a morning

One of these days, if I have the luxury for it, I shall go and photograph people going about their life on a regular day. I wonder, if there's a giant invisible camera out there, what point in my morning would it capture:

Hear the incorrectly-set alarm go off. Kick the sheets because the alarm went off. Attempt going back to sleep. Sleep walk to the family room. Cross to the girls' bedroom and caress their hair and faces. Check my accounts in Flickr, Twitter, Blogspot, Geni and Facebook. Prepare a photo for posting in Flickr. Check my Inbox in Yahoo and Hotmail. Peek at Gmail. Play the GAMES! Try to move the red little weights. Disregard the dumbbells. Go back to bed. Stand up since can't sleep. Go to the garden. Say hi to Coal, the black Lab. Visit the vegetable patch. Convince the vegetables to grow well. Supervise the breakfast menu. Think of new little house projects to give to the carpenter. Turn on the control for hot water. Check the wardrobe. Realize there is nothing to wear! Drive away the girls from the television room. Ready the hamper of soiled clothes. Convince Nika and Gela to go to the table. Call Mike three times. Eat breakfast. Mix my Ovaltine drink. Try to forget taking my vitamins. Take my vitamins. Prepare for office. Drive to work. Start the day of a regular girl.

And I remember. Nobody ever wanted to be called regular.

the first sentences

Out of the hundreds of books available in a bookstore, I admit I get attracted first to the one with the most intriguing title. And then the cover design helps. Then add the testimonies on the first and last flaps of the book.

But if I should salute the authors that I had read, I believe I shall do it on the account of their first sentences. I know that the first sentence is a delicate dish that each writer takes the most care in cooking, spicing up, garnishing and serving out. The first sentence must be interesting, significant, witty, and touching enough to let the reader decide that this must be a good read.

I'd like to go back to some of the books I have in the family room shelves and pick a few first sentences that caught my attention. At the end of this collection I shall poke some of my buddies and ask them to collect their own favorite intros as well.

"It may be that I am growing old in this world and have used up more than my share of allotted words and eager audiences."
- The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans

"In the last days of Narnia, far up to the west beyond Lantern Waste and close beside the great waterfall, there lived an Ape."
- The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

"Manhattan, island of glittering dreams, slept in the predawn darkness."
- The First Wives Club by Olivia Goldsmith

"It was inevitable: the scent of bitter almonds always reminded him of the fate of unrequited love."
- Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

"Money talks, but you may think that the conversation of a little old ten-dollar bill in New York would be nothing more than a whisper."
- The Tale of a Tainted Tenner by O. Henry

"The jury was ready."
- The Appeal by John Grisham

"By human standards it could not possibly have been artificial: It was the size of a world."
- Contact by Carl Sagan

"I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975."
- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

photo warrior of the week

When did you start with photography?
I was already interested since I was in university. But my husband bought me a camera last September 2008 and it has been 392 Flickr shots ago.

Is photography your hobby or employment?
It’s a hobby. Nobody ever paid me yet for my photos!

Your equipment?
Canon EOS 1000D Canon 100mm
Canon EFS 17-85mm Canon 70-300mm
Canon 50mm Canon 10-22mm

Have you ever used a film camera?
Yes a Nikon film camera way back in university – capturing school snapshots for the yearbook.

What do you prefer – film or digital – why?
Most have gone digital already so I think I would prefer that. Easier, faster and more economical. And with photo editing available, shooting with digital gives you a full range of opportunities.

What do you usally make with your photos when uploaded to your computer?
My photos start as raw files. So the best one gets picked. Processed. Then uploaded to Flickr.

Are you making a lot of reprints of your photos?
No. But I did a black and white series in Flickr and out of that collection, I printed some and placed them in frames and displayed them in my area in the family corporation’s office. You would not think it’s the space of the Finance Manager!

What is your favorite object of photography?
Nothing in particular. But if I have my way, my daughters, Annika and Angela. I could just be taking photos of them. But they’re real impatient.

What does inspire you?
A sunrise or a sunset. The music or the poem I hear when I see a photo I make. And most of all, my husband Mike. He does terrific work with his photographs!

Do you have another artistic hobby?
I keep a blog in case I want to write. But I have skipped it for the past months. I've already used my Flickr photo stream to express what I feel.

