Off To Cambodia

Heading to Cambodia

in about 4 hours

to see the Angkor Wat

in Siem Reap.

Will try to get some nap now.

Sooo excited!

The One With The New Year Post

One of the reasons why I love Tori Amos’ music is that it tends to be very disrespectful of my conscious mind. In specific moments of time I play a song from Tori like reflex and things start to make better sense. How and why, I don’t even have an idea.

For example, for some unknown reason when I decided to write about my New Year blog post I played Tori’s Winter from my iPod and thought, huh why Winter? I ask this question of course since the song opens with the following lines:

Snow can wait
I forgot my mittens
Wipe my nose
Get my new boots on

And Saigon is far from getting snowy so mittens and boots are out of the question and linking that up to a New Year post is just impossible. And then there’s a line later on in the song that goes:

“Your must learn to stand up for yourself
Cause I can’t always be around”
He says
When you gonna make up your mind
When you gonna love you as much as I do
When you gonna make up your mind
Cause things are gonna change so fast
All the white horses are still in bed

And quite honestly I am not even sure if these are lines that I can relate to. Not consciously at least. Perhaps Tori bypassed my conscious denials and stroke a punch to my subconscious? Perhaps.

Nonetheless, this serves as an interesting theme to set my 2008 on. Self love (can I really get deeper than this? Stop if you’re not into this kind of stuff! LOL! Alternatively you can read Ian’s uber cool New Year post For The Pursuit of Terrible Ideas).

2007 has been a year of great things happening in breakneck speed although rightfully it closed on a downtempo note. But I’m not complaining. December’s events surely paved a clearer path for 2008 which makes it ideal for new beginnings. From this point on I only have optimism fueling my ride with a vow to never get back to old habits. Boy, I now sound as cryptic as a Horoscope forecast!

Moving on, here’s my 2008 list of things to Do and Don’t:

 

DO’s	DON’Ts
1.       Travel to 1 Foreign Country Only (other than the PI — home and VN — work)	DON’T Exceed the 1 New Country Policy unless it’s for Business reason
2.       And that will be New York on September for the US Open	DON’T Get tempted with a Bangkok trip and no you’re not going to Melbourne nor Paris either unless it’s for business purpose
3.       Cut down on travel moron	DON’T Argue with me on this
4.       Save – it’s standard for New Year’s lists – plus it’s about time and this IS the perfect time given some developments in December.	DON’T Shop for other people just to see them smile – seriously that was so pathetic
5.       Enroll to a gym and for chrissakes lift some weights 3 times a week; lose 30 lbs of fats and gain 20 lbs of muscle in 6 months	DON’T Laugh nor procrastinate. Normal people really do have detailed New Year’s lists like this.
6.       Get a new hairstyle – seriously DO! Something you haven’t tried before. (Like Taylor Hicks’ salt and pepper?)	DON’T Grow it long again at least for this year.
7.       Change your wardrobe – A&F, AE don’t define you anymore. Think, expatriate! Dress expatriate!	DON’T Go to Gucci or Armani just for this – that will be despicable! UNLESS item number (5) has been completely fulfilled THEN you can do this as a reward. But keep in mind item number (4). Hence go buy socks!
8.       Make friends in VN, no one’s stopping you anymore	DON’T Make friends with EVERYONE, you can STILL be choosy
9.       Invest – on that condo in Makati, that MacBook Pro, that new car	DON’T Think that these are unattainable because they truly are. Refer to item number (4)
10.   Learn French – you’ve got that “Learn French” podcast now listen to it	DON’T Procrastinate on this since you’ve already procrastinated on this for years
11.   Play tennis again – what if you meet Roger on September and he challenges you to a practice match?	DON’T Start daydreaming. Hit the courts and work on that serve.
12.   Use condoms – you’re out in the market again and monogamy ain’t the game no mo’	DON’T Wear them during dinner, it’s been a long time since the last time you dated yeah but the rubber is only required when the main course actually breathes!
13.   Be a better organized business traveler – start by getting your stuff in good compartments; get a suitcase with shoes compartments; business suit friendly; and get that travelers vanity kit already	DON’T Think that throwing the kitchen sink in your suitcase is THE way to go on business travels
14.   Hit the club scene again	DON’T Think that you’re too old for the club scene. You still wanna get laid don’t you?
15.   Write that short story – at least test your limits to shake off the rustiness that shows in your blog entries	DON’T Think that the rustiness doesn’t show. It’s as palpable as the Saigon heat!
16.   Add to this list as you see fit	DON’T Let the plan end as just that, a plan
17.   Refer to this list on a weekly basis and highlight the ones you’ve accomplished	DON’T Cheat
18.   Form your personal library again like you used to when you were just a kid (with matching stamp that says from the Library of Les Turla)	DON’T Leave your books anywhere
19.   Get that LOTR tattoo in Elvish script	DON’T Forget: Foe of All Fears
20.   Take care of your shoes!	DON’T Rape your shoes to disposal!

