sans armor. I left off the armor until we got to Glorietta, otherwise I would not have been able to drive at all. Kasuy's blonde hair was new, though. She couldn't get it blonde enough last time so finally opted for a wig. In case you are wondering, my hair in the photo is a wig, too.

Erika was also attending a costume party. Initially, she was supposed to appear as Betty Boop but because of her injury, heels were out and we weren't able to get her dress on time. In the end we ended up raiding my closet and I got her the red wig. And so, she attended the party as ... Sydney Bristow (Alias)!

It turned out to be a better costume choice because the whole ensemble (from wig to injury to black dance shoes) made her stand out and quite noticeable. Let's face it, my baby is a hottie!

And now to get my leather jacket back ...

I wonder what we will come up with next year?

Personalized theme

I don't know if anyone noticed but ... that is really me on the header. I know, I know, it's lame, right? And it isn't like other people could use it but me. The place and weather was just ideal and so, on the spur of the moment, Tina and I decided to take the photo and I tried to make a theme around it.

It is very similar to another theme I created a while back --- that was actually the inspiration for this one. The one before was based on the skyline theme, while this one is based on black lily.

Creating themes is something I can only do when I am in the mood for it. The muse visits me infrequently, which is why there are big gaps between themes for me. My next project will be ... a theme for my sisters. I'm just waiting for them to give me an idea what they want and what photo they want to use, if they have one already.

Oh! I already made one for Tina before 'cause she already knew what she wanted. Just waiting on Gigi's now.

A fun day at the Manila Polo Club

Today my Uncle Ed invited his Manila relatives to have lunch together at the Polo Club for a belated birthday celebration (his birthday was Sept. 13) and to celebrate his cancer being cured (Yey!). It's your usual buffet, nothing unusual, but the food was definitely good.

See here the happy faces of two people who just finished eating a delicious meal!

Afterwards we decided to take a walk along the pool and explore the club. Eventually we found ourselves at the stables to check out the horses.

I've seen my share of ponies and I've ridden at least 4 times in my life in Tagaytay and Baguio. These horses, were really jaw-dropping beautiful! Most of them had backs higher than my head ... and I was wearing booths with 2 inch heels! Most of the horses were in their stables being fed or groomed, at the yard having a bath, or at the lawn chewing down the grass. Who needs a lawn mower when you've got horses, eh? We also saw one horse training in the ring. The owner was funny. He couldn't get his own foot into the stirrup without guiding his foot into it with his hand, hehehe. I guess he isn't as flexible as he used to be.

Check out my nephew, Jean-Luc. He really got a kick out of feeding the horses. See that horse on the left? It got jealous because Jean-Luc kept feeding the one on the right, so it kept trying to lunge at Jean-Luc to beg for food.

After the horses we decided to wash up. Girls being girls we explored the restroom facilities and took a few photos.

After exploring what we could of the restroom we headed over to the Polo field for a look see.

The kids frolicked on the grass and ran from one end to the other while the adults sat on the sidelines and watched them. Ok, maybe the men weren't really watching.

Afterwards we went to the poolside for a snack and to let the kids play at the playground.
One things, for sure ... EVERYONE had fun. Maybe next time I would be wearing jeans and the kids would have their swimsuits.
It was a perfect day.

Credit card blues

Once upon a time I had a credit card ... an HSBC Gold Visa card to be exact. Then in 2002, when I went into depression, I cancelled it. I had no job, no immediate source of income, I was on meds for my depression ... in other words, I was miserable.

Despite that, though, everytime I was able to I would make sure to make some sort of payment to my debt, even if it is just P500 or P1,000 at a time. When I had a job I was paying twice a month, I didn't even bother to wait for the bill. Now that my income is not stable, I also pay when I can.

HSBC has offered me amnesty. Instead of the full amount I am supposed to pay them (inclusive of interest charges) they are asking me to pay them P28,000 by September 25, 2007 and all debts are cleared. Whoopie, right? Except ... if I HAD P28,000, don't you think I would have given it already?

