Still More on Turkey - #4

What impressed me most about Turkey was its variety. Each place was uniquely different. Ismir by the seaside felt more like Alexandria than Istanbul. Antalya felt different from both Istanbul and Ismir. And Capadoccia was something entirely different from all those places. And we hadn't seen all of Turkey. There's all of the North and East to explore. No wonder people return to Turkey over and over again.

Ephesus - We visited this three years ago via Princess Cruise and thousands of people had crowded the place, and we didn't really understand our guide all that well. This time, the place was not as crowded and Yusuf gave excellent commentaries about the place: the temple of Artemis, the library (which isn't really a library but which held the collection of some wealthy man), the whore house across the library, the agoura, and more. The amphitheater was closed this visit so I'm glad that we had seen it last time; I even had the chance to stand on the stage and imagine how St. Paul might have felt when he spoke there and angered the people so much, they drove him away.



Mary's House - There's been some development here since I last saw it. Now there's a digging to unearth the ruins of the ancient church near Mary's house. Now the vendors sell rosaries. The chapel/church where Mary's house used to stand remains small and intimate. The nearby forest that had burned three years ago and dramatically stopped near Mary's house is growing back. The wall with people's petitions are still filled with the scraps of white cloth and paper, and the taps with spring water are still there. Mary is venerated by both Catholics and Muslims who call her Miriam. In a hotel restaurant a waiter looked at my pendant with Mary's image and he said in recognition, "Miriam." click here for more information on Mary's House.

The Ruins - We saw quite a lot of ruins, they're starting to run together. After Troy and Ephesus, we visited the acropolis of Pergamon, which is perched up a mountain. We visited the nearby ancient hospital with dreaming rooms and a shrine to Asclepion, Greek God of medicine. We saw the Hierapolis located in the midst of white lime cascades. What stands out in my mind is the pool with the fallen temple columns and statues. There is also the theater with the intact backstage walls, and a most dramatic view of mountains in the distance. We visited Perge with the wide avenue and fountain trough down the full length of this street. Perge also has a hippodrome, used for chariot races, and a section of this was also used as an arena for bloody gladiator fights. During a rainy morning, we visited Aspendos with it's huge amphitheater.


By the time we got to Antalya, we were ready to rest, and fortunately we spent three nights there. Time to do some laundry, sleep-in, catch our breath. We didn't take any optional tour. We relaxed and Antalya, called the Turkish riviera, was the perfect place to do that. We stayed at the Sheraton Voyager Hotel, quite nice, near the sea, although it was up a ridge so you had the view, but didn't have access to the seashore. We visited their marvelous museum and took the tram to their Old City. The Old City was down near the water, and it had winding streets, and tall houses with tiled roof and balconies that made me think of Moorish Spain.

And at this point, dear Readers, I must share with you my sadness that all the pictures I took in all these places I've been talking about are gone. My husband accidentally reformatted my camera, and the pictures are now in some picture-cemetery, forever gone. I am waiting for the kindness of my tour companions to send me their pictures, so until then, I'm making do with whatever pictures I have available. I should mention that tour companions: Estelle Schwalb, Dan Hopson, Lucille and Bill Voight, and George Matula have already shared some pictures.


(more to come)

Read also:


Check out these links as well:
 http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300924-travel-tips-to-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300918-still-more-on-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300925-cappadocia-turkey

More on Turkey #3

By the time we left the European side of Turkey to get to the Asia Minor side, I realized that the clothes I brought were too light. It was colder than I expected and rainy as well, but we had some clear days. The thin silk shirts and sandals were generally put aside for pants, socks, shoes, long sleeved pullovers and a waterproof coat.

In any case, it was pleasant to sit in the tour bus and observe the dense buildings of Istanbul thin out until there were stretches of land, rolling hills that were not quite so pretty near Istanbul, but which got prettier the farther away we got. There were many farm lands and only few workers, mostly women, and older women at that, wearing billowy pants, loose shirts and scarves over their heads. The men wore pants with a coat or vest. (Cadir the assistant in our tour bus wore a smart leather jacket for most of the two weeks.)Some men, especially near the Mediterranean wore ethnic-looking clothing - pants tucked into boots with a colorful vest. But no fezzes - Ataturk (Mustafa Kemal), military leader of Turkey in the 1920s and 1930s enforced reforms in Turkey to modernize it, to make it more European, and out went the Sultanate and fezzes, among other things.

We saw the ancient city of Troy near the province of Canakkale. Forget the fake wooden horse that greets you in front of the park; focus on the ruins themselves, all 10 levels of cities. Homer's epic stories about the Iliad and the Odyssey talked of Troy and for the longest time, Troy was thought of as fiction. It was the German Schliemann who took Homer's accounts seriously and his diggings between 1870-1890 uncovered the ruins of Troy. His name is tarnished however because the Turkish government has accused him of stealing and damaging the site. (Charles McLaren is said to have first found the ruins of Troy in 1822.) I am not sure why Schliemann alone is accused of stealing from ancient ruins, when all one has to do is visit the British Museum or view the British Royal jewels to see stolen items.

The diggings continue in Troy and because there were settlements built on top of settlements, there are levels of the various "cities" of Troy. They are mostly rocks and walls and rubble, but the idea that fascinated me was the notion that folklore does document human life and history. My folklorist friends, Ming Menez, Susan Montepio among them, used to talk about the importance of folklore for information about people's history, culture, life. There are clues in these stories, Ming used to say, and one has to more or less read between the lines. The other thing they used to talk about is the fact that epics or other folk lore will be similar in different places, but that these can be traced back to a common source. The story of the Great Flood, for instance, is told in many places.

Anyway, Troy got me excited about folklore once again; this is why Troy stands out among ancient ruins - it was talked about by the epic singer Homer. As to whether there really was a Helen and whether there really was a Trojan horse is uncertain, but the important fact was that Homer was talking about a momentous battle between the land-people (the Trojans) and the seafarers (the Achaean or Aegean). So important was this battle that Egypt sent thousands of soldiers to help Troy resist the seafarers. The Trojans and Egyptians knew they had to hold back the seafarers or else eventually lose to them, which did happen.

We spent a night in Canakkale, a university town/city near the historic Dardanelles; and the next night we stayed in Izmir which is Turkey's third largest city of Turkey. It's ancient name was Smyrna, and St. Paul had visited the place.

That was another thing that was really great about Turkey - this was the land that Paul, Barnabas, our own Mother Mary, John the Beloved, and other early Christians, had walked on. The idea that Turkey, although it was not known as Turkey then, but was part of the Roman empire, was Mary's home fills me with awe and some affection to the land and people who had given refuge to Our Lady.