 

Rounding Up 2007

Although 2007 started with me confined at the Medical City for pneumonia, the rest of the year has been great. I’ve been in four countries this year (may still reach 5 countries if we can make a quick dash to Cambodia next week) and had realized quite a few dreams. Work has been ok, too, while on the other hand love life came full circle to the inevitable.

And to remind myself that I have a lot to thank for amid all the bumps on the road I came up with a Top Ten list a la Letterman for:

The Highlights of My Year:

   10. Connections made while travelling
Met a Japanese businessman while stranded in NAIA who gave me his business card and offered to house me in Tokyo if I ever I go visit. Met an AVP of a bank in Jakarta who made the same offer. Met an IT Director based in Paris who asked for my resume. Met a French Embassy atache, a French Doctor on a medical mission in Hanoi and plenty of backpackers whose business cards are all carefully tucked in my backpack. What really mattered was I was not my usual snobbish Les anymore. And while in lay overs, planes, boats, or just plain walking around or having coffee I started talking to people again and in return enriched my knowledge of humanity and the world.

9. Turning 28
Helped me put things in perspective. This year made me realize my dreams more clearly. I also learned that no dream is ever silly be it meeting your sports heroes or pursuing law school studies in New York…

    8. Cullen
Every single day of the year my son never failed to surprise me with his wisdom. He’s one person whom I know loves me unconditionally and returns the love I shower him ten-fold. When as a parent seeing your child happy is more than enough reward, Cullen takes it even further. As young as he is, Cullen cared for me in his own Cullen way which is unimaginable for a two year old. His ability to learn, how intelligent he is, how he understands things even if we don’t try to explain them is simply amazing. The night before they were to fly back to Manila his eyes said it all. I know that someone out there loves me unconditionally without asking for anything in return.

    7. Seeing the Petronas Twin Towers at night
I’ve never really thought much about it until of course I was there and saw how magnificent it really was at night. Sigh.

    6. Going to Ha Long Bay
This world heritage site was a sight to behold. Splendid scenery and history. Breathtaking views. Top it off with meeting backpackers along the way and chatting them up sharing travel experiences. By the time you have to leave Ha Long Bay you’ll have been rich in more ways than one. Rich in friends, experiences, knowledge and overall rich as a resident of Earth.

    5. Discovering Photography
A hobby that I have long practiced in my head finally became a reality. I still have a long way to go but the important thing is that I have already begun what I have always wanted to do.

    4. Living in Hanoi
So far my most favorite city on Earth — and I’ve been in quite a few cities. For its people, sceneries, values, culture, the trees, lakes, weather, for its being a cusp between a city and a province, for its respect for the old and for how it embraces the lost foreigner by cradling it safely in its old quarters and ultimately for having a sense of pride and yet not too aware of how great it is while never hesitating on making its guests feel great about who they are. Ahhh Hanoi, love it heaps!

    3. Having a blast at Sinulog with friends
For all the Januaries that I had spent in Cebu, this year was my first Sinulog experience. Really got down and dirty with it dancing in the street, walking under the heat of the furious sun, meeting people, taking pictures, saying some prayers and actually “getting” the whole experience’s sense.

2. Going back to writing (via blogging)
I have broken my silence and secret fear of “going back to writing”. The result was I was read ALL OVER THE WORLD! I know that this novelty might not count much since there are way too many bloggers out there who can make a similar claim but that is entirely beside the point. Whatever it is, the fact remains that ALL OVER THE WORLD some people bothered to read, and that alone counts for SOMETHING.

