THE HALL PASS

Happy Holidays to all our fans (and inmates...)

Nope, this isn't about our knack for making up the quirky signs. Rather, I found myself a bit irked one night while watching to the news. If memory serves me right, the story was about how we've practically rearranged and bastardized the standard descriptions for road signs. The feature showed flawed city, town and barangay street signs. They were recklessly designed, poorly researched and misuse of public resources. All that and the government agency tasked to do it right doesn't seem to care that they've somehow screwed up. The top boss at the LTO was first to admit (God bless his soul) that our road signs are flawed and are in dire need of an overhaul. He sounds like a straight-arrow, maybe there's hope? It has to come from him rightly so because it's his agency that releases our driver's licenses. Thinking about it, wasn't there a section in the driver's license exam that deals with familiarity with street signs? Other than that, didn't dr...

...but this is ridiculous!

My mom fondly recalls that when my siblings and I were little, while other moms had a hard time feeding their kids, she had the most difficult time keeping us from eating too much. While she was away, we would hang out the kitchen and try concocting our own little "gourmet" meals. Our kusinera that time, Ate Epion, could only sigh in relief that we didn't set fire to the kitchen. Fast forward to today. Yes, I still eat like there's no tomorrow, but thank goodness our kitchen hasn't burned down. I still like to cook and do so from time to time. Some recipes I got from watching Food Network shows while others from books and magazines. (Thanks Cherry for that FOOD Magazine special you gave me a couple of Christmases ago. Sulit na sulit na talaga siya!) Now, you might be thinking I'm doing something like Bobby Flay's Cumin-Crusted Chicken with Cotija and Mango-Garlic Sauce . It's a mouthful to say and frankly, sounds difficult to do. Best to take my cha...

Very short post. I hope my blog still works... Donna and I were very blessed with the birth of Marian Annelie Lacuna. Yep, we're parents now and never been prouder. She was born 30 September, 2008 at St. Lukes Medical Center, but I'll leave all of the details to Donna and her blog . *wink* Cuutieee! And now, for some laughs... Dr. Bob Y. Ramo

With work getting far more difficult, I would've placed an order for a couple of these right now. It would be absolutely perfect! A couple of articulated arms for picking up stuff like a crane and a bulldozer attachment for plowing through debris makes this Zaku Tank a boon to the heavy equipment trade. Anybody out there selling one?

No, I didn't get myself into trouble with the authorities. Back in the Q days, whenever RX's Monster Riot and TM's Friday Magic Madness would play The Alarm's "Rescue Me" and "Rain in the Summertime", my boss could be heard singing these with gusto. The only Alarm song I knew then was "Absolute Reality" and these other ditties became very catchy. Lo and behold this - With a little bit of online research, I found "The Best of The Alarm and Mike Peters". The album rocks, especially for someone who misses the "old days" of alternative rock. It's gritty, a bit passionate and a requisite for someone who just wants to let it all out. Donna can attest to the letting it all out bit. Maybe I'll check out the Wild Swans & New Order next...

Whew! I finally got my blog rolling again. The past few months have been a harsh lesson in being patient and time management. Had a couple of skirmishes here and there but now, the dust is beginning to settle a bit. I should seriously get my act together.

Went to the Queen City of the South last May with Donna and her college buddies. Most of our trips to the south have been to sunny Boracay. Cebu's a definitely a welcome treat especially when it comes with a trip to the island of Malapascua, reputedly known as the next Boracay. Our friend Clint describes the place as a "thinking man's Boracay". I wonder if that "thinking man" ever saw this? Ex-hubby of "Dime" Moore? Anyways, the port to Malapascua's a good 3-hour from the city. The boat trip was breathtaking, with seabirds doing fly-by's and schools of small fishes jumping out of the water. Malapascua Island is certainly a find. Though creature comforts like beer, beer and beer were a bit pricey, we were astonished to find that it's a beachcomber's paradise. During high tide in themorning, one can take a morning dip in the clear waters. No waves here, just a peaceful, lazylapping of the water. Once the tide ebbs in the ...

Between the months of July to September, I was able to retouch/letter 2 mangas. The last one was a bit difficult, citing lack of sleep and time. Even the most well-planned schedule will eventually fail due to human (that's me) error. To my boss, I'm really, utterly sorry. Whew! Good news is, the house is just about done. We're thinking about moving the furniture in one at a time. Kudos to my foreman, Ike, my lead painter, Andy, and their minions for a job well done! They built a beautiful house. Designed a movable kitchen counter. Designing a sofa/coffee table. Fixing/customizing a computer table. Searching for a consul table. Pondering on a doing landscaping project. Pondering on which cable TV, phone and internet provider to subscribe to. Replaced Junior's front tires with brand new ones. Goodyear Fortera R15/25/70. Also had the front brake pads changed from re-lined ones to decent, branded replacement pads (Bendix, Aussie-made). Now the squeaks from braking are almos...