(More later)

Read also:

Check out these links as well:
 http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300924-travel-tips-to-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300918-still-more-on-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300925-cappadocia-turkey

Travel to Turkey - #2 More on Istanbul

Our tour guide made sure we saw what needed to be seen in Istanbul - the Old city, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market, and a cruise down the Bosphorus Strait, which connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara. Despite the occasional rain, everything was great. Istanbul was once the capital of the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires and ruins and buildings from these civilizations fill the city. Even though I had taken history classes, I never quite understood how these empires came and went. It was something to see the narrow point of the Bosphorus Strait where the Romans had placed huge chains to hold back the Turks; finally I had an inkling of the bloody battles that went on to allow one power to drive another out of the place.

There were epiphanies like this one that happened to me during this visit. For example, as a school girl a nun told us about how the early Christians had to hide in catacombs and caves to hear Mass, and how privileged we were since we could hear Mass any time in Churches. When I saw the underground caves and tunnels in Capadoccia where the early Christians hid from the Romans and where early Monks had carved out chapels and their rooms, I recalled what that nun had said. But I am jumping ahead; let's stay in Istanbul a bit longer.

A highlight was meeting Nurten Hatirnaz, the editor of the Turkish publisher (Bilge Kultur Sanat) that translated my novel, When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, into Turkish. My husband, our friends John and Elizabeth Allen, and I slipped away from the group at the Grand Bazaar, and with the help of our Tour Director found the office of Bilge Kultur Sanat. We had delightful visit with Nurten. We had Turkish coffee, tea, met the staff, and took some pictures, which my husband accidentally deleted sometime during the trip - but that too is another story.

The fact the Bilge Kultur Sanat had translated my novel made me feel connected with Turkey in a special way. The thought had crossed my mind that my novel is part of Turkish literature. Meeting Nurten was like meeting an old friend.

It was like that in Turkey - one pleasantry after another. Even the members of our group all proved to be seasoned travelers - considerate and interesting people. Our tour guide was an archeologist, a Ph.D. who dazzled us with his knowledge on Turkish history, culture, politics, economics - name it. He was so passionate about everything Turkish so that we too started to see Turkey through his eyes and started to fall in love with the place and people. He also amused us with his delightful accent. Trained in German schools, he picked up the German habit of converting "v" into "w" so he would talk in this way: "After we wisit the Topkapi Palace, we will proceed to the Blue Mosque..." or "Even though the westal wirgens of the temple of Artemis had wows of chastity, they did in fact spend time with men who made huge donations and who vished to be united with the Goddess..." In a holiday mood, we turned silly and talked about making a wisit to whizz, in their toilets, which generally charged 1/2 or 1 Turkish lira.

We only grazed Istanbul, had just a little taste of this grand city, because really, how much can you see in three days? - and then we were on our way to other places in Turkey.

~~

Read also:
Check out these links as well:
 http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300924-travel-tips-to-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300918-still-more-on-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300925-cappadocia-turkey

Visit to Turkey - #1- Istanbul

I've been away for two weeks dear Readers, thus my silence. We visited Turkey and I'll be blogging about that visit these coming days.

Several years ago, while on a Mediterranean cruise, we stopped by Kusadasi and visited Ephesus. In particular we visited Mary's house and St. John's Basilica. Our ship was docked in Kusadasi and we had the chance to visit the Bazaar there where I found nice amber earrings and necklace. It was a very nice visit and we had made a note that we'd like to do a land tour of Turkey. I'm not sure what prompts one to say that - the place perhaps, the people certainly, but it seemed that Turkey would be a lovely interesting place to see.

It turned out that our friend, Elizabeth Allen, who had also visited Mary's house at around the same time, had come to the same conclusion about revisiting Turkey. We've traveled with Elizabeth and John Allen before - to Turkey and the Philippines, and so we planned a land trip to Turkey. We booked a 2-week tour via Grand European Tours. The tour included visits to: Istanbul, Gallipoli/Canakkale, Pergamon, Izmir, Ephesus, Pamukkale, Hierapolis, Antalya, Konya, Cappadocia, and Ankara. There were 43 of us in the American group, and our tour director was Yusuf Burak. The driver's name was Ilyas, and the assistant's name was Cadir. I mention them because they were all exceptionally nice and competent people who made our visit very pleasant. I should mention that the local tour company's name was Neon Tours; this was the company that actually took care of us in Turkey.


The Allens and we had visited Egypt together last year and the memories of Islam, dessert sand and long robes lingered with me. I had also retained in my head, pictures of Turks wearing fezzes and turbans, images similar to the turbaned Arabs,so that even though I knew (on an intellectual level) that Turkey was different from Egypt and other Arabic places, I expected long-robed, turbaned men there. I'd equated Islam with Arabic garb. I had to correct this misconception because men in Turkey wear regular western clothes,even though they are Muslims. Some women cover their heads and there were a few who wear burkas - visitors, our tour director insisted - because (our Tour Director emphasized) Turks are NOT Arabs. More women than men dress like other Arabic women - that is, they cover their heads.

The other misconception I had - this even though I had already visited Ephesus - is that Turkey would be arid. Wrong again - at least where we visited, the place was generally green and lush. I understand there are arid places in Turkey; the country is very large and offers different geographic features and sub-cultures. This is probably the only country I've visited that offers such a variety, and we didn't even visit the entire country.

The entire two weeks I spent rearranging images in my head, deleting the incorrect ones I had made up and trying my best to retain all the wonderful ones that presented themselves to me.

Istanbul: This is one of the most interesting cities I have ever visited. Even the drive from the airport to our hotel was a pleasure. It was a Saturday when we arrived and people were out enjoying themselves. The day was warm and pleasant, the sea shimmered to our right as we coasted down the highway, past ruins of ancient walls and buildings and fantastic blooming bulbs. The Conrad Hilton was a nice 5-star hotel, deserving of its five stars, although I would have preferred an hotel in the old city. There's something to be said about stepping out your hotel into ancient cobble stoned streets, right into the heart of things. But never mind, our room was great, with a view of a park, street, and buildings. The towels were the best ever - thick and lush, we all fell in love with the large European towels. The buffet breakfast was also nice - assorted olives, vegetables, fruit, a huge hunk of honeycomb, breads, sweets, the standard eggs, potatoes, mushrooms, and bacon. (The other hotels did not serve bacon - it's a Muslim country.)

Sunday we met our Tour Director, Yusuf, who bemoaned the fact that there were 43 of us, a large group, and it was raining to boot, and it seemed everything was just going to be awful. He was such a gloom and doom guy that we laughed, because really, we were all in a cheerful holiday mood. It was colder and wetter than I expected. I had the coat that I wore in Ireland - that was smart; but I wore sandals - that was dumb. At some point I had to put on socks.

In the old city, we saw the Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Haghia Sofia, Hippodrome, and Cisterns. Click on this site for descriptions of these places.


