Practice Random Acts of Kindness…Everyday!!! Thursday, February 8, 2007
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Cackle Box, Potpourri, Today's Takeaway.add a comment
February has been designated as “Acts of Kindness” month.
Huh??
Now we get to assign a certain period for something that can be done anytime, anywhere, anyhow! What’s with us, people? Are we so busy that we have to schedule helping a granny cross the street during the month of Feb? Are we so swamped with work that we have to tick off a particular day on our Outlook or Blueberry, oops I was thinking of the cheesecake, Blackberry, when to be polite and acknowledge the presence of the security guard at the office building? Jeezuz!
Let’s make EVERYDAY a “Do Random Acts of Kindness” Day.
Or better yet, let us be Daily Purveyors of Kind Gestures, even the slightest, simplest ones, like wishing the Jollijeep vendors a nice day or even saying Thank You (you’d be surprised to know that there are so many educated working people who have forgotten one of these good manners taught when we were toddlers…) to the office messenger. It won’t cost you a thing, and it’s good karma too. Give your driver the day off, and drive yourself to work.
How about volunteering during your free time or weekends? Visit the websites of Hands On Manila and Children’s Hour for opportunities to help or donate. Oftentimes, it won’t cost you a cent. Just donate a few hours during weekends tutoring a former streetkid at a shelter or ushering at the Museo Pambata. You can even bring the whole family!
How about starting an old newspaper drive in your village? And donate the raised funds for victims of the typhoon Reming in Bicol? There are endless ways for us to do something nice for someone each day, each week. Let us not be caught up in the rat race and be slaves at work, lest we forget that we are human beings who also crave for unconditional kindness and random affection once in a while.
Remember, “Life is not so short but that there is always time enough for courtesy,” as Ralph Waldo Emerson said. A little politeness in this busy, busy world can make a big difference.
I’m Baaaaccckk! And I’ve Got a DILDO to Start the Year! Friday, January 19, 2007
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Cackle Box, Friendships, Today's Takeaway.add a comment
It has been more than five months of silence; and to mimic Hugh Laurie’s (that’s Dr. Gregory House of the eponymous TV series) acceptance speech at the recent Golden Globes, “I’m literally speechless; I don’t have a speech,” mine goes this way: “I was literally wordless; I couldn’t bring myself to write a word for the past five months.” It would be useless to enumerate my worthless and implausible excuses, so let’s not dwell on it. Instead, let me start 2007 in high gear and resurrect my blogging with a big-bang topic – Dildo!
Got your attention huh! Well, I have my good galpal “C” and her hubby “J” to thank for. It started several days ago when “C” and I got together for dinner. We had major gabbing and blabbing updates on our agenda while enjoying the mouthwatering pasta and pizza at Pasto, Fort
Strip. Our chat led to “C’s” sharing of a recent banter and ribbing she received from work colleagues about her ignorance of an item called “dildo” given that she was a married woman. So, my naïve but not-so-innocent friend asked her husband “J” what a dildo was. I guess, they really are meant for each other cuz “J” had no idea what this “happy toy” was too. Après-dîner, I promised “C” that my first blog of the year will be a “getting-to-know-a-dildo” topic dedicated to her and hubby “J.”
My dear “C & J,” a dildo is an object having the shape and often the appearance of an erect penis, used in sexual stimulation. It usually is a vibrating device that substitutes for an erect penis to provide vaginal or anal (for our gay sistahs, they call it butt plugs) stimulation. Read: primary customers are members of the female population and of course, our gay sisters or ka-federasyon! Dildos are commonly made of silicone rubber, but are also available in steel, glass or cyberskin (whatever that means).