What would you like to show or say with your photography?
That the ordinary can be beautiful. I promised my mother I won’t take ugly pictures. I can let others do that.

Some tricks and tips?
Sometimes the photo speaks to you. Sometimes you first have to breathe life into it before it gets to talk. So do whatever you want to do. There are no rules. And don’t go around copying other people’s styles. I've made it a point to avoid it. It will just scare - discourage - anger - drag you down and dry you up.

Your photography dream that has not been fulfilled yet?
Doing a bit of photo journalism. Or getting commissioned to do a thematic coffee table book.

Is there something more you would like to tell us?
I do not shoot a photograph. I make it. And I think all photographers, in a way, are artists. So I hate it if people ask me if I use photo enhancement softwares or not. This is the product I want you to see. So you are most welcome to enjoy this work. No questions.

click here to go to the feature and to leave your comments:
Photo Warrior of the Week

landing on front page

Mike said that my photo will be included in Flickr Explore. I didn't believe him then - but it really did. And I only learned about it being in Explore when I got informed that it landed on the Explore Front Page too. What a very pleasing thing to happen to one's work!



What is Explore Front Page?
Explore is a Flickr feature which discovers and showcases some of the most awesome photos on Flickr. Explore Front Page is a common phrase used by Flickr users to indicate the home page of Explore.

What does it mean to have photo(s) on the Front Page?
A score of people use Explore to find new photos on Flickr everyday. When a photo is on the Front Page, it is exposed to a huge audience of photo enthusiasts around the world. So, being on Explore Front Page is like being featured on the front page of a popular newspaper - your work gets noticed, people add you as their contact etc. You become famous overnight :)

What is FP?
FP is an alias for Explore Front Page. It's commonly used in photo descriptions, comments and tags by Flickr users.

What is Archivr?
Archivr is a third party application that tracks the photos displayed on Front Page. Using Archivr's search feature, users can find out if or how many of their photos have been on Front Page.


To view the photo here: The Life I Know

a new beginning

USAID Philippines is implementing a 4-year policy reform project, aptly named LOCAL IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH or LINC-EG. With the aim to effectively assist local stakeholders, particularly in Mindanao in their respective efforts to increase investments, expand business activities, create more jobs and alleviate poverty, a Mindanao Field Office has been established here in Cagayan de Oro City.

As we explore potential partnerships with the staunch movers for Mindanao, we are seeking your presence and participation during the

LAUNCH OF LINC-EG FIELD OFFICE
August 20 2009 Thursday 8:30am
Door #7 JSJ Townhouse, Molawan Street, Patag, Cagayan de Oro City.

We are also pleased to invite you to witness a forging of partnership between the LINC-EG Project and the Cagayan de Oro City Government and prospected partner organizations as we all seek to streamline Business Permitting and Licensing (BP&L) in the city.

HANDSHAKE CEREMONY BETWEEN THE LINC-EG PROJECT
AND THE PROPONENTS OF THE CITY BP&L STREAMLINING PROJECT
August 20 Thursday 10:30am
Dynasty Court Hotel, Tiano Street, Cagayan de Oro City.

A Press Conference will immediately follow to enable us to define and showcase to the public the LINC-EG Project and the emerging cooperation with the local stakeholders.

i am mary magdalene

Once, some few years back, somebody commented that with the way I carry myself, the way I go headlong into what I do and the attention I am getting from many people (yes, especially from the opposite sex) - if I were in the Bible I would be Mary Magdalene.

That she was a bad woman is the misconception that I grew up with. Maybe because the statues in churches depicting her are garbed with a red long dress adorned with jewels, with long curly red hair and sometimes even wearing a pair of gaudy dangling earrings which must be donated by a well-meaning lady of the parish. This of course is a major contradiction to the gentle blue-and-white gowned statues of Mary, Mother of God.

Well, in an interesting way I like being Mary Magdalene. I think that with the various theories and discussions regarding her so-called secrets and the debates on her character assassination in the holy book, I would like to think that if indeed I were in those times, I would work and study hard as Mary Magdalene did so she will be one of the learned disciples, compared to those who didn't have a whit of what they were actually doing as they follow this man who claimed to save the nations.

Oh yes. The demons and the sin worthy of wearing the scarlet letter. Well she was healed by no less than Christ himself and if ever the reputation was true, she was the most famous of all those who were repentant. Not bad enough.