(More later)


P.S. My cat, Kiki, survived our absence. She's gotten over her allergy but she still looks


bedraggled.

~~~

Check out these links as well:
 http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300924-travel-tips-to-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300918-still-more-on-turkey

http://www.iwasinturkey.com/travelogues/300925-cappadocia-turkey

Second Update on my Cat Kiki' Allergies

Here's another pet update: My cat Kiki is better than she had been. She lost her Elizabethan collar a few days ago and I didn't bother getting another one since she seemed better. She was well enough to sit outside for the 2 nice super-hot days we've had - and how happy she was to hear the birds, feel the sun, and just sleep outside. Then the yesterday she had a setback - suddenly she developed a hot spot on her side. She started ripping out her fur in that area, and the skin actually had welts, like hives. I dapped this area with peroxide and applied some of the Tea Tree lotion. I also gave her 2 mg of antihistamine, which seemed to help her. On her own volition, she stayed indoors, hid behind the radio and rested. Today, she seemed better but was still itchy. I gave her a Selsun Blue bath, which helped her a lot. She was able to go out and carry on with her usual activities.

She is old, and is in a frail condition. She will need daily antihistamine, and will need a bath every 5-7 days. She gets her Advantage or Frontline for fleas, she's allergic not just to fleas but to other things. I suspect it's some pollen or something outside. But she loves the outdoors so much I can't bear turning her into a 100% indoor cat. She stays near the house, and I'm observing her to see if the daily antihistamine and weekly baths keep her allergy in check.

I continue to give her an egg yolk every day. She loves this very much, so I'm able to give it to her as is, or with a bit of olive oil, or mixed with her food and Immugen and even her anithistamine, although it's better to pry open mouth and pop the antihistamine into her throat.

It's touch and go. She's an old cat, but as long as she can still be happy listening to the birds, or getting her ears rubbed, I'll do my best to keep her comfortable. If she should be in pain, or her quality of life goes down, or if she's plain miserable all the time, then it'll be time to put her to sleep. It makes me sad thinking about this, but she is 16 years old and that's very old in cat years.

Susan Boyle Sites

Like many others, I find myself enchanted at Susan Boyle. Here are some sites that feature her singing:

Killing Me Softly - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbMa9BTIA9k
Cry Me a River - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8r9lRJ6yHY
I Dreamed a Dream - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY (from Les Miserables, and this one has her ground-breaking performance)
Titanic Song - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKC3voTvEAI

and if you really want a good laugh, check this out. It's Jay Leno as Susan
Boyle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVI__AqXnio

EASTER 2009!

SAGA OF MY CAT KIKI AND HER ALLERGIES

First thing yesterday, I gave Kiki another Selsun Blue bath, which helped her a lot. She loves those baths, as long as her feet are planted firmly on the ground. The lukewarm water must feel good, and the medicated Selsun Blue must also soothe her skin. Poor thing! The part she really hates is after the shampoo, when she is wet and cold. She shivers for a long time, but I can tell that her itchiness has waned.

The antihistamine, Chlorpheniramine 4 mg, that I ordered from Petmeds.com didn't come in yesterday; it wasn't their fault, I ordered it Wednesday and I probably won't get it until Monday. I couldn't wait because Kiki was miserable with the itching and with the collar which leaves her so disoriented. I went to RiteAid and looked in the Benadryl, antihistamine section, and would you believe it, I found Chlorpheniramine 4 mg. I gave her half a pill and in just a short time, she relaxed. What happened was she became sleepy, a side effect. Another possible side effect is upset stomach, but Kiki was fine there. She was able to rest and was more comfortable. I gave her another half a pill at night and she slept well. I have to say that because of the antihistamine, she is better and much more comfortable. As of yesterday, she was still itchy because I removed her collar and she started scratching and yanking her fur out again. Back went the Elizabethan collar, and it'll stay on until she stops this pulling off of her fur.

So, the Selsun Blue bath and especially the antihistamine helped her a lot. I don't know if the cod liver oil and the egg yolks are helping her too, but they can't hurt. She loves the egg yolks and greedily laps her little bowl with the stuff in the morning.

I'm hoping she gets well enough so we can remove her collar and she can resume her cat life, albeit more sedate since she is around 16 years old.

UPDATE KIKI MY CAT

Here's a quick update on my cat, Kiki. She's not doing very well, although she seems slightly better than she was last week. She continues to scratch and has little appetite. I bought her an Elizabethan collar, which gets in her way, and I've given her Selsun Blue baths - and have also used a Tea Tree oil spray (with Vitamins A and D) in between baths. My research suggested a weekly bath, but I didn't wait a week because she's uncomfortable and the bath helps her. The pet store manager said too many baths will dry out her skin, which could be worse, so I'm watching out for dryness.

I've been giving her 2 egg yolks a day (the eggs are small, recommendation is one egg yolk). I continue to give her Immugen and have added Cod liver oil. She barely eats, so I get a bit of food, mix in the Imuugen and cod liver oil and cajole her into eating. She'll eat a tablespoon or so. She does like the egg yolks. She is drinking a lot of water. She likes to continue doing her usual routine, although I'm not allowing her to go to the rose garden, which she enjoys in the morning. She's allowed in the courtyard for a few hours when it's sunny. Otherswise, she hangs around in my office, den, and bedroom - depending on the time of day. (She has a schedule.)

I ordered an antihistamine from Petmeds,which should be coming in today. Maybe that'll help her. If she doesn't get better, she's going to the vet Monday.

MY CAT'S SICK - ALLERGY

See the picture? That's my cat, Kiki,with a homemade elizabethan collar. Here's the story. A few weeks ago, I noticed black fur all over the place. I thought maybe the weather was getting warmer and Kiki was molting, shedding her thick fur, to cool off. The clumps of fur got worse, and she would show up with fur sticking out her mouth. Patches of skin started appearing on her body. My son and I looked this up - there's a cool vet site at http://www.vetinfo.com - and realized the problem was either of two things: she had some internal chemical problem and was losing her fur; or she was yanking out her fur. We figured the latter since we had seen her with fur in her mouth. She was always scratching as well.