According to Wikipedia: “The word “dildo” originally referred to the phallus-shaped peg used to lock an oar in position on a dory (small boat). It would be inserted into a hole on the side of the boat, and is very similar in shape and function to the modern toy. It is highly likely the toy takes its name from this sailing tool, which also lends its name to the town of Dildo and the nearby Dildo Island in Newfoundland, Canada. Others suggest the word is a corruption of Italian “diletto” (for “delight”). The term first appeared in English language print when Ben Jonson’s 1610 play, The Alchemist, was published in 1616. William Shakespeare used the term once in The Winter’s Tale, also believed to be from 1610, but it was not printed until the First Folio of 1623. The phrase “Dil Doul,” referring to man’s penis, appears in the 17th century folk ballad “The Maids Complaint for want of a Dil Doul”. The song was among the many in the library of Samuel Pepys. Signior Dildo is a 17th century poem by notorious libertine John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester.”
But I don’t really care where in the world this very useful gadget came from. The more important thing is the pleasure, satisfaction, fulfillment, happiness and all the other orgasmic-causing emotions that a dildo can produce hehehe.
By the way, dildo is not a “bad word.” A person with a mature outlook in life (esp one’s sexual and sensual life) and who possesses an open acceptance of one’s sexuality will not associate impropriety or tastelessness when this word or item is mentioned or talked about. It’s just that idiosyncrasy in the Filipino culture…..that’s another topic to write about.
To “C&J” this is your word of the day. And with this, I welcome you all to 2007!
Looking forward to another 365 days Thursday, August 3, 2006
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Moi.4 comments
Ah! August is my birthmonth. I wanted to start this month’s blog with a reminder that I got another year added to my present life. Yeah, and admittedly I am going through a pre-midlife crisis (what a term! well, i couldn’t call it a quarter-life crisis cuz I’m so over that age na, and midlife applies to those 45 years and above). I’m on a sabbatical from work (after almost fourteen years of working non-stop since graduating from the university), and I’ve got itchy feet (read: a persistent “disease” called traveling). Well, I really don’t know……hmmm…..let’s wait and see…..
I’ll blog more on these later. Ciao!
(Timecheck: 1:41am, still too early to retire to bed….i’ll google myself kaya, hahaha)
Takeaway #1 Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Today's Takeaway.add a comment
Bet you’ve seen a bollard. Bet you’ve passed by several ones. But I bet you didn’t know it’s called a BOLLARD!
So, what is a Bollard (pronounced as buh’luhrd)?
Wikipedia.com says: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bollard)“A bollard is a short vertical post. Originally meaning a strong post used on a quay for mooring, the term is also used in the United Kingdom for a variety of structures to control or direct road traffic.
Bollards are strong metal posts that can be used to close a road or path to vehicles above a certain width. Bollards can be mounted close enough to block ordinary cars, for instance, but wide enough to permit special-purpose vehicles through. Bollards can be used to enclose car-free zones: removable bollards allow access for emergency vehicles.
The American Heritage Dictionary describes this use of Bollard as “chiefly British”, although the term has crept into the jargon of some American universities.
A recent development is the “rising bollard” – a bollard that can be lowered entirely below the road surface to enable traffic to pass, or raised to block traffic. Rising bollards are used to secure sensitive areas from attack, or to enforce traffic rules that are time related or restrict access to particular classes of traffic.”
So, where in the metro can you find these vertical structures? Sirit na?
Of course, in the land of the Binays, Makati City! Most prominently along the road of the Zobels, Ayala Avenue.
You know those yellow vertical structures that could damage your car if you’re DUI (read: driving under the influence…of alcohol!) hehehe.
So, the next time you are with a friend and find yourselves along Ayala Ave, try to impress him/her by educating him/her about bollards, your takeaway of the day.
(P.S. I’m trying my best to refer to both male and female sexes as equals by emphasizing the “him/her”) J
SONA means Same Old Nondescript Act Monday, July 24, 2006
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Bureaukrazy.1 comment so far
I’ve signed out already but I just couldn’t resist commenting on the SONA of PGMA. So here’s my two-cents worth on the SONA.