Now that I am a grown woman, I would want to pay my respects to Mary Magdalene. She anointed Jesus. She was at the foot of the cross as he was dying, which is much to say since the male apostles were nowhere to be seen because of fear. And the best gift of all, which others fail to see as the most important part in the Bible because of blinding prejudice - she was the one who tended Jesus in the tomb and in so doing, was the first person to discover that Jesus has resurrected. He appeared to her first! Top that!

More importantly, to all the women like me who love their careers, Mary Magdalene's major work started where Jesus' had ended. She rounded up the followers during their lowest point and it was her word - and I bet she had the best of public speaking skills and the strongest convincing powers - that made them realize and accept that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead as he has promised and that they need to continue to spread his message.

Yes, the lady has a very colorful curriculum vitae. I don't mind being her at all. A girl like that.

Saint Mary Magdalene, pray for us.
Feast Day: July 22

crazy at the farm

I have been absent from blogging and there's only one reason for that. I have taken to Farm Town hook, line and sinker. Yes I know, I miss hours of sleep just to tend to the grapes that shall become ready for harvest in four hour intervals.


I don't mind asking in the marketplace for work. If it works, then be it.
I made a worksheet for all crops to identify which are most profitable.
I cried when a whole harvest of forgotten potatoes went to waste.
I try to harmonize trees to be laden with fruits for a one-time harvest.

Yes I'm working for that mansion. And when I finally get to Level 34, I shall put down the hoe and stop plowing and planting. I shall convert the property into a national park, and just let the trees bring in the income. So I'd appreciate it if you could send in tree gifts!

Esta Menina is Mrs. Boss of Arcadia and she lives in Blue Gables.
I must wear this button: "Don't laugh but I'm famous in Farm Town".

the name of mendoza

Mendoza

Spanish Origin

Noble surnames, such as Mendoza, evoke images of the ancient homeland of the Spanish people. The original bearer of the name Mendoza, which is a local surname, once lived, held land, or was born in the beautiful region of Spain. The Mendoza family originally lived in the place named Mendoza, which is the province of Alava. This place-name was originally derived from the Basque word mendi, which means mountain and otz, which means cold.

Spelling variations of this family name include: Mendoza, de Mendoza, Mendozo, Mendosa, de Mendosa, Mendoso and many more.

First found in Castile, an important Christian kingdom of medieval Spain.

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Among the early travellers to the New World was Antonio de Mendoza, the first Viceroy of New Spain (1535). He founded a university and established a printing press. He died in Lima, Peru in 1552. Also of note was Alfonso de Mendoza, who accompanied Hernn Corts to Mexico. He later voyaged to Peru, and in 1548 he founded the city of La Paz, Bolivia. Perhaps the most famous family member to reach the New World was Pedro de Mendoza, courtier to King Carlos V, Knight of the Orders of Alcntara and Santiago. In 1534 he set out for the Ro de la Plata region, where two years later he founded the city of Buenos Aires. At least four other family members held important military or administrative offices during the early years of conquest and discovery. Other early migrants to the New World bearing this surname included Cristbal de Mendoza, who sailed to America in 1511.

Coat of Arms

A red shield with five silver leaves.

the name of pulido

Pulido

Spanish Origin

The Pulido surname comes from the Spanish word "pulido" meaning "polished," "neat" or "handsome;" as such, this surname is thought to have evolved from a nickname.

Spelling variations of this family name include: Pulida, Pulido, Polido and others.

First found in the mountains of Burgos, in Northern Spain. The City of Burgos was the capital of the kingdom of Castile in the 11th century.

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Francisco Polido, who settled in Guatemala in 1538; Maria Pulida, who arrived in New Spain in 1594; Juan Pulido, who came to Peru in 1565; Alonso Martin Pulido, who came to Ecuador in 1577.

Coat of Arms

A red shield with a gold lion rampant, within a gold border, charged with eight serpent heads.

this mother's day

When I came home in the rain,
my brother asked, "Why didn't you take an umbrella?"

My sister advised, "Why didn't you wait till the rain stopped?"

Father angrily warned, "You will realize only after you get a cold!"

But Mother, while drying my hair, said, "Stupid rain! Couldn't it wait, till my child gets home?"

Now that's a MOM!