We gave her a dose of her flea medicine. She continued scratching and biting off her fur. I finally gave her a bath in diluted medicated Selsin Blue, and fashioned a homemade elizabethan collar so she can't pull off her fur. I applied a bit of Hydrocortisone on some of the raw spots on her behind, but she got really angry at me. I ordered a cat antihistamine, Chlorpheniramine 4 mg, from Petmeds; she can have 1-2 mg every 12 hours. Read vet's review of this stuff:

Vet's Review (Michael Dym, VMD)
"Chlorpheniramine "
Inhalent/contact allergies are one of the most common reasons for veterinary exam for dogs and cats outside of yearly wellness exams. Such allergies result in much itching, fee chewing, secondary bacterial and/or yeast infections of the skin and ears. This frustrating condition often leads to repetitive vet exams, cortisone and antibiotic prescriptions and increasing expense. For those pets prone to these allergic conditions, it is often an excellent idea to try an antihistamine first such as chlorphenirimine, diphenhydramine or clemastine from 1800petmeds. As I discuss under these other product reviews, the overall effectiveness of anthistamines in symptomatic relief in dogs is approximately 25% in my experience, and thus they are most effectively used when combined with essential fatty acids like Super omega 3 from 1800petmeds, regular shampooing, and antioxidant therapy with supplements like proanthozone. I especially find the chlorphenirimine antihistamine useful and my number one choice in allergic cats at a typical dose of 1 or 2 mg twice daily. However to enhance effectiveness in cats, I will prescribe a fatty acid such as nordic naturals pet cod liver oil, or be well, or missing link to my feline patients. The only rare side effects I see with this inexpensive antihistamine is mild sedation and even less common rare digestive upset. However I always try anthistamine therapy first, in conjunction with other supportive allergy treatments, before reaching for more expensive drugs like atopica or using cortisone, which can occasionally have short term and long term side effects in some patients. My overall rating of chlorphenirimine is a 4. Its ease of use a 5. Its efficacy a 3.5, when combined with the supportive measures listed here and under my product review of diphenhydramine.

Based on our internet research, vets will assume it's an allergy problem before looking into other matters. We are doing that. Hopefully, this will clear up. If not, we will have to take her to vet. One of the reasons I hate taking her to the vet is that we've had vets run expensive tests on our cats, and have suggested drastic measures as pulling out my cat's teeth or putting another cat to sleep in order to get rid of that black stuff in her ears - tests and measures which proved unnecessary. I've arrived at the conclusion that they want to make money more than to help my cat. I recall how our vet insisted we could only get Advantage flea medicine from her, which meant we had to pay her an office visit to buy the stuff. Same thing with cat senior's food - she had insisted we could only buy this from her. I've found answers to many of these cat problems in the internet, from the use of Immugen to boost her immunities to how-to-make an elizabethan collar.

So, here's what I think happened to my cat. Someone in our household believes there are no fleas in the winter, and stops giving our cat her flea medicine during that time. Our Kiki loves to sleep under a bougainvillea bush in the rose garden, and I think she either got bit by fleas or some other little creature. Kiki is very allergic; she's had episode similar to this, although this bout is pretty bad. I've had to bathe her in medicated cat shampoo, and I've squirted anti-itch stuff. I think some of those chemicals made her sicker last time, so I thought I'd do it my way. I'm going to rub some olive oil with tea tree oil on her bald spots, later on.
It's a bit tough because she gets upset, and I'm easily intimated by her.

I hope this allergy problem clears up.

The internet is a great place to find information about pet problems.

MY MOTHER'S PEASANT BLOUSE

It's springtime, and the weather has changed. It's warmer now, and I've had the urge to buy new clothes. Clothes shopping has been a pain because it's difficult to find clothes that aren't too young (too short, too tight). For a couple of years I was wearing Indian kurtas - silky, loose, airy, very comfortable. Then I figured I can't be wearing kurtas all my life, and looked around for some other styles. I discovered a couple of designers whose clothes I like: Citron of Santa Monica and Chico's. I love their silk tops and pants. They have simple lines with just a few catchy details. I've been buying them online because it's more convenient, and frankly, cheaper. If you go to the Citron shop in Santa Monica, clothes run for over a hundred dollars, but you can find the same clothes online for half the price. I know what size I wear for Citron and Chico's brands, so I can bravely buy the clothes without trying them on.

But the other day, I wanted to find some skirts and wanted to actually try them on, so I went to a department store. Naturally I got sidetracked and started trying on other clothes. One of the items I grabbed was a retro-gypsy peasant blouse - black and white, with string gathering the neckline, and elastic at the waist. When I put this on and looked in the mirror, I almost laughed because I saw my mother in my reflection. Even when she was older, she liked clothes with some style. One of her favorites was a peasant blouse that she wore with a drop-waist shirred skirt. She wore huge hoop gold earrings and clunky jewelry with this outfit.

So, anyway, I looked at myself with that peasant blouse and there was my mother - same face, same shape. It was a bit amusing and also a bit odd.

The blouse was a bit tight, otherwise I would have bought it and worn my mother's clunky gold jewelry (which I inherited)with it.

In the meantime, I'll hold off buying more clothes. I have enough.

~~
Photo of my mother was taken in 1994 when she was 82 years old.

Politics VS Good Manners, Maryknoll College Graduates bickering over politics again!

What happened to the old etiquette rule about not discussing politics and religion with friends? It seems my college classmates, who graduated from the exclusive convent school of Maryknoll College, Quezon City, where the nuns did their best to teach us not only academics but proper bearing, have forgotten this simple rule.

It's happened again. My classmates at Maryknoll College are bickering once again over US politics. The first time this happened was last year, during the heart of election season when someone posted an email about Obama being a Muslim and therefore dangerous and evil. The email quarreling started, Republicans versus Democrats. It got quite ugly with name-calling and insults hurled into cyberspace. The email fighting went on for weeks, and lifelong friendships hung on the balance (a cliche, forgive me).

Now, another one of those who was involved in that ugly fracas "innocently" sent an email to 67 of her email addresses something about a Tea Party/Tax Revolt (anti-Obama). Well, here, let me post those emails, without names. I will continue to air this quarrel on this blog until the person who started this political row has the commonsense to delete me from her email list:
~~~~~
Email #1: FW Tea Party/Tax Revolt
I will be attending so if anyone wants to join me, let me know.

