There are certain things to do when attending blogger events. Basically, you should expand your network by meeting new bloggers. You listen to talks, take down notes. Bring calling cards, or anything that will leave a good impression on everyone (chicken costume, anyone?); a calling card will do. If there’s a chance to broadcast your URL (the open mic session), grab it.

I did none of those things at iBlog 4.

Sure, I did listen to most (not all, unfortunately) of the talks, though my attention drifted from time to time. From the magician-like presentation by Juned Sonido to the wonderful and entertaining videos by Ms. Aileen Apolo and Coy Caballes to Ria Jose‘s funny asides to Mam Noemi Dado‘s presentation on online advocacies, one thought lingered in my mind. And no, I am not telling yah about it. Ok, maybe in another post.

Breaktimes were spent chatting with Dra. Tess Termulo and The Jester-in-Exile (whose cover was blown, no thanks to Juned); then with Manuel L. Quezon III, Dra. Tess, Jester, Eugene, Juned, and Benj.

I was actually looking forward to the Chicken Mafia‘s stunt, and what I thought to be a farce turned out to be true: Philos did come, and wore that chicken costume. And it was a hit! Everyone groped Philos for pictures, and I’m sure Joyfulchicken is envious ha ha ha! Imagine all those girls!

I finally got to fondlehandle a DSLR camera – and got to shoot two pics! – thanks to Dhon Jason. I will get one soon. If the economy improves, of course.

Oh, when Marcelle Fabie hit the stage, he was looking for me to be his “assistant.” It was thoughtful of him; one time, I complained that he did not show me his tricks, and so last Saturday was his chance. Too bad call of nature intervened. All was not lost however; he did show me SEVERAL tricks during the after-party, and he scares me, really (that’s my way of saying he’s awesome).

Seen at iBlog: Ade (isnabero sa personal), AJ (who came with Ernie, of course), Dexter, Fritz (too busy with someone), George, Jane, Marck, Shari.

—

The iBlog format this year is I think better than last year. What I mean is, the topics were better. There were still complaints, though, from other people, and saw Mam Janette Toral having to explain how the format came to be. I did saw one post that totally pissed me off, but not enough to rant about it. Anyway, for next year’s iBlog, here is my suggestion. This is not original, OK? I saw this format in action at The Varsitarian’s Thomasian Journalism Fellowship (I had attended the inaugural and the next two). Originally, it followed this year’s iBlog format, where all participants stay in one venue, listening to speakers. And since journalism is a wide field, the organizers thought of a variation of the iBlog 2 format: there were plenary sessions, one session in the morning and another one in the afternoon; and then concurrent sessions in between plenaries, grouped by subject, where participants can choose.

Of course, that would mean someone might want to sit in two sessions that share the same schedule. It can’t be helped, unless sessions are scheduled way in advance. (I hate Operations Research.)

And then there’s a complaint about Blogging 101. We can’t please everyone, I know, but that complaint has a point, in the eyes of those who were blogging since Freddie Mercury was still alive. That is why I believe the separate-track-and-plenary format is perfect for iBlog – to tailor the summit for everyone who wants to attend.

As for me, I attend iBlog for the community, to get to know new bloggers. Unfortunately for this year, it did not happen. No thanks to that preoccupation.

If you have a daughter/girl friend/niece/sister who is getting married and a huge Hello Kitty fan, I suggest giving her this as a wedding present (if you are the generous type, that is):

I am just not sure if it will really make her clothes clean. Or make her husband look cute.

(Image from Hello Kitty Hell)

Every Thursday and Friday, I wear jeans. Early today, annoyed that there was no pressed pair to wear. Was about to wear slacks when mom took out a new pair, which did not need pressing. Several minutes wasted.

Then on the usual corner, I hailed this AUV. As my usual, I went towards the front seat. I let this woman get in first, and then the driver told me to sit at the back instead, even if the front seat can sit another. Disgusted, I took another AUV.

And then the MRT. I know for certain that many were late today because of it.

Arriving at the office, my brother sent me a text message, informing me that one of the hamster pups died.

What a day. And that’s just the morning.

How’s your day today?

My hamster Berta gave birth last Holy Thursday. Mom was about to change her cage’s bedding when she saw some critters crawling.

“Ay, ano ito, bulate?” Mom shouted in alarm. (Ay, what are these, worms?)

Later, she recognized these to be small hamsters. It was a surprise for all of us, since we did not know she was pregnant. I was alarmed, though, that there were only three, since the average for teddy bear hamsters is seven (Berto and Berta’s batch was ten, though one died).