The person who calls here (Marlon Raya) tells me, maybe I should sell my car so that I could pay the debt. When I tell him I don't have a car to sell he disbelieves me and mocks me ... telling me he doesn't believe I do not have a car. He even goes on to say if I should swear to God that I am telling the truth then lightning would strike me. To say I was incensed is an understatement. How DARE he say that? And how DARE he drag God into this?

I don't have a car.
I don't have my own house.
I don't have a checking account.
I don't have a job.

He doesn't believe me. The fact that I even pick up his calls should tell him I am not avoiding my responsibility. He wants me to say ... no, PROMISE ... that I will pay the P28,000 by September 25 and I told him I could not promise that. Of course I could just SAY "I promise" but I know for a fact that I can't. I don't even have P10,000 in my bank account.

I give what I can, when I can. If it means that the amnesty is off and I am in debt for life, then, so be it. I brought it on myself for getting a credit card in the first place. Credit cards are evil.

Technically, I COULD ask my dad for help 'cause I know he has that amount in the bank. But I don't want to. He's saving that money for something, I don't know what. But it isn't for settling his kids' debts. Besides, he knows about my situation and he hasn't offered to help out so I figure he isn't really willing to help.

I'm expecting to get maybe 5k this month. I'll give that to HSBC to shut them up a bit. If it means I lose the amnesty for not paying the full amount then ... oh, well. consider me "in debt" until I am old and grey.

Wanted: Active Bloggers/Reviewers

Okay, I know that there are more than a handful of people out there who blog, and specifically, like to review stuff like movies and plays we see, tv shows we like, music we hear, restaurants we visit, etc.

So to those people, I would like to invite you to join me in a "presscon" for bloggers being organized by Tanghalang Pilipino. They are asking me if it is feasible to schedule the first one for next week and I tentatively said saturday is a good day but I thought I would ask you all for a consensus. What do you think is a better day and time to meet? Weekday or weekend? Afternoon or evening?

Hope you active bloggers (located in the NCR) can get back to me soonest so that I could give them feedback ASAP. Thanks!

Bus blues

For goodness sake! What is wrong with these bus drivers! It's bad enough that they drive down EDSA like they are the only vehicles on the road, what makes it worse is most of them are smoke belchers and it seems like all of them just LOOOOOOVE to lean on the horn.

Okay, I get it. They lean on the horn to get our attention. However, unless the horn sounds like "FTI", ""Alabang", or "Cubao", "Fairview", "Monumento", etc. I don't see the point of honking and honkng. It's not like we would be able to tell the honks apart, right? We tell them apart from the signs on their front windshield, not from honks.

How difficult is it for the bus drivers to understand? Is it a compulsion? Do they not care that they are breaking our ear drums?

As for the air pollution, is it really that expensive to have their oil changed or to have a tune up? It's the company that pays for it, I know, but I don't know why they can't do the responsible thing and make sure their vehicles are not smoke belchers.

These, more than any other, are the reasons why I would rather take the train.

Hysteria is not what I thought it was

A few months ago I downloaded this video called Turn Me On: The History of the Vibrator (click on link to download the torrent if you are interested in seeing it). Never mind why I downloaded it. That isn't relevant to this post, hehehe. I finally got around to watching the video last night and, of course, I got to see thousands upon thousands of dildos and vibrators in all shapes and sizes. But I was surprised to discover just how interesting the history of the vibrator was going to be.

Once upon a time there were women who would be diagnosed with an illness they called hysteria. Symptoms would be fainting spells, flushed skin, enlarged genitals, sleeplessness and moaning (as if in pain). Turns out that what they labeled as hysteria was actually an arousal without attaining an orgasm. It seemed that a lot of women back then couldn't get off. Their families would bring them to doctors who would then massage their genitals for them until they get off. This was not a sexual act back then because there was no penis involved. For the doctors and patients it was a clinical procedure.

Strained hands and several patients later a doctor invented a device akin to a small rolling pin about 2 inches wide with a handle. From the photo it looked like the roller had little nubs all over it. The doctor would then use this contraption to stimulate the patient. Years later, the first vibrator was invented. It looked like a cork screw with a funky bend and on one end was a spinning disk. Scary .. but apparently effective. They discovered that vibration speeded up the "healing process" so that patients would be in and out of their office 10 minutes tops!