Here is the info on the Tea Party/Tax Revolt. Please make plans to attend. It is time to stand up and be heard. We must stop letting the lazy, worthless low life's dictate how us hard working tax paying CITIZENS will live and spend OUR money.

Please try to round up some more sane people and make this a gargantuan event.
Go to the web site below for more details.
God bless you patriots, now lets kick some ass!!!
~~~
Email #2:
I'm sorry you all (whom I love and cherish.) But this is a croc of _____. Obama's plan is to fund health care - mostly for the working poor, to refurbish education for our youth - our collective future and to develop alternative fuel - for our global future. Why didn't you all throw a tea party when "W" racked up the biggest deficit in our history and spent our taxes on wars that haven't made us any safer?
~~~~
Email #3:
This is now beyond partisanship or politics. Decisions being made today involve amounts of money many of us never heard of even in the recent past. A trillion has 12 zeroes!!! What this administration wants to spend is now getting closer to 4 trillion, and compounded with interests, experts say will run up to 10 trillion before it's paid - who knows when, and at what real cost in human sacrifices (ours, mind you, not the ones who signed these bills). They're supposed to be stimulating the economy which is hanging on a string. The urgency here and the approval from tax payers rest on that assumption alone - stimulate the economy so people can go back to work!!!

Other good causes (to be sure) such as education, health care, etc. should go through the usual debates and discussions for their allocations to make sure every penny is spent wisely (these are our pennies!) not bamboozled down our throats as if schools and hospitals will close overnight if billions of $'s were not approved for them today - pronto!! What a cheap liberal tactic to ride on the miseries of honest, hard working people who are losing their jobs by the thousands on a daily basis. He (Obama), it seems to me, at least by his rhetoric, expects and wants all these people to be permanently out of job, on welfare and dependent on the government for health care and food stamps as long as they live!

For all the controversies behind the war in Iraq, the fact remains that there were no further successful attacks on US soil after 9/11 in the last 8 years (do you realize how scary it would have been if a similar attack got through again?) I think we can all agree that our enemies kept trying every single day to do it again, and again -- until we're ruined because that is their single-minded aim.

We went through difficult times the last 8 years, yes, but our economy and democratic way of life survived. The houseing market got out of hand, yes - but those who follow the reasons behind it know that there's enough blame to go around and it cannot be blamed only on the past President - in fact records show that he tried to steer the direction the other way, but opposing parties have so successfully smeared his name and honor, no one listened to him or his party. Indeed, 4-5 years ago, if you predicted what's going on now, you would've gotton rotten tomatoes thrown at you!! Well, we don't need Alqaida attacking us now --- all they need to do is watch us destroy our society morally and economically all by ourselves.

But some of us won't let that happen. We're going to a Tea Party!!!! Pleeese --- be heard and be counted. Political campaigns are OVER. We're talking real problems and real life situations. They're stacking us with debts we do not want, fund projects even they did not read "line by line" (music to everybody's ears when promised by Obama during his campaign) and as icing on this rotten cake, they're going to higher our taxes too! Can we be that stupid???
~~~~~
Email #4:
It looks like I've stirred up some passion again which I didn't mean to. I thought the tea party would be a good way to let our politicians know to quit their reckless spending that will hurt all of us eventually. I did not agree with Bush runaway spending either nor what our California governor is doing to California. Our politicians are spending too much no matter what affiliation you belong to. We are in the trouble we're in because of Bush runaway spending and Obama is following in the same path. We can't spend ourselves out of our problems. That money they are spending has to come somewhere. That is just basic accounting or economics.

Lets keep a healthy discussion. If we don't agree, then lets agree to dissagree. Our friendship is too valuable. Like you, I hope and pray Obama can solve the health care problems of our country. I don't think our schools are broken. They can tighten their belts like everybody else are doing nowadays. We have to make some sacrifices now for the future of our children. No more runaway spending and no more higher taxes! Give us some real stimulus, cut taxes!
~~~
Email #5:
As I’ve requested in the past, I would appreciate it if you would just send emails pertaining to personal news or upcoming social events.

Religion and Politics are two topics that most people would rather not discuss. That said, I hope this will be the last time I’d get emails of this nature.

CLEANUP RIVERS AND CREEKS DRIVES IN CEBU!

I found this recent article about a River/Creek Cleanup Drive in Cebu City! I am very excited to see something is being done about the filth in Cebu City's rivers and creeks! HOPE!!!!

Coastline management board to launch cleanup drives in different barangays
From Sun Star, March 21, 2009

IN hopes of getting people to stop throwing garbage into rivers and creeks, the Cebu Coastline Management Board (CMB) will launch a coastal and urban cleanup drive today in different barangays in Cebu City.

“While it is impossible to clean up the rivers in just one cleanup, the intention of the activity is to make people aware that it is important to start. Grabe na gyud ang condition sa atong mga rivers (Our rivers are in critical condition),” said Atanacio Almosera of the CMB.

At least 53 of 80 barangays in the city will participate in the event, simultaneously cleaning up rivers and creeks in their communities.

“All the barangays with rivers and creeks will be actively participating in the event,” said Cebu City Councilor Edwin Jagmoc, vice chairman of the CMB.

“And we hope that those people who live along the rivers and riverbanks will see the clean-up and will start cleaning up the rivers themselves,” he added.

Schools, parishes, barangay officials, residents and different non-government organizations are expected to join the activity.

“This will educate our volunteers on the real state of the rivers and hopefully this will also educate those who live nearby,”
said Jagmoc.

The CMB stressed it was important that everybody start taking better care of rivers and creeks in their barangays.

“I cannot describe to you how bad it already is. Let’s just put it this way, if you imagine a garbage dump in a river, there’s already more garbage than there is water,” said Almosera.

However, he clarified it was not because of poor solid waste management programs in the barangays, but just the accumulation of trash over several years.

Some riverbank households share part of the blame.

“Instead of disposing of the garbage at the designated pick-up points for garbage collection, they throw garbage into the rivers instead,” said Department of Public Services Chief Dionisio Gualiza.

“We just cannot allow the garbage to flow into the sea and affect life there,” Jagmoc said. (EPB)

DIVORCEE COMPLAIN ABOUT 43 MILLION DOLLAR SETTLEMENT

I've asked myself why I care that a 36-year-old wife of a former investment banker isn't satisfied with a 43 million divorce settlement. Apparently she spends, each week, $1,000 for hair and skin treatments, not to mention $700 for limo service, $1,500 for restaurants and entertainment, $8,000 for travel, and $4,500 for clothes. Those are weekly expenses so the 43 million isn't be enough; she needs $53,000 each week - each 7-day week.

This is happening now, during an economic depression - let us not kid ourselves by calling this a recession. Reading about her and the AIG bonuses have made me realize that somewhere along the line, the gap between the wealthy and the middle-class have widened tremendously. I think the difference started to become apparent when the dot.coms started to make money; the financial people followed. I remember when a million dollars was a lot of money - and it still is, in my eyes; but to this segment of people, a million dollars is loose change. They talk in terms of billions.

The ire of the people over the AIG bonuses reminded me of the French Revolution (1789-1799). The people had probably heard of the excesses of the French royalty and had had enough. "Off with their heads," they thought and did. I am feeling the same ire directed at the 400 AIG executive bonus-recipients.

During this terrible economic times when people are losing jobs and their homes, it seems sinful for people to flaunt their wealth and greed. It's time to tone down, to develop a conscience, to share with others. And the gap between the haves and have-nots, something had better be done about this,or else the spirit of revolution might come to life again.

WRITERS BEWARE OF HOAX - FANS ASKING FOR AUTOGRAPH

Another writer contacted me saying she received the same emails from "fans" asking for her autograph - the exact messages I got. This is a hoax; I don't know what they are after exactly, and why they are targeting writers (of young adult books?) - but I'm posting this blog to warn other writers not to treat such email requests seriously.
As of March 23, I've received more of these emails which I've posted, and I will continue to post them as I receive them.

~~~~
Hello!

My name is Piotr Haase. I am 33 years old. I live in a little village in Poland,together with my wife Kate and two sons Albert and Adrian. We are happy and we lead quiet live. I have been Cecilia Manguerra Brainard fan since many years.

I really admire you and I think you are very good in that what you do.I was wandering if you could. Send me yours autograph.

I would be grateful.
Thank you in advance.

Your sincelery

Piotr Haase
MY ADRESS:
PIOTR HAASE
STOJESZYN I nr 12
23-310 MODLIBORZYCE
POLAND
~~~~

Hallo Cecilia Manguerra Brainard
Ich bitte um zwei Autogramme.
Sage vielen Dank und wünsche Ihnen viel Erfolg.
Would you please send me two Autograph and Signature.
Thank you.