While the mother tended to be over-productive, we could not help but take a look every time, to see their progress. In their second week, one of them managed to slip in the mother’s milk bowl. Good thing there was only less than half a millimeter of milk. We had to get Berta’s attention, since we couldn’t touch them yet (the mother might get rattled and eat them).

Last Thursday, they reached three weeks, so it was safe to touch the pups. Time to change the bedding, which we did Saturday morning. They are so malikot, I had a hard time putting them back into their mother’s cage. They could always wiggle away from my hands. Here are some pictures:
Continue reading →

Who’s afraid of Mr. T? Apparently, coma is afraid of Mr. T.

Mr. T, known for his tough guy roles (in The A-Team and WWE), apparently has mystical powers:

Former The A-Team star Mr. T once stunned a sick child’s family by bringing him out of a coma – after doctors begged the actor for help.

The poorly kid fell unconscious in Detroit, Michigan in the mid-1980s – and the only physical movement he made was in response to hearing Mr. T’s name.

And when the mohawked star was in town, he stopped by the hospital to visit the ill boy – with miraculous results.

He tells Empire magazine, “His family put toys around him and one of them was a Mr. T doll. And whenever my name came up, the boy moved his arm.

“Somebody told the doctors I was in town, so they called me down there. I closed the curtains and prayed. Then, as I was walking down the hall, the kid suddenly came out of the coma and hollered out.

“That was my supernatural moment.”

It must be the mohawk. And all that bling-bling.

When my paternal grandmother was still alive, Holy Week meant trooping to her house in Novaliches. There was no Mindanao Avenue Extension back then, and the traffic was horrendous – it was like physical penitence there and then.

She moved to Novaliches during my elementary years – that means after EDSA 1. The space was a compound shaped like a hexagon, with two sides being walls, a gate, and three as houses attached to each other. The said compound was provided by an engineering and metal works company where my father worked as a lathe machine operator (and foreman in the later years until the company folded up, victim of the 1997 Asian financial crisis) for more than 20 years. My dad chose to house my grandmother (together with an aunt) there, while we stayed at the production compound, so that my mother could tend to the cafeteria business.

An uncle was able to work in South Korea, and had earned enough to buy a 120-square-meter house and lot also at Novaliches. The area looked like it was in the province – unpaved and narrow road, lots of plants and trees, and vacant lots at three sides of the house. It was a good bargain back then, too good to be true. And it was.

Anyway, despite the change in scenery, our three-day Holy Week stay remained the same – hot, humid, and boring. My grandmother being cerrado Catolico (well, not really) and spendthrift, we had nothing to do at all. And being a brood of five males, nothing to do meant boredom. We actually looked forward to going home.

There was a TV, but watching was not allowed (except for religious rituals being shown on TV, and besides, there’s no cable). There was a radio, but only being used by grandmother during Angelus. There was nothing much to read either – back then, I was not yet enamored to books, and I was incapable of getting any – except for some cheap comics. These are back issues that you could get at one peso per each copy.

Comics back then was different from what the current generation is used to. Titles include Aliwan, Funny Comics, Wakasan. Each issue contained either short story comics, or the latest installment in the novel. An issue could contain at most five stories. My favorite then was Funny Comics, because of Combatron. I used to buy new issues every Friday. Lost interest when the story was ended.

Going back, we were subject to traditional beliefs, specially on Good Fridays. No meat till Sunday, no bathing after 3PM of Good Friday till Easter Sunday, no TV, no radio. Sleeping was the only recourse we had. Oh, I do remember brick games (actually a variation of Tetris), which were the rage during the blackout years of late Cory Aquino-early Fidel Ramos era. They were good time wasters, and mom had to buy two, though I was not really good at it.

Around year 2002, things had changed. The tranquil place that was my grandmother’s house became squatter hell – the notorious lots (which I had written about here). Then my grandmother, then a robust old woman of 70, became sickly. She got little sleep; a cat running on the roof would wake her up.

Her death brought to end the traditional yearly hike to Novaliches. It also brought an end to quaint beliefs. Now, I spent the long holiday watching TV and uploading some new plugins. Unfortunately, I am becoming addicted to Korean drama. But that’s another story.

I had updated my phone’s firmware, and the stupid me forgot that I should back up my contacts first. Hence my phone carries no phone numbers.

If I had your contact numbers before, can you please give them to me again? You can send me a text message or a direct message via Twitter. KTHXBAI.