    1. Being inches away from Roger Federer and Pete Sampras
I have yapped endlessly on this. I met my sports superheroes and the feeling was far greater than I had imagined. I’m a hardcore tennis aficionado and Federer and Sampras in one court is as hardcore as it can get.

Jesus Walks

My years in UP taught me this: the amount of human rights violations transpiring in our country is directly proportional to the number of poor people we have multiplied many times over. Even further, massive land grabbing is not a myth but its pervasiveness has elevated itself to a non-crime leaving a long trail of generational wounds in its path. Case in point: the plight of the Sumilao farmers.

It’s not difficult to understand their story as it is after all the stuff that makes our history. We were, as a matter of fact, mere settlers in our own country fighting off a deluge of imperial armies once upon a time. The battlecry then was that we were here first. We live here. This is our country, we cried.

A few hundred years after we are still hearing the same cry, but this time around from the Sumilao farmers. They were mere settlers in Sumilao Bukidnon when nobody else lived there. When it was a mere piece of land, they toiled and made it productive and raised generations of their families there. Until of course the rich and powerful forcibly evicted them in the 1940s.

While I am won’t to generalize the extremely rich as matapobre who given a chance would quash humanity out of the destitute, I also know this: A potent combination of knowledge/power/money versus a people with limited (if at all) amount of knowledge/education/money/power — the latter is always at the losing end. And most of the time they lose in the saddest of manners, scratching their heads as they retreat in defeat not having a full grasp of what had just swept through them.

In the case of the Sumilao farmers, when this first happened it was that time again to worry where and how to get the next meal. An ordeal, I am sure that is not unfamiliar to them but when the event seemed to have drawn its final curtains it was an ordeal that may prove to stay longer and more frequently than usual.

While it is a sad legal fact that the Supreme Court has determined that they have no legal claim to the land, it is also a fact that legalities can be mere technicalities that can cripple the power of law. In this case of mere average legal complications, surely lawmakers can do better than limit their view with a few legal merits. After all this is one of those times that the human element of the law comes into full productive practice.

To begin with, that piece of land is already rightfully theirs until someone who knew better “legally” grabbed it from them. There is CARP, too. And I leave it to my lawyer friends to explain it in its intricate details. But while we’re at the business of studying legalities, we might as well take a look at how the CARP’s execution (or lack thereof) comes in the uh, legal picture.

When the land titles of the poor farmers were cancelled after the Supreme Court ruled to grant Quisumbing’s request to convert his land, it was under the condition of his 5-year development plan. This approval to convert his land from agricultural to agro-industrial effectively avoided CARP ruling which would have granted the titles to the Sumilao farmers.

The 5-year plan did not materialize. Quisumbing decided to sell the land to the San Miguel Foods Inc. who then opted to turn the land into a “world-class” piggery. Such irony.

The Sumilao farmers’ voice is now clear and obviously more informed, revoke the land conversion order since the 5-year development plan which was the foothold of Quisumbing’s conversion request did not materialize. The land too is a prime agricultural land anyway, and this alone disqualifies it from any form of conversion under the DAR Administrative Order No. 20, Series 1992.

Strewn in the middle of the Sumilao fight are gaps that I trust our legislators and lawyer friends to settle inside the courtroom for it is a matter of fact that we have a lot of good men and women out there.

While I see the protest of the Sumilao farmers as a sign of progress (it is a relief to see the less priveleged find their voice in a peaceful manner instead of retreating in fear), I also feel that it’s sad that issues are not given the attention they deserve until something dramatic similar to “a march of a thousand miles on foot” happens.

I believe in the law. And I am inclined to believe that one good thing that happened in our history which granted us our country is not forgotten. We got justice and freedom when we got our country back from the imperial powers. In a country of lawmakers who treasure their independence and nationality, the Sumilao farmers will get their land back.

_______

Please support the Sumilao Farmers. Had info from Rico that it’s best to visit them at the Dept. of Agrarian Reform (QC Circle area) early tomorrow since they have activities early the following morning. They need blankets since it’s been getting cold at nights in Manila and they don’t have enough blankets.

Online Petition: Click Here
More Info: Lakaw Sumilao