It really is a miracle that she delivered her 6th (!) address to the nation; that means she has been the reigning queen for the past six years. The news said that it was a sixty-one minute speech with about 26,000 characters, the second longest speech compared to the past ones. But I really didn’t care. It was a fully scripted geography lesson, and what a boring unsuccessful class session it was. She had to resort to name-dropping and the appearance of various personalities to make it a “lively” presentation, the power point thing didn’t help much. But what irked me the most was the super-Philips1600watts-vacuuming act of “janitor-fish” and “leech-erous” politicians sucking up by punctuating each statement with an applause! And they added a standing ovation, my arse! Poor PGMA, her spin doctors had to resort to using those blinking APPLAUSE box used in TV shows.
What I was really looking forward to was just a simple, straight-forward update on the accomplishments of the promises made in past SONAs. But there was none. All she blabbed about were those grandiose plans. Oh all right, I’m all for those plans, if all of those are true, hindi ba “drawing-drawing” lang. But given the situation for the past six years, plans like those she mentioned end up like the phantom weapons of mass destruction Bush and Blair used as lame excuses to invade Iraq for its oil reserves (well this is another topic I will elaborate at a later time). I pity the Ifugao family she presented, they’ll probably end up like the three kids of the bangkang papel fame, broken promises, broken dreams.
Haaay…buhay…mahal na ang gulay…dahil sa bagyo po, nanay…
May hope pa kaya para sa Pilipinas…siguro, kung magkakatotoo ang mga SONAs…
It’s 6:16am, haven’t slept yet, but still a hopeful insomniac (but i’m so tempted to change it to hopeless na…)
Navigating through the Quagmire called EDSA, especially on a Rainy Day Monday, July 24, 2006
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Potpourri.add a comment
Alas, the rainy season is in full force now. As a daily commuter, the first thing that comes to mind is EDSA on a very wet day. It’s the time of the year when EDSA reprises its annual role of being the catch basin of flashflood waters brought about by the heavy rains. Hence, navigating through Metro Manila’s main thoroughfare during this pluvial period turns into a quagmire, easily beating out any Indy 500 race.So I thought that maybe a few tips are in order for all ye commuters and users of EDSA. Let’s start the ball rolling:
- Stay within your lane, ok. This isn’t a difficult request to abide by.
- Please…if you need to change lanes, USE your signal lights! Don’t cut! Don’t try that zigzagging technique, either! Same goes out to tailgaters too.
- So you won’t drowse during those long idle moments, listen to AM stations whatever your preference may be (DZBB 594 if you’re Kapuso or DZMM 630 if you’re Kapamilya). If you’re on the road by 5PM, try Tita Swarding at the not-so-holy but not-so-frightening station 666, sorry I forgot the station ID hehe. He-she is a riot to listen to. Or listen to Atty Danny Concepcion on Kapamilya 630 for sound legal advice on various problems and issues from 7-8PM. I like listening to this show; it gives me the feeling that I can be a pseudo-lawyer and dish out legal advice to friends as well. BUT if you’re the kind who couldn’t stand the local stations, “coñotic” (read soci as in sosyal) ba ang dating, then switch to those loud FM stations that employ DJs who play pop/rock music, who are downright OA, pa-slang and silly, well sometimes. Really.
- To all drivers of public utility buses, don’t use the gargantuan size of your vehicles to cut or overtake or just plain occupy half of EDSA! To all private commuters in their Ford Explorers or dambuhalang four-wheel drives, same message goes to you too.
- Please don’t text while driving (although I’m one of those guilty here). If you’re expecting a really important call, use those handsfree set that comes with your mobile phone unit.
What else ba….feel free to add more tips. Let’s compile a list and send it to LTO for dissemination to all commuters. Discipline that starts in each individual Filipino is one key towards propelling the nation to progress.
Oh, by the way, i posted this at around 5am. Still a hopeful insomniac.
Yuhoo out there! Thursday, July 20, 2006
Posted by hopefulinsomniac in Moi.4 comments
Welcome to my world! Ooops, it’s 5:31am now, gotta sleep. Sorry, my welcome is kinda abrupt. But I’ll get back to it later, ok. Ciao!
