Cool off

It's been 10 days. So far the longest time that we didn't see each other.


I've been busy. I am sorry to say that I couldn't find time for you these days. That's unfair, I know. And you know I've always been like that. Blame me.

I wanted to leave. I wanted to just forget you. But it hurts thinking about the bond we had. I've shared you my stories. You listened. You made way for me to discover things that were all new to me, and you opened doors for friendship, gave me an opportunity to learn about other people's lives, thoughts, ideas.

I wanted to leave. But how could I? You've always been there for me, listening to my complaints, my heartaches, my pains. You've done so much that it would be a very inappropriate gesture to walk away just like that.

So, I will be gone, for just a short while, days, probably weeks. I know you will wait. I know when I come back, you will still be there, waiting, ready for what I am going to say.


-an open letter to my blog.

i-facts

Tagged by aajao.

The rule: You have to enumerate 5 factoids about you that people may not know of. These could either be personal stuff, embarrasing moments in your life, weird habits, a funny pet name and so on and so forth.


Awryt, here we go:

1. I have acrophobia; fear of heights. I could hardly look down a window from about 10 floors (and higher) above the ground.

2. I love eating. I eat anything with cheese. I love fatty foods, fastfoods, anything that could make me fat. I love it when I'm gaining weight. I don't wanna get sick because it makes me look 10 lbs thinner after. It would take me months to gain that 10lbs back and yeah, eating 5-6 times a day is a lot of hard work, not to mention, expensive!

3. Ain't got a driver's license. I don't know how to drive. And no, I don't care about owning a car. I'm probably the last person on earth who would make car a priority in my wish list.

4. There's this small scar on my chin, caused by me, doing a balancing act on a water pipe when I was 11.

5. A birthmark on my right thigh. Hardly noticeable, just a little darker than my skin color, no wonder, no one (who had access) ever really noticed it.


I'm passing this tag to: anyone who loves starting a conversation with the letter "i".

Cheers!

Mr. Webster's letter

I love watching war movies. In Saving Private Ryan in particular, the war scenes were too bloody, but what I find really amusing were the dying soldiers crying, and shouting "mommy!!!"

The Pacific War Memorial Museum was the second to the last stop of the Corregidor tour. We were only given 30 minutes here. While everybody was busy looking at the century old guns and ammunition on display, the letters below caught my attention.

They're from an American soldier named Webster. A very short letter but may have meant a lot. I managed to take a macro shot before we left. This is the first one, dated 10-15-44. Double click to enlarge.


And the second letter; written about three months after. Notice that "father" was omitted on the greeting. The hand writing kinda changed too, but the content; almost the same.


Initially, I was just amused by the greeting "Dear Mother". But the content reminds me of how one wishes to be home, especially during difficult situations.

Sadly, as revealed by the articles below, Webster, including hundreds of other soldiers, never made it home...

Webster's photos; below and third from left in the upper photo.

Seeing the war photos around the museum, then reading these letters, left me speechless for a moment. For the first time, I remembered my grandfather, whom I never get to know, and who happens to be a WW2 veteran also.

Corregidor

What I knew about Corregidor before the trip:

1. It's located in Manila, later on I realized I was referring to Intramuros.

2. It's not an island. I thought I could go there by bus.

3. People resides in the area. I thought I could hire a tricycle to go around.

4. I wasn't really aware how historical it was.


See, I must have missed a lot of my SIBIKA back in elementary. I remember names like McArthur, Eisenhower, but not much details about Corregidor. Shame.

The trip, by boat, was about an hour and a half from Manila. We arrived in the island at about 9:30AM and got in to one of these buses:

We moved around the island accompanied by a tour guide. I was amazed. Definitely more historical than I thought.

Dioni, Joy, Von, Mae, Me

There were lots of beautiful places, but I was specifically attracted with the ruins. Joy has a third eye and while reviewing the photos I took later, she saw entities, err, ghost. I've tried checking the photos myself, but couldn't really see anything except for some figures in the last two photos below. If you have a third eye, you may be able to see it clearly too.

We had 5 cameras that day. But all the photos with those things on them are from my camera. Weird?

Double click to enlarge:

They're called ghost orbs. A theory which, upon checking the internet, I think only few people believe and skeptics definitely reject. But I guess, the clarity of the ghosts in the images depends on the level of your sixth sense. Check them photos for yourself.

Advance Happy Halloween!!!


Next: a soldier's letter to his mom; heartwarming...

Pathetic attempt at poetry

No. I'm not looking for love.
Call me selfish.
I am.
I don't wanna fall in love.
Not yet, not so soon.

Dahil ayoko ko nang mag emo.
Di bale nang nag-iisa.
May ka-holding hands? Hindi ako naiingit.
May kahalikan? Hindi ako naiingit.
May kayakap? Hindi ako naiingit.
PDA? Hindi ako naiingit.

Masaya akong single.

Doesn't make sense? Sorry na, hindi ako makata.
Walang rhyme, wala lang. hehehe.


Got this tag from ice. Here’s the rule:
...
1. Write a poem or an inspiring line based on a photo of your choice. This photo can be your own, or someone else’s. (If the picture is not yours, please ask permission from the owner when you post it, or better yet, provide only the link to the picture that inspired you, without posting it.)
...
2. Your poem or inspiring line may be of any length, and any genre. It can be humorous, sentimental, heart-warming, whatever. You may write in Ilokano, English or Filipino.
...
3. Post your inspiring line in your blog and in the comment section of this page (or just a link to your post so we could go and check it there). For poetry submissions, please indicate if you wish your piece to be posted in Bilingual Pen as an article submission.
...
4. The goal of this game is to get us to write, and express our thoughts and emotions.

I'm tagging:

Kris Jasper
pusa
reyn
ROneiluke