Monika Förster
Esmarchstr. 8
42283 Wuppertal
Deutschland

~~~~
BEDBURG 18,03,2009

Dear Mrs.Cecilia Manguerra Brainard!>>>The Best<<<

Please send me 3 Originally signed Photos of Yurself.
Best wishes for your future and many Thanks.
Yours sincerely and 10 Fans from Germany,
==========================
from Mrs, Cecilia Manguerra brainard.
=====================================

Lorenz u.Eleonore Schop
And Friends
Postfach 2227
D-50181 Bedburg/Germany
~~~
Dear Mrs. Manguerra
I am a very great admirer of yours.
Please send me 3 original autographs of yours.
Many thanks in advance for your trouble and help.
The best wishes to you and your family for the future
and may all your dreams come true.
I am looking forward to your early reply.
Yours sincerely
Elke Stachowiak & Sandra & Britta & Detlef
Bergstrasse 82a
44339 Dortmund
Germany
~~~

Dear Cecilia!!!

I´m a very big fan of You!!!

I ask You for three handwritten autograph-cards.

Thank You very much in advance!

I wish You a great success for the future and all the best for You and Your family!!!

With friendly regards
-Your Fan-

Stephan Lindner
Hauptstr. 15
D-67808 Bayerfeld
Germany
~~~

I´m a great Fan and admirerer of you. I would there be very happy if you could send me 2 handwritten pictures of you.

I would be very pleased if you could fulfill my wishes. Many thanks in advance for your kindness.

I wish you all the best for the future.