This was taken from the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center. Other than "Radio Gaga" by, heheh, "The" Queen, the inmates danced to "Jumbo Hotdog" and "I Will Follow Him". Sure made me smile today.

This must be the busiest time of my life...

Sketch of himself - Ink Bureau of Public Libraries - Sent to Dr. Blumentritt in 1887 " Men are born equal, naked and without chains, They were not created by God to be enslaved, neither were they endowed with intelligence in order to be misled, nor adorned with reason to be fooled by others, It is not pride to refuse to worship a fellow man, to enlighten the mind, and to reason out everything. The arrogant one is he who wants to be worshipped, who misleads others, and who wants his will to prevail over reason and justice." ( Jose Rizal - "Message to the Women of Malolos" , Europe, February 1889)

Looking at this, there's still a big part of the country I think I'd like to visit... Palawan? Batanes? Davao? My Lakbayan grade is C! How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan ! Created by Eugene Villar .

I could say that there have been some "considerate" improvements to driving around Metro Manila these days. Some streets are even showing some little improvement and organization. Now, we've got road safety signs, barriers and dividers to make driving a little easy for us. Of course it does take a while to get used to them but at least someone's making an effort to make them aware to the motoring public. What's gotten my irk though is the current color scheme they're following. Heavens, PINK ?! BLUE ?! What are these people thinking about? At least they should have the decency to color the concrete barriers/fences in yellow . That color's easier seen whether in a dark road or during foul weather. We regularly tune in to the morning shows on TV every morning. Road accidents concerning cars being flung from concrete barriers or ramming on to the steel fences have somewhat become a regular feature on the shows. Whether it may have been the driver's fault...

A couple of years ago, my wife's friends encouraged us to join a badminton club. Since I've been thinking of getting serious with the sport, we joined without much hesitation. Just like any club, we met and played with several folks, some became very good friends. Aside from that, we were able to hone our skills thanks to training sessions and tips from member-coaches. Last Saturday, I was one of the players from our group who participated in the annual inter-club tournament. Players from their respective mini-groups called pocket e.b.'s (eye balls) were matched with other pocket e.b.'s from the club's ever-growing roster. The whole idea of the event was meant to foster camaraderie among fellow members and not so much on whose team had the most wins. Alas, somehow the whole event reminded me of an inter- barangay basketball league gone bad. Well, at least no such things as fisticuffs and the dreaded patayan ng ilaw (setting up a free-for-all by turning the light...

What happens when the T.O.D.A.S crew composed of Ritchie D' Horsie, Val Sotto and Joey De Leon decide to spoof Jojo A. & The Tigers , that dance group from Penthouse, Live! ? Hilarious... Oh, there's also a clip from the original Penthouse and the real dance group. Thanks to Nostalgia Manila and YouTube for showing this... masakit na tiyan ko sa kakatawa...

Spent another weekend at Subic last April. This time with Donna and her family. Most of my trips to the former U.S. base were on business. It was actually my first time to venture out to the other attractions like the Zoobic Safari and Camayan Beach. Had loads of snap-happy fun with my camera especially at the zoo. :D This is my lovely niece Bea, with her lovely mom Lea at Max's. View at Camayan Beach Port. When you look down, you can see fishes already! Beboygum and Ray A., Lea A. and Chocnut Choo-choo! Us, Dennis and Shane and our ride. Zoobic Safari... And now for some Animal Crackers... And finally...

Spent a weekend with Donna and our Baddicts! pals in Jala-Jala, Rizal. It's always fun going to the provinces, this one nestled just before the Rizal-Laguna bounds. View of the Bay at Dawn The scenery was wonderful and lush, with green being the constant color, highlighted by Laguna Bay's blue. The Rape of the Dalagang Bukid. Bulawan Restaurant, April 14, 2007 We enjoyed some fresh, unpolluted air, homemade food that didn't seem to run out, beer in our bellies and our friends' good, warm company. Donna, Jonas and I went down to the lakeshore to take pictures. It was a surprising to find cows, goats and horses grazing about. Of course, them animals also had their own surprise waiting for us... Ick! LANDMINES! Kudos goes to Roy, Lara and little Ryan for bringing us there. We really enjoyed ourselves and had a chance to recharge our vacation-yearning, work-weary batteries!