A gynecologist they interviewed said that a woman suffering from hysteria is just like a man with an unfulfilled arousal. When a man gets aroused his genitals get filled with blood. Once he ejaculates, he goes into paroxysm, the blood drains and he goes limp and he is fine. When a woman is aroused her genitals get filled with blood, too. Until the blood is drained (in other words, once she has an orgasm) she suffers from hysteria.

Here is a timeline I saw at http://bupipedream.com/042503/release/r3.htm

• 1653: Doctors recommended the following as an ailment for hysteria:
  "...we consider it necessary to ask a midwife to assist so that she can massage the genitalia with one finger inside using oil of lilies, musk root, crocus or [something] similar. And in this way the afflicted woman can be aroused to paroxysm…most especially for widows, those who live chaste lives, and female religious...it is less often recommended for very young women, or married women, for whom it is a better remedy to engage in intercourse with their spouses."
• Early 1800s: Doctors try other strategies for arousing women including rocking chairs, a swing, and vehicles that bounced the patient rhythmically on her pelvis.
• 1870: A wind-up vibrator is made available to both spas and physicians, but it has a tendency to run down before the treatment is complete.
• 1872: An American physician patents the "Manipulator" - a steam-powered massage and vibratory apparatus. He warns treatment should be watched to avoid over-manipulation.
• 1880s: A British physician invents the electromechanical vibrator for use as a medical instrument.
• 1900: Other physicians follow suit with contraptions intended to serve as vibrators. Articles and textbooks on vibratory massage technique praised the machine's versatility for treating nearly all diseases in both sexes and saving physicians time and labor. These vibrators reduced the time of "getting there" from up to an hour to approximately 10 minutes.
• 1905: Convenient portable models become available, permitting house calls.
• 1900-1920: Vibrators were advertised in Home Needlework Journal as a health and relaxation aid with which "all the pleasures of youth will throb within you."
• 1918: Sears and Roebuck & Company Electric Goods catalog advertises a vibrator attachment for a home motor that also drives attachments for churning, beating, buffing and fan operating
• 1920s: Stag films started using vibrators as props. Physicians realized that orgasm didn't necessarily involve penetration. And once they connected "arousal to paroxysm" with eroticism, the vibrator's era as a medical appliance ended.
• 1960s: Vibrator re-emerges and is openly marketed as a sex aid.
• 1970s: Medical authorities still assure men that a woman who does not reach orgasm during sexual coitus was flawed or suffering from some physical or psychological impairment.
• 1990s: research shows that more than half of all women, possibly more than 70 percent, do not reach orgasm by means of penetration alone.

Whether or not you actually use one or are contemplating using one, this is an interesting video. I recommend it to open-minded adults.

Test: How much of the Philippines have you visited?

My Lakbayan grade is C-!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out atLakbayan!
Created by Eugene Villar.

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I think it is safe to say ... I still have many places to go to in the Philippines. All I have to do now is plan and save up for them.

Test: Nerd? Geek? Or Dork?

Saw this test on Svetti's site and thought I'd share it with you all, especially the NWA members. The question is ... are you a nerd, geek, or dork? This is how I turned out ...

Your Score: Pure Geek

47 % Nerd, 56% Geek, 17% Dork

For The Record:

A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia.
A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one.
A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions.
You scored better than half in Geek, earning you the title of: Pure Geek.

It's not that you're a school junkie, like the nerd, and you don't really stand out in a crowd, like the dork, you just have some interests that aren't quite mainstream. Perhaps it's anime, perhaps it's computers, perhaps it's bottle caps, perhaps it's all of those and more. Your interests take you to events and gatherings that are filled with people you find unusual and beyond-the-pale, but you don't quite consider yourself "of that crowd." Instead, you consider yourself to be fairly normal.

Which, you are.
Congratulations! You're the one on the RIGHT!