My Adress : Darius Romanek
Lärchenweg 3
D -90530 Wendelstein
Germany
Yours sincerely,
~~~~~
dear cecilia
Just a short e-mail to say that i am a great admirer of your work.
It is with much interest that i would like to know your favourite leisure interests.
Would you please consider sending me your autograph, it would be much appreciated. My snail mail address is:-
GRAYDON WALL
21 HATHERTON GARDENS
WOLVERHAMPTON
WEST MIDLANDS
WV10 8DT
ENGLAND

Many Thanks
Graydon Wall

FORTHCOMING BOOKS BY CECILIA MANGUERRA BRAINARD

I'm ashamed, dear readers, at the long lapses of non-entries in my blog, and by way of explanation, I'm sharing you with you information about some book projects of mine. (What I am saying is that I'm quite busy!). Two are forthcoming this year by Anvil, a how-to-write book (Fundamentals of Creative Writing), which Anvil hopes to release before the Philippine school year begins in June 2009; and another book which I will not discuss out of sheer superstition. Here are the back cover blurbs of Fundamentals. Be sure and tell teachers of Creative Writing in the Philippines about my Fundamentals of Creative Writing (Anvil, forthcoming):


Fundamentals of Creative Writing is a powerful resource to encourage students and/or aspiring writers to strive for excellence in their writing skills. Not only does it guide readers through the basics of setting the scene, character, conflict, dialogue, plot, point of view, voice, style , theme and tone but it also provides useful activities that challenges the writer to get their creative juices flowing. I would highly recommend this excellent book to anyone who wants to improve and enhance their creative writing skills.
Jacqueline Gullas-Weckman
Vice-President, Academic Affairs
University of the Visayas


Cecilia Manguerra Brainard has written a wonderful resource for students of creative writing. This book, Fundamentals in Creative Writing, provides students with practical steps that truly work. The strategies presented in this book are a product of the authors 15 years of teaching creative writing. She is also a prolific writer who has written numerous short stories, novels, and non-fiction books.

Edmundo F. Litton, Ed.D.
Associate Professor of Education
Loyola Marymount University

A TRIP TO EMERGENCY

I am not allowed to mention names, but I had to bring someone to Kaiser's emergency late one night. The person had a horrific nose bleed, and it didn't seem to be your regular run-of-the-mill nose bleed, so at around midnight I drove wildly down the freeway. I didn't know if the person beside me would faint or what; the person's nose was bleeding profusely. Fortunately there is little traffic at that ungodly hour, and so we arrived emergency quickly.

You know those television movies showing White female nurses? Those images aren't accurate. There were several Filipina nurses in ER and my companion's nurse was a White male.

My companion was triaged and the person categorized low priority, which augured well but which meant a substantial wait. The waiting room had a smattering of sick children and adults. After midnight, I suspect that only the really sick ones show up in ER; those who can wait for morning do so. A young homeless man came in to watch TV, get warm for a bit I suspect, use the toilet, and get eyed by the security guard before vanishing.

After prodding the nurses a bit, my companion got a room. Leo took care of the person. "I'm the nurse," Leo said, "not the doctor." Growing up, I only had female nurses around so I spent some time observing Leo. He was competent and caring enough. When the woman next door starting crying," Jesus, help me, help me now, Jesus help me!" Leo went over and calmed her down.

My companion was treated by a young female Asian American doctor. (My companion asked her, "Are you Chinese or Korean?" The doctor replied acidly: American.) As a precaution my companion had to hang around ER for a spell to make sure the person was all right. It was 3 a.m. when I drove home, more calmly this time.

What a bit of heaven it is to leave hospitals and know that there's nothing seriously wrong with you or the person you've accompanied! Thank God!

The Holy Land

THE HOLY LAND Cecilia Manguerra Brainard First published in LA Pinoy (Feb/March, 2009) 

 

 Last year in April, my husband and I visited the Holy Land. Our families and friends warned us of the tense political situation between Israel and Palestine, but we had heard that Israel goes through great lengths to protect their tourists. Born and raised a Roman Catholic, I was very excited about visiting the very place that Jesus had walked on.

We stayed in the Jerusalem Hotel, which is right outside the ancient walled city of Jerusalem. It was Good Friday, and right after throwing our bags into our room, we hurried to the walled city of Jerusalem to find the Via Dolorosa, the path that Jesus had taken during His Passion to His Crucifixion. The winding streets were narrow and crowded that afternoon. A large part of the walled city is like a marketplace, and both sides of the streets had lively bazaars selling clothes, spices, food, souvenirs, and other things. In fact, the Via Dolorosa was such a busy street, crammed with vendors and pilgrims. One had to realize that Jerusalem has changed through the centuries; its walls for instance have moved, and so what had been outside the walled city are now inside it, which is what they say about the Via Dolorosa – it used to be outside the city walls during the time of Christ. 

 We did the Stations of the Cross, pausing at the various sites where Jesus had been flogged, crowned with thorns, and so on. There were markers along the way, although it was tricky to get to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre where tradition says Christ’s crucifixion and burial sites are located. The number of people in the Church was horrendous, and while I managed to climb up the narrow stairs to the place of Crucifixion, I could not get inside Christ’s tomb. I tried two other times but the lines remained extremely long. I had to contend with praying alongside the tomb, pressing the rosaries I had bought on the walls surrounding His tomb. There is a site in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre that is highly revered, and it is the Stone of Unction on which the body of Christ reportedly lay. There is liquid on this slab of stone, which people sop up with cloth – shawls, bandages, every bit of cloth that they have - people save this fluid to keep or give away as something holy and miraculous.

My other favorite place in Jerusalem is the Mount of Olives, which are rolling hills riddled with olive trees, just outside the walled city. We exited the Gate of St. Stephen (where St. Stephen had been stoned to death) to the Mount of Olives. Near the Church of All Nations is an ancient olive garden of Gethsemane, and some of these olive trees are said to have been witnesses of Christ’s Passion. Nearby is another church which has a cave wherein Jesus and His Disciples used to rest. Not far away is an ancient Roman cemetery. It is all so peaceful and calm; one can understand why Jesus liked to spend time in this place.

The Dome of the Rock, whose golden dome dominates pictures of Jerusalem, makes one reflect on the Jewish Temple, which had stood there, before the Romans tore it down. This was where the Child Jesus had gotten lost and was found discussing with the elders. Jerusalem is riddled with biblical places such as these, and in fact there are usually two or more churches or sites claiming to be the place where the Last Supper was held, or where Mary was born, or where Mary was buried. These contradictions did not bother me. It was not so important to be accurate about where some event took place; it was enough to know that indeed somewhere in this place this event did happen.

We also drove outside of Jerusalem, to the River Jordan, which was another peaceful and beautiful place. The river was green and clear and a church allowed baptized people to swim in the river. Clothed in white robes, they bobbed up and down the green waters of the Jordan. Now there are eucalyptus trees along the riverbanks, but during Jesus’ time there were no eucalyptus trees.

The town of Capernaum is now in ruins, but you can still see the ruins of the synagogue where Jesus had preached; and you can also see the foundations of Peter’s house, where Jesus had healed his mother. 

 There is a place along the Sea of Galilee where Christ was said to have given His Sermon of the Mount. And the huge Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth houses the Grotto of the Annunciation, where Mary said her simple and courageous, “Be it done to me according to thy word.” In Cana, two churches – one Catholic and one Orthodox – claim to be site where Jesus turned water into wine, His first miracle in response to His mother’s plea, “They have no wine.” 

 The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem awakens such a feeling of awe as you stare at the spot where Christ was said to have been born. Bethlehem, located in the Palestinian side, was clearly depressed, and I found myself wondering why the Palestinian souvenir stores in Bethlehem were closed, why the Palestinians were treated like second-hand citizens, why Palestinians born in Israel, did not hold Israeli passports. These are political questions; but then, even during Jesus’ time, political questions were asked. There is a mental phenomenon called the Jerusalem Syndrome, where some Jerusalem-visitors exhibit strange behavior, such as thinking they are Mary Magdalene, or feeling compelled to shout verses or psalms from the bible. I could see how that could happen to someone overwhelmed by all the history and palpable energy in these biblical sites. There is something powerful in the Holy Land. How humbling and awesome to see where Our Lord was born, where He grew up, where He had worshipped, where He had walked, where He had died. How enriching to look at the terrain of Galilee and note that it was greener than Judea which is an arid desert. Or to look at the vastness of the Sea of Galilee and imagine Jesus and His Apostles on fishing boats on that same sea.

 

This was what the visit to the Holy Land did to me: it made the bible come to life. I can now imagine Jesus preaching, healing, walking with his disciples from place to place. I now have an inkling of the distance from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, or Nazareth to Jerusalem. I now have an idea of the multicultural society that had existed during the time of Christ, and which continues to this day in Jerusalem – Jews, Christians, and Muslims, live side by side, not always in harmony, but the three venerate many of the same sites in the Holy Land, and all worship the God of Abraham.

Tags: #holyland #Catholicsites #Jerusalem 

DIARY OF MY CAT, KIKI - #2

Dear Diary,
Sometimes I feel I have a cold heart. I know that the Man and Woman, and their Sons do their best to please me, but I generally look at them with contempt, except of course when I am hungry and have to suck up to them. But in general I use them. It's a fair trade: they feed me, and I'm cute.

I didn't always belong to the Man and Woman, but belonged to their oldest Son. I heard them talking once that I was the runt in my family, and the Son got me when I was very young and weak. He bottle fed me. Life was all right then although it was boring because he'd leave me at home all day. Then one day, he whisked me up and put me in a box and brought me to the Man and Woman's house. I was to stay there. It didn't seem too bad of a place - they had the room, they had a garden, and they even had a cat door so I could come and go. The problem was that they had this old dour white cat who hated me. I simply could not understand how she could be so mean to me; she should have mothered me. I was so cute. Then I understood that she was jealous of me - it was as simple as that. She hissed when I was near her, and she whacked me with her paws. In the beginning she frightened me very much and I used to cower under the chairs and tables. The Woman would pick me up and console me, and better yet, she would spank the white cat for being mean to me.

Later I realized that the white cat was old and slow. I learned to come up behind her and quick hit her with my right paw, then run fast so she didn't even know what hit her. I got my revenge this way.

This white cat was my nemesis. It gave me pleasure to see her punished for being cruel to me. Then one day they brought her to the cat-doctor and she had to have her ears cut. She had growths or something. And the worse part was that the Man and Woman moved her to their upstairs bedroom and I was forbidden to go up there. This was the lowest point of my life. I learned about bitterness and anger and my heart turned so icy and brittle I thought it'd crack.

I snubbed them. I went out all day. I found neighbors to feed me. They thought I was abandoned, and they gave me food and water and I could even sleep in their patio. But in the evening I returned to remind the Man and Woman that I was still alive and that I hated them. On several occasions I pissed on the carpet, but the Man caught me and rubbed my nose on the pee-stain and threw me out of the house - so I decided that wasn't the best tactic.

It was really best to be cool and calculating, to use them and never to kowtow to them. That's how I acquired my cold heart.

Remembering all this is upsetting to me so this is all I'll say about this matter. Oh - the white cat, she died one day and things got better for me, but I still feel resentment now and then.

Kiki

DIARY OF MY CAT, KIKI - #1

Dear Readers, look what I discovered hidden under the kitchen cabinet - my Tuxedo cat's diary. Let's see what she wrote today:
~~~~
Monday, March 2, 2009

At 6 a.m. I was hungry and as much I detest begging, I had to go to the upstairs bedroom of the Man and Woman. I jumped up their bed - let me say that again - I clawed up their bed. I have some arthritis now and it's not so easy to leap and jump, but I can dig my claws into their comforter and drag myself up. Then, right away, she grabbed me and hugged me close to her. Frankly I can't stand all that closeness; the claustrophobia gets to me, but I try to be patient and let her hold me tight. In five minutes, she has to change position in bed, and she relaxes her hold on me, and I slip away. The Man does not grab me, and I much prefer sitting on his lap or on his chest, but this morning he's fast asleep. She's awake though and is my only hope for getting fed this early. I proceed to lick my fur, fuss-fuss-lick-lick, so she knows I'm hungry. By 7, she finally drags herself down to the kitchen. I race downstairs, leading the way in fact. I made a zigzag going down, and raced to my plates and sat there, staring at yesterday's old food. Dear God, I prayed, don't let her mix new food with that. Fortunately, she picked up my food plate and she washed it. Then she scrutinized the array of food she has for me: Fancy Feast, Friskies Classic Pate, Friskie's Slice, and Chicken by the Sea tuna. The latter is for people, but she likes to give this to me now and then. Sometimes she mixes the people-tuna with the canned food, and sometimes she doesn't. She does funny things with my food. Sometimes she puts a raw egg in it; often she pours a bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil in it; and she also puts some Immugen and Glucosamine in the food. Sometimes, the taste is God-awful, but sometimes I'm just so hungry that I go ahead and eat the food she seves.

This morning it's Fancy Feast with raw egg and Olive Oil -yuck, double-yuck, triple-yuck, but I ate some of it anyway just because I was starving. For that awful breakfast though I swore I'd snub her the entire day.

It was a cloudy day but I sat outside on the steps. It's nice to sit here especially when it's a sunny day. I can lay around and lick myself and nap. There's a spiral staircase outside and right on the fourth or fifth step is where I like to rest. When the sun is up, the wrought iron staircase gets nice and warm and it's heavenly laying out there. This morning it was chilly but to punish her, I lay outside anyway - I don't mind Fancy Feast, but to ruin the flavor with raw egg is criminal.

At noontime, it started to drizzle and I had no choice but to go in. I had to be extra quiet and I lay on the Man's chair in the den, hoping she wouldn't notice, otherwise she'd grab me again to squeeze and stroke me. I don't mind a bit of this lovey-dovey stuff, but too much makes me want to barf.

Kiki

If Barili, Cebu Can Do it, Why not the City of Cebu?

I found the following information about Barili, Cebu. If Barili can be clean, why not the actual City of Cebu which should have more resources???? And note - Barili drains their canals regularly! And why doesn't the City of Cebu drain the downtown Cebu canals????? Really, I'm thinking City Officials can make a stronger stance about City cleanup, especially the canals/creeks of downtown Cebu, of which I've written about.

Barili.Cebu.Philippines

Absence of eyesores. The Municipality of Barili, Cebu is different from some other cities and towns in terms of certain aspects of general cleanliness. Practically there is an absence of unsightly posters, advertisement billboards, graffiti and abandoned junks. Open space is utilized for the planting of fruits and forests trees.

Well-maintained drainage and sewerage system. Drainage system in the public market and slaughterhouse and other public places are properly maintained as can be observed during the assessment. There are no garbage or litters inside the canals. Free-flow water is evident during the evaluation. De-clogging of drainage canal is regular and done by maintenance men of municipal government. Store and market stall owners also help prevent the clogging of canals with solid wastes by maintaining the cleanliness of their immediate vicinity.

Presence of well-kept public toilets. Public toilets are generally clean. These can be found practically in all public places. Comfort rooms in the municipal hall were found to be very well maintained and the same is true with those at the market, where the surroundings were planted with ornamental plants. Water is provided in all these comfort rooms.

Clean public market/slaughterhouse. Public market is generally clean, free from garbage and litters. Fish and meat stalls are provided with water for flushing. Garbage receptacles are present where collected wastes materials are place for disposal by the garbage collectors.

On the other hand, the municipal abattoir is well drained and properly maintained. No evident of scattered carcasses trimmings, were present, foul odor inherent to slaughterhouse are reduced to the minimum.

Presence of Trash receptades. Trash receptacles are color-coded. Each set three drums, painted red (for plastics), green (for tin cans and bottles), blue (for leaves, papers etc.). These garbage are collected daily by the two garbage trucks of the LGU.

Presence of Garbage collection and Disposal System. To complement the two garbage trucks that collect the garbage of the town daily, Barili was able to acquire four (4) mechanized grass cutters and shredder machine, which sheds big masses of garbage such as leaves to be decomposed in the compost pit. The decomposed materials can be used as organic fertilizer.

Writers Sketchbook at UCLA Extension

I thought I'd write a bit about the class I'm teaching now at UCLA Extension's Writers Program. It's called the Writers Sketchbook and it's the second time I'm teaching this class. It's a six-week class that focuses on what I call sensual writing - that is writing so that your readers can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel as they read your work. Readers should be able to imagine the scene you have created, experience what you are trying to express, take that journey along with you or your characters.

The class is an opportunity for students to fine tune their work, or to gather drafts. Many times, first drafts are skeletal and lack the type of sensual writing I'm talking about. Writers can flesh-out the "skeleton" to enrich their work.

Many people don't realize that it's not easy to create a sense of place or to describe a person. Today we focused on taste, and we read a food article from LA Times that went on about salt-roasting lobster, pork, etc. For our in-class exercise I had my students write about some food they hated or loved. What I was teaching them is the matter of Point of View - that is, there is no one way to describe a place or face or smell or taste or feeling - it's dependent on who the narrator is. We got excellent results.

The students are also trained to pay attention to details and to be specific.

I also have a good group of students!

ASH WEDNESDAY

"But they that hope in the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall take wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31 (From the song sang in church today.)

Ash Wednesday today - St. Monica's crowded. I went to neighboring St. Paul's to park and got scolded for parking there, although I understood that during weekdays it's all right to park in their not-full lot. The parking lot attendant asked, "Are you going to Mass?" with a scowl on his face. I said, "Yes," happily. "You can't park here." I explained that I understood it was all right to park there during the week, not the weekend. He said he knew nothing about that, and I moved my car. Tsk, tsk, St. Paul's for being so un-Christian.

St. Monica's was crowded - standing room only. It was a great Mass, and the ash on the forehead always brings back childhood days. I almost laughed though when I walked down the aisle and saw all these people with the black Cross on their foreheads. For just a heartbeat, the scene actually looked spooky.

OK - Monsignor Torgesen is giving up sweets. I'm not sure what I'll do for Lent. I'm thinking of re-reading The Diary of Faustina.

And there are practical things like replanting the garden and getting the house in shape for Easter.

Meantime, I've started teaching Writers' Sketchbook at the Writers Program at UCLA Extension. We had our first class last Thursday. I've got a great group with great energy.
~~~
Photo shows Joe Biden (Can I call you, Joe?) - courtesy of boston.com