Also, you might want to check out some of my other tests if you're interested in any of the following:

• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Professional Wrestling
• Love & Sexuality
• America/Politics

Thanks Again! -- THE NERD? GEEK? OR DORK? TEST

Link: The Nerd? Geek? or Dork? Test written by donathos on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Why am I NOT surprised? Although, I must say, I don't quite agree with the assessment description.

Our taxes are working for us

It looks better now but believe me, these past few weeks our street has been almost impassable. Definitely it has been difficult for neighbors who usually leave their cars parked outside. Now they end up parking at the end of the street and cluttering up the houses THERE.

All these industrious digging is courtesy of the local government. They are supposed to be for flood control and drainage improvement. The day Kamuning is overcome by flood is the day the City of Manila goes underwater. For goodness sake! Kamuning is ON TOP OF A HILL!

The mounds of earth and shale on the roads is only part of the nuisance. Ask me where they did the digging. It was done on the sidewalks which, over the years have been partially transformed into mini-gardens by the neighborhood and in some cases, extensions of their homes. Imagine how this affected the morale of the neighborhood. According to the workers, once they finish our side of the street they will work on the other side. Oh, joy. More digging.

I can't stand it! The sound of several jackhammers "singing" outside my window in the morning is enough to wake up the dead! And this industrial symphony only stops for lunch, then proceeds until 5pm. I'm just glad they don't work on Sundays. That gives everyone (them and us) at least one day of rest.

The dust of the construction is not good for our health. My folks and nephew and nice are already coughing. The noise also gives us a headache of monumental proportions. I go to bed early at night (when I can) to ease the headache and in anticipation of the early morning wake up by the jackhammer symphony.

I hope it ends soon. And I hope they fix the street when they're done. I also hope that after the election, the budget for these improvements won't trickle away into limbo.

Wanted: animal control

Every time I step out of the house and see the neighborhood wandering around like the streets are their own backyard I get a little bit peeved. No, they don't run after people barking, with teeth bared, so that isn't an issue. But they do enough to drive me bonkers!

They mate in the middle of the street and if a car is coming by ... sorry, driver, but you will have to wait until they're done.

They SLEEP in the middle of the street. Again, if a car comes down the road they just raise their head and seem to say to themselves, "What is that bright light coming towards me?" They still don't move, by the way. You have to honk at them and flash your lights at them to wake them up. And THEN, they move languidly and make you wait several minutes for them to get out of the way.

What really gets my dander up, though, is that it seems like all the neighborhood decided to make the front of our house their public restroom. More than any other house on our street, when going to our house you need to be very careful 'lest you find your foot in something squishy and stinky. No matter what time of the day (or night), someone's is making a deposit at our place. And what REALLY gets my dander up is sometimes, I will SEE the owner WITH THE while IT is making its deposit! Hello! Make a mess at your own place, thank you! I don't shit at your place, don't shit on mine! Why can't he do his business in front of your house instead? At the very least, please pick up the fertilizer your pet left behind. Use it on your plants if you want or throw it in the bin, I don't care, just don't leave it HERE!

And that's just the ... let me get to the now. The neighborhood are neater. They don't do their business on the street. They actually enter our little garden in front, hide behind the hedges, and make their contributions there. It wouldn't be so bad since the plants need the fertilizer anyway, but ... with so many making contributions, our frontage now gives off an uninviting smell.

Between the two it is embarrassing to invite people over. People might think we don't keep a clean house or that we let our pets run amok. The irony is ...we don't have any pets except fish! Our frontage smells like a kennel and we don't even own any quadrupeds!

Many times my dad and I have discussed using his slingshot and targeting any animal that stops in front of the house and positions itself to defecate, whether its owner is with it or not. So far we haven't gotten around to it, but it is definitely something we seriously want to do. Another idea, which I am all for by the way, is to hose them down when they approach. That way the porch gets cleaned, too.

I keep telling myself I will treat our frontage to a vinegar and water bath to serve as a deterrent to pets --- the vinegar and water erases their scent from the area --- but I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Need to buy a stiff brush with a handle, too. I will find the time over the weekend (I hope) and I will keep my fingers crossed that it will work. Sigh.

In my opinion, though, it isn't the animals that need the control but the owners, for letting them run amok. Can I have them arrested for negligence?